Today we’d like to introduce you to Brianna Brunner.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I’ve always been an entrepreneur. As a teenager, I started a tuxedo business in my basement renting prom tuxedos to my senior class. Then, in college, after experiencing some major life events, my life changed radically, and I knew I wanted to focus my energy on something purpose driven. I wanted to combine my love for business with my desire to give back, to help people make their lives better. I pivoted from my undergraduate business degree and got my Masters in Social Work from Rutgers. While there, I interned at the DBT Center of NJ and a few years later, after getting my clinical hours at a DBT Intensive Outpatient Program, I ended up starting my first practice as a DBT therapist. DBT is an incredible modality that literally saves lives, and I truly loved watching the transformation of my individual clients. So many of them did incredible work that humbled me and shaped my belief in the possibility of hope and healing. However, whenever I worked with couples, it felt like magic like: Okay, this is the thing you’re meant to do. I just got this incredible feeling where the stars aligned and it felt like I really knew my niche and where I wanted to carve out a space in the therapy world. I began couples therapy trainings and workshops and it affirmed that treating couples is my calling. Thus, Couples Therapy Services was formed, and the rest is history.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I don’t think any business or practice owner has an entirely smooth road, but I think that dynamic, ever-changing nature is what makes us choose a career like this in the first place. My therapists and I are always trying to evolve, learn, and grow to best serve our clients. The day we remain stagnant is the day we become obsolete, so it’s an ever-moving target, which can be difficult sometimes but is always worthwhile. We have the incredible and humbling privilege to be let into people’s lives in a deeply personal way, and we don’t take that for granted. So I would say, it’s been smooth in the sense that we all love what we do. Of course, running a practice exists on a learning curve, and we’re constantly adapting to meet and exceed that curve.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Couples Therapy Services?
This may seem obvious, but Couples Therapy Services is a practice founded on care for couples. That’s what we do. We live and breathe it. Many practices offer couples therapy but not many focus solely on it. That niche is what makes us stand out. We are committed to helping couples build a relationship worth keeping. We specialize in using evidence-based treatments like DBT for Couples, Imago, and The Gottman Method so that our clients see concrete results instead of simply rehashing conflicts for months and months. Our goal as a practice is for couples to not need us anymore. We want to give them the tools to thrive on their own and to revisit what they’ve learned whenever life presents new challenges. We specialize in all things couples from: premarital counseling, to new parents, to blended families, to coparenting and discernment counseling, to infidelity, to intimacy concerns, to problems with emotion regulation and connection, to LGBTQIA+ couples, and more.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
Books: High Conflict Couple by Alan Fruzzetti, The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work by John Gottman, Mating in Captivity by Esther Perel, Strong Ground and Daring to Lead by Brene Brown, Radical Candor by Kim Scott, Profit First by Julie Herres, The Accountability Equation (for Group Practice Owners): Bridging the Gap in Accountability and Impact by Maureen Hermann
Podcasts: Life of a CEO and The School of Greatness
Pricing:
- Couples Therapy Evaluation: $340
- Couples Therapy Sessions: $240 per session
- Couples Private Intensive: $2500
- 7 Principles of Marriage Package 12 Weeks: $2500
- Bringing the Baby Home Package 12 Weeks: $2500
Contact Info:
- Website: https://couplestherapyservices.com/
- Instagram: @couplestherapyservices
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/couplestherapyservicesnj/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianna-brunner-ba8b2919
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@CouplesTherapyServices
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/@CouplesTherapyServices
