Marriage is a tough challenge in the best of circumstances. If your marriage is facing difficulties for any reason, the best plan may be to turn to a trained and experienced third party for help. A good marriage therapist can help you and your partner improve your communications skills, explore new methods of conflict resolution and show you how to recapture affection and intimacy. Counseling can be a perfect solution to a marriage in crisis for any reason including domestic violence, infidelity or substance abuse issues.

Fortunately, there are many highly qualified African-American marriage counselors ready to assist you. Below we’ve listed a few of the best therapists in Maryland:

Jessica Webb:

Jessica Webb is an experienced counselor specializing in couples and family therapy. She also has experience in dealing with ancillary issues that can contribute to relationship problems such as depression, weight issues, and anger management.

Her focus is on identifying problems that plague the individual and finding ways to resolve them. Usually, marital difficulty is caused by individual issues facing one or both partners. Ms. Webb also focuses on ‘life changes’ and addressing difficulties that people may have in coping with them. Some of these changes include marriage, death, childbirth, divorce, etc.

In addition to individual therapy sessions with clients, Ms. Webb has organized weekly group meetings for individuals and couples. Sessions are available for help with parenting (‘Parenting 101’) and marital issues (‘Marriage 101’). Ms. Webb is a graduate of Howard University and practices in Waldorf, Maryland south of Washington, DC.

Erica A. St. Bernard:

Erica St. Bernard places the needs of families and couples first and foremost in her therapy practice. Her primary focus is on marital issues including premarital issues. One of her specialties is work with couples that are planning to get married to help them enter their shared life with the best chance of success.

Additionally, she works with married and unmarried couples to help improved better interpersonal communication, greater harmony between the partners and their families, and improved methods of dispute resolution. She emphasizes the importance of growth as individuals within the confines of marriage as a significant component of a strong, stable relationship.

In addition to her work with married and unmarried couples, Ms. St. Bernard holds group therapy sessions for adult and adolescent women struggling with gender issues and other problems of personal identity. She also works with families and siblings to find ways to create a greater sense of peace and harmony within familial settings. Ms. St. Bernard is a graduate of Liberty University and practices in Largo, Maryland.

Celeste Greene:

Ms. Greene is a therapist specializing in relationship issues for single and married individuals and couples. Her focus is improving an individual’s self-image and sense of individuality as a means of facilitating a stronger relationship as a couple. She also works with single individuals that are having difficulties finding the romantic relationship they desire.

Her approach is identifying and understanding problematic behavior and the collateral damage it has on interpersonal relationships. Once a client understands the ‘whats’ and ‘whys’ of their emotions they can then make a conscious decision to respond differently to problematic stimuli. Ms. Greene is a graduate of Bowie State University and practices in Greenbelt, Maryland.

Read also: There are a number of black marriage therapists in Kentucky, that are available to help.