When clarity returns, connection does too.
Private couples therapy intensives in the Capital District.
Serving Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC.
Why Couples Choose Our Approach
Since 2013
Most comprehensive available
Advanced Gottman-trained
Over 2.5 transformative days
Why Does Assessment Matter?
1. You Won’t Waste Your Expensive Intensive Repeating Your Story
Most couples spend their first intensive session explaining their history. Not here. Our 1,864-question assessment tells your story FOR you—so your therapist arrives knowing your patterns, your pain points, and what you’ve already tried.
2. Start Fixing From Minute One
The assessment reveals your communication cycles, conflict triggers, and hidden dynamics before you walk in the door. That means more time actually healing—not just explaining what’s broken. You paid for solutions, not storytelling.
3. Assessment Reveals What You CAN’T See
You know you’re stuck. But you can’t see WHY from inside the cycle. Our assessment reveals the invisible patterns: pursue-withdraw dynamics, the real needs underneath surface complaints, the bids for connection you’re both missing. When you can see the pattern, you can finally change it.
Ready to take the next step?
Begin your couples retreat inquiry today — we’ll walk you through every detail, with care.
“The intensive therapy centers around the BIG BIG Book. Put the time and effort into thoroughly completing this. It provides your therapist with the background so your time is spent discussing the core issues, not explaining your history.”
OUR RETREAT
When the Distance Feels Unbridgeable
Once, a glance was enough to warm the room.
You shared stories, laughter—even the quiet felt safe.
But something shifted.
Now, the silence feels like distance. Inches apart at the table, miles apart in meaning.
The connection that once felt effortless now feels out of reach.
Our Retreat
For Couples Who Can’t Afford to Keep Circling the Same Argument.
You’ve talked in loops.
Tried to stay calm.
Maybe even worked with a therapist before.
But the same patterns keep showing up—conflict, silence, blame, escape.
When connection feels this fragile, you need more than a good conversation.
You need time, skill, and space.
Our Capital District couples therapy intensives offer all three.
Designed for busy, high-functioning couples who want more than surface repair—they’re structured to help you rebuild the trust, perspective, and emotional safety that make lasting change possible.
Why a Retreat?
Because insight without structure doesn’t stick.
In a standard therapy hour, you barely get started before the clock runs out.
A retreat gives you room to pause, reflect, speak fully—and be heard.
These aren’t drawn-out sessions. They’re intentional, intensive work with a skilled therapist who can help you cut through the noise and finally get to what matters.
Connection isn’t
a mystery.
It’s a skill.
More time = deeper work.
More focus = faster insight.
More privacy = fewer defenses.
This isn’t therapy as usual. It’s a reset.
One designed for couples who are ready to stop spiraling—and start rebuilding.
Meet Your Therapists in The Capital District
Angela Voegele, LCSW-C
Rockville, MD
McLean, VA or Charlottesville, VA
With international experience and board certification in sex therapy, Angela Voegele brings warmth, transparency, and deep clinical skill to her work with couples.
Whether you’re navigating cultural transitions, relational trauma, or emotional distance, Angela creates space for transformation—with structure and grace.
Dr. Nancy Garcia-Ruffin, PsyD
Bethesda, MD
Direct, grounded, and full of heart, Dr. Nancy Garcia-Ruffin brings over 20 years of clinical experience and lived relational insight.
Also a board-certified sex therapist, she specializes in infertility, cross-cultural partnerships, and high-stress transitions, offering therapy that is evidence-based and emotionally brave. Whether you’re stuck, separating, or starting over—Dr. Nancy Garcia-Ruffin helps couples move forward with understanding and care.
Dr. Jessica Jones, Psy.D.
Arlington, VA
Thoughtful, calm, and quietly incisive, Dr. Jessica Jones brings a rare depth to her work with couples. Blending psychoanalytic insight with structured, science-based methods, she’s especially skilled at supporting reflective partners navigating layered histories, emotional misattunement, or slow-building disconnection. Dr. Jones offers a grounded, family-friendly space in Arlington for couples ready to move beyond survival and into real connection.
The Capital District Setting
Maryland. Virginia. Washington, DC.
Three locations. One commitment: Relationship change that lasts.
Ease of access. Depth of experience.
Whether you’re based in the city or flying in from out of state, our Capital District locations offer flexible options in sophisticated, walkable neighborhoods—with privacy, quiet, and comfort at the forefront.
Spend your downtime walking through Georgetown, sipping coffee in Bethesda, or unwinding in one of Northern Virginia’s boutique hotels. This isn’t about escape. It’s about making what’s been unspoken–named, in a setting that supports the work.
Stay at The Line DC, The Lorien in Alexandria, or a private Airbnb nearby.
The Unseen Cost of Relationship Distress
When you’re in conflict, everything else feels heavier.
Sleep suffers. Parenting gets harder. Even your successes feel muted.
And when nothing seems to shift, hopelessness starts creeping in.
That’s when something deeper is needed.
Not just more talk—but skilled, structured, sustained work.
“We don’t heal relationships with hope alone. We heal them by telling the truth—with someone who knows how to hold it.”
— Dr. Kathy McMahon, Founder, Couples Therapy Inc.
Is an Intensive Retreat Right for You?
Our retreats are designed for couples who are:
If you’re coping with untreated mental illness, active addiction, or domestic violence, those concerns deserve specialized care—and we’re happy to refer you to professionals who can help.
We are not a fit for every couple.
Healing takes courage. We work best with couples ready to show up with heart, honesty, and effort.
What you avoid
becomes what you carry.
Let’s stop carrying it alone.
After the Retreat
This isn’t a “one and done” solution. It’s the beginning of a new chapter.
We’ll support you beyond the intensive with:
How is all of this done?
We don’t expect you to know. That’s our job.
That’s why we’ve mapped the path—step by step, human to human.
No guessing. No “choose from a list of strangers.”
Just a clear, guided process that starts with listening—really listening—and ends with finding you the right therapist.
We’ll walk you through what working with us looks like, and what to expect every step of the way. Whether you’re arriving with doubt, hope, or just a deep sense that something needs to change—we’ll help you take the first real step.
Let’s Begin
You’ve been surviving.
Now let’s talk about living.