When a relationship changes, most of us assume something went wrong. We used to have fun, and now we're arguing about dishes, money, or whose family gets the holidays. Sometimes that points to a real problem. More often, it means the relationship is developing.

In this solo episode, Laurie Groh, MS, LPC, SAS, walks through the seven stages long-term relationships move through: passion and infatuation, discovery and disillusionment, commitment and choice, power struggles and boundaries, stability and teamwork, deepening intimacy, and crisis and repair. You'll hear why the fight you keep having is rarely about the topic, the three questions that usually sit underneath it (Do I matter to you? Can I depend on you? Do you respect me?), and what repair actually looks like between two imperfect people.

Try this with your partner. Separately, answer four questions, then compare:

1. Which stage do you think we're in?
2. What feels hardest about this stage?
3. What do I need more of from you?
4. What am I willing to offer?

Read the full write-up:

• 7 Stages blog post: https://go.shoresidetherapies.com/wtc7stages
• Podcast website: https://go.shoresidetherapies.com/wtcpodcast
• Shoreside website: https://go.shoresidetherapies.com/wtcpod

If you and your partner keep having the same conflict, or feel disconnected and aren't sure how to move forward, the couples therapists at Shoreside Therapies can help — in person in Milwaukee, Glendale, and Whitefish Bay, and online across Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, and Colorado. Schedule a free 15-minute consultation at shoresidetherapies.com. Our intake coordinator Caitie will help you find the right fit, even if that's not us.

Without the Couch is hosted by Laurie Groh, owner of Shoreside Therapies. This podcast is for education only and is not therapy.

Timestamps (raw — re-verify against the final cut):

00:00 Why a changing relationship isn't a failing one

01:45 Stage 1: Passion and infatuation

06:20 Stage 2: Discovery and disillusionment

09:40 Stage 3: Commitment and choice

12:00 Stage 4: Power struggles and boundaries

14:10 The dishes fight: Do I matter? Can I depend on you? Do you respect me?

19:20 Stage 5: Stability and teamwork

21:20 Stage 6: Deepening connection and intimacy

24:20 Stage 7: Crisis and repair

27:00 A quick repair: the dinner-date story

30:25 The stages aren't a ladder

33:00 Exercise: four questions to ask each other

34:00 When couples therapy helps

Tags: relationships, couples therapy, marriage, conflict, communication, intimacy, repair, Milwaukee couples therapist.

You know the feeling. You finally get to the thing — the real thing — and you look at the clock and there are four minutes left. So you put a pin in it. And by next week, or two weeks from now, you're not quite back there anymore.

This week I'm joined by Kristen Holmes, LPC, who has been part of the Shoreside Therapies team for several years and is one of the people I refer to when a client is genuinely stuck. We talk about EMDR — what it actually is, past the acronym — and about EMDR intensives, a format where instead of an hour a week you do focused, deep work in a single block of hours or across a few days.

Kristen explains why stuckness usually isn't stubbornness. It's a moment in your life where you didn't get something you needed, and a part of you is still there, trying to get that need met over and over. She also names something a lot of people need to hear: many of the clients who come to her for EMDR don't arrive with what they'd call trauma. They arrive with anxiety, burnout, and relationships where they feel unseen — and they're often the ones who look like they have it all together.

In this episode:

• What EMDR actually is, and the movie-theater metaphor that makes it click
• The difference between the internet's version of "triggered" and what a real activator is
• Why your nervous system reacts before your thinking brain gets a vote
• What keeps people stuck after years of good therapy
• What an EMDR intensive looks like — the pre-session, the block, and the follow-up
• Why intensives fit business owners, career women, moms, teachers, and medical professionals
• How intensives work alongside your current therapist, not instead of them
• What Laurie sees in clients when they come back

If you've ever felt pressure to "get back to who you were" after having a baby — this one's for you. Laurie sits down with Dr. Katarina Meister, a functional medicine doctor who helps women prepare for pregnancy and postpartum (and a twin mom nine months in), and Shoreside perinatal therapist Katie Fortune, LPC. Together they get honest about matrescence — the identity shift no one warns you about — Katarina's preterm twin birth and NICU stay, the grief that can come even when everyone is "healthy," how to advocate with your care team, and the hormone-and-nutrient cliff that follows birth. You'll leave with language for what you're feeling and permission to heal instead of bounce back.

Work with Katie: https://go.shoresidetherapies.com/KF · Dr. Katarina's free lab guide: https://drkatarinameister.com/guide (@dr.katarina.meister) · Newsletter: https://bit.ly/wtcnews

This episode is educational, not medical or mental-health advice. If you're struggling, reach out to a licensed provider; in crisis, call or text 988.

If your child has ever been called "too much," "too distracted," or "too sensitive" — if you're the parent who tenses up every time the school's number lights up your phone — this episode is for you.

Laurie sits down with Jori Broidy, director of the new Milwaukee campus of Open Wings Learning Community, a school designed around neurodivergent kids, alongside Stacey Glasenapp, MS LPC, a child therapist at Shoreside Therapies. Together they get into what school looks like when it's built to believe in kids instead of manage them: six students to two teachers, learning partners matched by where a child actually is (not their birth year), zones of regulation woven into every morning, twice-daily outdoor time, and a culture where a meltdown is part of learning — not a reason to call home.

You'll also leave with tools that work at any school: mirroring the classroom routine at home, the parent–teacher notebook, and the "frustration bag" — a simple, mirrored calm-down kit for the cubby, the house, and the car.

Resources & links:

• Open Wings Learning Community (Milwaukee & Kenosha): openwingslearning.org — tour requests and enrollment questions (tuition and financial questions: contact the school directly)
• Work with Stacey Glasenapp, MS LPC — child therapy and support for moms of kids with special needs: shoresidetherapies.com
• St. Francis Children's Center (speech & OT partnership mentioned in-episode)
• Zones of Regulation (framework mentioned in-episode)

For most of her life, Laurie had a private word for herself: stupid. She's a therapist with a master's degree who has spent twenty years teaching other people to speak to themselves more kindly — and she never once caught it in herself.

Then, in her forties, the actual answer showed up: ADHD. Late diagnosed, like so many women.

This is the relaunch of the show, under a new name and a new focus. Laurie explains why the Wisconsin Wellness Podcast became Without the Couch, what changed, who this show is for — and why she calls it an anti-shame project.

This podcast is for educational purposes only. It is not therapy, and listening does not create a therapeutic relationship. If you're in Wisconsin, Illinois, or Colorado and want real support, reach out at shoresidetherapies.com.

Find Laurie: Shoreside Therapies — therapy in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Colorado: shoresidetherapies.com. The show, plus a place to send questions: withoutthecouch.com

In this episode of the Wisconsin Wellness Podcast, Laurie Groh talks with Elizabeth Grojean, founder of Baloo Living, about the science and story behind her ethical weighted blanket brand. Elizabeth shares how a leap of faith to Bali turned into a thriving business—and how slowing down can lead to deep transformation. You'll also hear:

• Why deep pressure touch helps regulate your nervous system
• How weighted blankets improve sleep quality, reduce anxiety, and even help during trauma work
• The importance of listening to your body over your inner critic
• How stress isn't always bad—it can fuel purpose
• Why sleep equity matters for kids and how Baloo supports mental health nonprofits

🔗 Get 10% off at BalooLiving.com with code wisconsinwellness

🎧 Listen now on Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/show/2pGeHlpsWqdg4sTCpAGm3G?si=e5b4bc9098da4bc0

📚 Learn about The Pajama Program and SeaTrees

Try a 5-minute grounding break with a weighted blanket — even midday. Give your body a moment of stillness and see how your nervous system responds. And if you don’t have one, maybe this is your nudge to check out Baloo (10% off with code wisconsinwellness at balooliving.com).

Guest: Bradley Brown, MS, LPC-IT – Therapist at Shoreside Therapies Host: Laurie Groh, MS, LPC – Shoreside Therapies

Description: In this special Father’s Day episode, Laurie sits down with Shoreside Therapies’ Bradley Brown to talk about the evolving mental health needs of dads. From identity shifts to emotional modeling and burnout, this conversation is packed with honest insights and practical tools. Whether you're a dad, partner, or someone supporting one, you'll leave with ideas for reflection, connection, and real growth.

What We Cover:

• The invisible load of fatherhood
• Why “dad guilt” is real—and what to do about it
• How to model emotional literacy for kids
• Breaking generational patterns in parenting
• Navigating loneliness and building male friendship
• Identity loss and postpartum mental health in men

Quick, doable strategies for better mental health today

Resources & Links: 🌊 Shoreside Therapies – Therapy for Men 👨‍⚕️ Meet Bradley Brown 📝 Free Reflective Worksheet for Dads (optional—let me know if you want this!) 🎧 Listen to more episodes: wisconsinwellnesspodcast.com