ABSTRACT
Sometimes the work of a session may take some setup. The setup time may be necessary for the following reasons: to work through resistance, to build concepts needed for the direction, to deal with feelings before the direction is fully set, to deal with other impinging issues first, and to enlist the couple's cooperation and consent. It may be that during this setup time the issues of the setup become the work itself. Since couples therapy can change direction at any time, as the therapist you need to be ready to shift gears if needed. Freedman and Combs (2015) describe the setup in a session. After the direction of the session is set, the therapist works with the wife to help her to be a better listener to her husband. The therapist does this by talking with the wife about someone in her life who really listens.
