Catching Bullets: Why Couples Therapy Isn’t Individual Therapy With Two People

You lean in. You validate. You say, “That must be so hard.” Then the person on the other end of the couch says, “Hard for you? What about me?”

The skills that work so well with individual clients can fall apart in a couples session in about 10 seconds.

In this episode, Morgen Villegas and Ashley Charbonneau sit down with Dr. Laura Eubanks Gambrel, a certified Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) couples therapist, supervisor, and trainer with more than 20 years of clinical experience. Laura explains why couples therapy is not individual therapy with two people in the room, and why taking couples without training can harm clients.

You’ll hear:

• What “catching bullets” means in EFT, and why a single sigh can restart an old fight
• How to hold a firm, engaged container without telling couples what to do
• Why even Sue Johnson, the founder of EFT, had “dentist days”
• What makes a good supervisor, and why supervision should feel like a secure base
• The broken system where clients with the highest needs get the newest, lowest-paid therapists

Guest Bio:

Laura Eubanks Gambrel, PhD, LMHC (WA), LMFT (NC), LPC (CO), is a couples therapist, supervisor, researcher, author, and trainer with more than 20 years of clinical experience. She is a Certified Emotionally Focused Couples Therapist, an EFCT Supervisor-in-Training, an AAMFT Approved Supervisor, and a certified mindfulness instructor. She has supervised hundreds of therapists as a faculty member and in private practice. Dr. Gambrel meets clinicians at their learning edge, balancing support with challenge as they learn to trust the EFT process. Through her private practice, Relational Mindfulness - Therapy and Consultation, she offers therapy, supervision, and training in Bellingham, Washington, and virtually worldwide.

Guest Contact Info:

Website: www.relational-mindfulness.org

LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/gambrel

Your Hosts:

Ashley Charbonneau, LCSW, LAC, ACS, is a therapist, evaluator, clinical supervisor, consultant, and educator. She works with people affected by the legal system, with a focus on offender accountability, survivor healing, and restorative justice. She trains professionals across the country on restorative justice, addiction, clinical supervision, sexual offending, therapy boundaries, and mandatory reporting and is the author of The Resilient Therapist (Bloomsbury, 2026) and Supporting Clients of Sexual Trauma (PESI, 2026). Learn more at https://www.ensopllc.com/

Morgen Villegas, LCSW, LAC, ACS, is a therapist, consultant, EMDRIA Consultant, and author of Shadows to Light. Through her practice, Vida Idílica Therapy & Consulting, she specializes in helping women heal from trauma, attachment wounds, emotional neglect, and the lasting effects of overfunctioning and caregiving. Morgen also provides consultation to EMDR therapists seeking greater confidence and nuance in working with complex trauma. You can reach Morgen at https://www.vida-idilica.com