Heal Your Marriage with a Private Couples Therapy Intensive in Virginia Beach
Private, results-driven Imago couples therapy intensives in Portsmouth & Virginia Beach—helping you heal, reconnect, and restore hope.
What Makes Our Couples Therapy Intensive in Virginia Beach Unique
Most weekly therapy sessions end just as the real progress begins. Our 2-day couples therapy intensive in Virginia Beach gives you uninterrupted time to heal and reconnect. In a calm, structured environment, you’ll work privately with an Imago-trained therapist who guides you through a process that’s helped thousands of couples worldwide. Whether you’re facing frequent arguments, distance, or loss of trust, this immersive retreat helps you repair your relationship faster than months of traditional counseling.
The Marriage Restoration Project was founded by Rivka & Rabbi Shlomo Slatkin in Baltimore, Maryland, and has since expanded across the U.S.—including right here in Portsmouth, Virginia, just a short drive from Virginia Beach.
If you’re facing challenges in your marriage or relationship, know that you’re not alone—and help is within reach. Rabbi Shlomo Slatkin is a Certified Imago Therapist, Imago Workshop Presenter, and Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor with a Master of Science in Counseling. He specializes in guiding couples toward healing, communication, and long-term transformation.
Couples in the Portsmouth area can benefit from our immersive marriage counseling intensives or begin our flexible, self-paced online marriage counseling programs from anywhere.
Service Areas — Marriage & Couples Therapy Across Coastal Virginia
We proudly serve couples throughout Coastal Virginia and beyond.
Our Virginia Beach–Portsmouth couples therapy intensives attract couples from across the region who want focused, high-impact relationship support without months of weekly sessions.
Whether you’re based in Virginia Beach, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Newport News, Hampton, or Suffolk, or visiting from nearby areas like Williamsburg or Richmond, you can easily reach our private retreat setting.
For couples who prefer not to travel, we also offer online marriage counseling and virtual couples retreats with the same structure and personalized attention as our in-person intensives.
Many couples choose to make their experience a weekend getaway, enjoying the peaceful coastal surroundings of Virginia Beach while working together to rebuild connection, safety, and trust. View all of our couples therapy intensive locations here.
Portsmouth VA Counseling Office
- 355 Crawford St Suite 333, Portsmouth, Virginia 23704
- (757) 606-9801
- Map & Directions
Why Choose Us?
- 10+ years experience counseling couples locally.
- Featured on Fox45, The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Magazine, Baltimore Jewish Times & more
- Conveniently located on Main Street
- MS in Counseling Psychology from Loyola University, Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, Certified Imago Relationship Therapist, Advanced Clinician
Why Couples Choose The Marriage Restoration Project
For over two decades, The Marriage Restoration Project has helped couples across the U.S. rebuild trust and rediscover connection. Founded by Rivka and Rabbi Shlomo Slatkin, MS, LCPC, a Certified Imago Relationship Therapist, our nationwide team of clinicians is trained in the same “No Blame, No Shame” method. We’re proud to be recognized among the best marriage intensives in Virginia, offering private, structured programs that deliver lasting results.
Our therapy work for couples has been featured in national blogs and papers such as the Huffington Post, Redbook Magazine, Readers Digest, Psychology Today, Bustle, The Good Men Project, and many more.
- Fox 45
- The Baltimore Sun
- Baltimore Magazine
- Baltimore Jewish Times
Just because someone advertises that they see couples, does NOT mean that they have any expertise in the area. A social work degree or a psychology degree, does not make one trained in the extremely specialized and delicate work of marriage counseling.
Just as you wouldn’t go to your general practitioner for an operation, you wouldn’t want to go to a general therapist to save your marriage. The future of your family and peace of mind is at stake. Lucky for you, a nationally renowned therapist is right around the corner.
Marriage Counselors for Couples Across Virginia
Why Choose an Imago Couples Retreat Instead of Weekly Counseling
An Imago couples retreat isn’t like standard talk therapy. It’s a deep, experiential approach that helps both partners feel heard and understood—without blame or defensiveness. Over two full days, you’ll identify the patterns that keep you stuck and learn new ways to communicate that restore empathy and emotional safety. Our Imago therapy retreat condenses six months of progress into one focused weekend, offering a level of breakthrough that weekly sessions simply can’t match.
It’s tempting to want to choose a marriage counselor that is closest to your zip code and takes your insurance.
Since your marriage is your most important relationship, you’ll want to make sure you set yourself up for success by choosing the best counselor for your marriage, not the closest or the cheapest counselor. If you want marriage counseling that will actually work and not make things worse, think about attending a marriage intensive or marriage retreat.
After working for over a decade serving the Portsmouth community we noticed that couples wanting to fix their marriage can’t possibly achieve the total transformation that they want in once-a-week 50-90 minute sessions. By the time you sit down and talk with each other and with the therapist, your time is up.
That’s why, here at The Marriage Restoration Project, we only see couples in a 2 day marriage intensive format for their marriage counseling needs.
This intensive marriage counseling format works. Our clinicians work exclusively with couples and have several decades marriage counseling retreat reviews and testimonials from couples. Our successful marriage counseling work has been featured locally on many news outlets.
Usually, the best-rated relationship therapists are out of network. There are many imago relationship therapists you can choose from here in Virginia. We hope that you will consider our “No Blame, No Shame” approach to marriage counseling that we’ve been using successfully with couples for over a decade.
Private Marriage Intensive Retreats in Portsmouth & Online
Whether you’re local to Portsmouth or Virginia Beach or prefer the convenience of online sessions, we offer both in-person and virtual retreats. Each private marriage intensive is fully confidential—no groups, no distractions. Couples who can’t travel can attend a virtual couples therapy intensive via Zoom or Skype with the same structure, attention, and results as an in-person retreat.
Who Our Virginia Beach Marriage Intensive Is For
Our marriage intensives are designed for couples at any stage—from those feeling distant or disconnected to those navigating infidelity, resentment, or uncertainty about the future. Many couples attend as a last chance to save their relationship, while others come to strengthen an already stable marriage. If you’re tired of repeating the same arguments or feeling unseen, this relationship bootcamp for couples can help you rebuild safety, trust, and love.
We’d Love to Help You!
Can you really trust your marriage counselor?
What You Should Know Before Choosing a Marriage & Family Therapist.
Marriage Counseling can be a matter of life or death for your relationship. Many counselors are not equipped to handle the dynamic of working with two people in a room. Unless dealt with in a skillful way, conflict can escalate and the sessions can do more damage than good- stirring up old hurt and not offering constructive solutions for healing. Some couples counselors encourage divorce, for lack of a better solution.
You are coming in to make your marriage better or to save it. The last thing you want to hear is that the professional can’t help you!
When it comes to marriage counselors Portsmouth/Virginia Beach has many options. It’s important to choose a couples therapist who supports your goals for your relationship.
If your goal is to stay together and fix your marriage problems, our Private 2 day Marriage Restoration Retreat is for you. In this immersive retreat (aka marriage bootcamp) we use imago couples therapy to help you discover the root cause of your relationship and communication problems. Then you relearn how to communicate and really hear each other.
Affair Recovery & Infidelity Counseling in Virginia
Healing after betrayal takes more than time—it takes structure, safety, and compassion. Our affair recovery and infidelity counseling in Virginia Beach gives couples the space to process what happened, rebuild transparency, and create new boundaries rooted in honesty and emotional safety. Through Imago Dialogue, partners learn how to move from pain to understanding and from blame to genuine healing.
Online Marriage Retreats — Heal from Anywhere
Our online marriage retreats make it easy for couples to experience deep transformation without leaving home. Using secure video sessions, you’ll meet privately with an Imago-trained therapist for the same 2-day structure as our in-person intensives. These virtual couples retreats are ideal for busy professionals or long-distance partners who want the same breakthroughs and reconnection as in-person sessions.
What Happens During a 2-Day Couples Therapy Intensive
During your 2-day marriage intensive, you’ll participate in guided dialogues, experiential exercises, and practical tools for communication and empathy. Each session builds toward emotional clarity and reconnection, allowing you to leave with a clear plan for moving forward. Many couples describe the experience as a “reset button” for their relationship—a safe, structured couples therapy retreat near you that replaces months of weekly sessions with real change.
My name is Rabbi Shlomo Slatkin and I am a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor and a Certified Imago Relationships Therapist (Advanced Clinician). I’ve put together a tried and true formula for you so that that you can feel optimistic and hopeful again about enjoying a marriage that is respectful, supportive, and healthy. It would be a privilege to work with you and support you in effectively bringing back clarity and love into your relationship.
If you’re experiencing difficulties in your marriage, you NEED to have an intensive experience in order to create a breakthrough for your relationship.
And it is also crucial to have followup to integrate what you’ve learned so that your results will be long lasting- which is what you want!
Unlike a marriage workshop where you participate in a group setting with other couples, the retreat will give the privacy you need to deal with some of the most painful and personal issues you are facing in your relationship.
The Marriage Restoration Retreat is two full days of marital therapy, plus 8 follow-up sessions in person or online. If you’re in crisis, the first thing that you are looking for is the hope that your relationship can be better. Weekly sessions, which are normally only 50 minutes with other therapists, will often take a while to get you to a better place, and that’s provided that you have the stamina and resources to stick it out!
Couples leave our 2 Day Retreat with newfound hope for their relationship, an understanding of what went wrong, and new skills to move forward.
Filled with momentum and new commitment to your relationship, you’ve accomplished what would take in 6 months of therapy. All the resistance is gone and now you can do the real work to make your marriage wonderful in our 8 follow up sessions.
Success Stories
What Dr. Harville Hendrix, Founder of Imago Relationship Therapy, has to say about our work…
“Any couple interested in restoring their marriage and sustaining it will be blessed if they follow the logical and clear steps and processes described by Rabbi Slatkin, MS, LCPC in the Marriage Restoration Project.”
Dr. Harville Hendrix
Founder of Imago Relationship Therapy
Harville Hendrix, Ph. D. co-author with Helen LaKelly Hunt of Making Marriage Simple: Ten Truths for Changing the Relationship You Have into the Relationship You Want.
“By the time you finish reading this, another marriage will end in divorce. Good news, you can do something about it!”
Frequently Asked Questions — Virginia Beach Couples Retreat
What is a couples therapy intensive?
A focused 2-day program using Imago Relationship Therapy to help couples repair communication and reconnect deeply.
Is the intensive private or group-based?
Every retreat is private—just you, your partner, and your therapist.
Can we attend online?
Yes, our virtual intensives mirror the in-person structure for the same results.
Who is this program best for?
Couples seeking fast, lasting change in trust, communication, and emotional closeness.
Do you offer follow-up sessions?
Yes. All intensives include eight 60-minute follow-up sessions to reinforce progress.
Contact Us
Imago Therapy: Marriage Counseling That Works in Portsmouth, Virginia Beach or Online
Private, Effective Couples Therapy Near You That Works
Online via Zoom or Skype Available
Equal to 6 months of Traditional Marriage Counseling!
The Marriage Restoration Project: Portsmouth-Virginia Beach Marriage Counseling
The Marriage Restoration Project was founded in the Baltimore neighborhood of Pikesville, Maryland by Rivka & Rabbi Shlomo Slatkin.They have expanded now with counseling offices across the country, including this location just around the corner from Virginia Beach in Portmouth, Virginia. Having marriage or relationship problems? Shlomo Slatkin is a certified Imago Therapist, certified Imago Workshop Presenter, holds a Master of Science in Counseling, and is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor specializing in marriage and couples therapy.
Portsmouth VA Counseling Office
355 Crawford St Suite 333
Portsmouth, Virginia 23704
Tel – (757) 606-9801
Directions
Finding the Right Couples Counselor
It’s tempting to want to choose a marriage counselor that is closest to your zip code and takes your insurance.
Since your marriage is your most important relationship, you’ll want to make sure you set yourself up for success by choosing the best counselor for your marriage, not the closest or the cheapest counselor.
If you want marriage counseling that will actually work and not make things worse, think about attending a marriage intensive or marriage retreat.
After working for over a decade serving the Portsmouth, Virginia Beach, and Norfolk community we noticed that couples wanting to fix their marriage can’t possibly achieve the total transformation that they want in once-a-week 50-90 minute sessions. By the time you sit down and talk with each other and with the therapist, your time is up.
That’s why, here at The Marriage Restoration Project, we only see couples in a 2 day marriage intensive format for their marriage counseling needs.
This intensive marriage counseling format works. Our Virginia clinician has 10 years of real marriage counseling retreat reviews and testimonials from couples all over the East Coast!
Their successful marriage counseling work has been featured locally on many news outlets. 
Usually, the best rated relationship therapists are out of network. There are many imago relationship therapists you can choose from here in Virginia. We hope that you will consider our “No Blame, No Shame” approach to marriage counseling that we’ve been using successfully with couples for over a decade.
Our Counseling Services & Retreat Packages
Success Stories Featured on the Following Local News Outlets
- Fox 45
- The Baltimore Sun
- Baltimore Magazine
- Baltimore Jewish Times
In addition, their therapy work for couples has been featured in national blogs and papers such as the Huffington Post, Redbook Magazine, Readers Digest, Psychology Today, Bustle, The Good Men Project, and many more.
Just because someone advertises that they see couples, does NOT mean that they have any expertise in the area. A social work degree or a psychology degree, does not make one trained in the extremely specialized and delicate work of marriage counseling.
Just as you wouldn’t go to your general practitioner for an operation, you wouldn’t want to go to a general therapist to save your marriage.
The future of your family and peace of mind is at stake. Lucky for you, a nationally renowned therapist is right around the corner ( just off 695 ).
Marriage Counselors for Couples Across Maryland
We not only counsel couples in Virginia Beach, we also help couples across the state of Virginia and the east coast. Some of the cities we provide counseling service for include: Rockville, Fallstaff, Cheswolde, Reisterstown, Wheaton, Kemp Mill, Glen, Cheswolde, White Oak, Silver Spring, Central Park Heights, Frederick, MD; Brunswick; Walkersville; New Market; Hagerstown; Myersville; Emmitsburg;
Charles Town, WV; Leesburg, VA; Kemp Mill; Owings Mills; Pikesville; Rockville; Silver Spring; Wheaton; White Oakand.
Why Choose Us?
- 10+ years experience counseling couples locally.
- Featured on Fox45, The Baltimore Sun, Baltimore Magazine, Baltimore Jewish Times & more
- Conveniently located off of 695
- MS in Counseling Psychology from Loyola University, Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, Certified Imago Relationship Therapist, Advanced Clinician
Can you really trust your marriage counselor? What You Should Know Before Choosing an Marriage & Family Therapist.
Marriage Counseling can be a matter of life or death for your relationship. Many counselors are not equipped to handle the dynamic of working with two people in a room. Unless dealt with in a skillful way, conflict can escalate and the sessions can do more damage than good- stirring up old hurt and not offering constructive solutions for healing. Some couples counselors encourage divorce, for lack of a better solution.
You are coming in to make your marriage better or to save it. The last thing you want to hear is that the professional can’t help you!
When it comes to marriage counselors Portsmouth/Virginia Beach has many options. It’s important to choose a couples therapist who supports your goals for your relationship.
If your goal is to stay together and fix your marriage problems, our Private 2 day Marriage Restoration Retreat is for you. In this immersive retreat (aka marriage bootcamp) we use imago couples therapy to help you discover the root cause of your relationship and communication problems. Then you relearn how to communicate and really hear each other. Imago relationship therapy works! We are located in the heart of Pikesville, across from the Pikesville post office. Contact us today!
What Happens During the 2 Day Intensive Retreat:
My name is Rabbi Shlomo Slatkin and I am a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor and a Certified Imago Relationships Therapist (Advanced Clinician). I’ve put together a tried and true formula for you so that that you can feel optimistic and hopeful again about enjoying a marriage that is respectful, supportive, and healthy. It would be a privilege to work with you and support you in effectively bringing back clarity and love into your relationship.
If you’re experiencing difficulties in your marriage, you NEED to have an intensive marriage therapy experience in order to create a breakthrough for your relationship.
And it is also crucial to have followup to integrate what you’ve learned so that your results will be long lasting- which is what you want!
Unlike a marriage workshop where you participate in a group setting with other couples, the retreat will give the privacy you need to deal with some of the most painful and personal issues you are facing in your relationship.
The Marriage Restoration Retreat is two full days of marital therapy in our office or in your home, plus 8 followup sessions in person or on Skype. If you’re in crisis, the first thing that you are looking for is the hope that your relationship can be better. Weekly sessions, which are normally only 50 minutes with other therapists, will often take a while to get you to a better place, and that’s provided that you have the stamina and resources to stick it out!
Couples leave our 2 Day Retreat with newfound hope for their relationship, an understanding of what went wrong, and new skills to move forward.
Filled with momentum and new commitment to your relationship, you’ve accomplished what would take in 6 months of therapy. All the resistance is gone and now you can do the real work to make your marriage wonderful in our 8 followup sessions.
Dr. Harville Recommending Rabbi Shlomo
Here’s What Dr. Harville Hendrix, Founder of Imago Relationship Therapy, has to say about Rabbi Shlomo Slatkin.
Any couple interested in restoring their marriage and sustaining it will be blessed if they follow the logical and clear steps and processes described by Rabbi Slatkin, MS, LCPC in the Marriage Restoration Project.
Testimonials
When we participated in your Two Day Marriage Intensive about six weeks ago, we were at a crossroads in our relationship. We were recovering from infidelity, separated, and hoping to get some clarity as to whether there was a future for us and our young family. We walked away with hope that our communication could be different and that we could be more transparent with each other.
We knew it would take time to decide our future but we were definitely open to the possibility that the relationship could last.
Six weeks later, we are still experiencing positive results.
We are spending more time with each other, having fun again, and our able to communicate with out the constant reactivity and defensiveness that was plaguing our relationship. While it will take time to rebuild the trust that was broken, we are hopeful that as we continue to implement and integrate the work we did with you that we will build a more solid future for our family. We can’t thank you enough for your help.
C and K, Baltimore, MD *