About Melanie Grundvig, MA, MFT-C
Couples & Relationship Therapy
Let's Talk about Beliefs
Hi, I’m Melanie (She/Her/Hers) and I am the newest addition to the Modern Love team! I am a relationship therapist and have expertise in working with mixed-faith couples and couples struggling with fundamental differences. I am most passionate about working with couples who struggle with incongruence and differences in strong beliefs. Having fundamentally different beliefs can make relationships challenging, but it is my experience that rather than destroy relationships, differences in beliefs can actually reveal an even stronger and more compassionate connection. I am offering discounted therapy for both couples and individuals.
I have a MA in Marriage and Family Therapy from Regis University. My undergraduate degree was in the Humanities and I draw deeply from literature, philosophy, and art in my clinical practice. I have experience supporting individuals, and couples as they navigate psychological obstacles in their lives and in their relationships. I am passionate about helping clients experience deep transformation through existential exploration, deconstruction of beliefs/thoughts/stories, and meaning-making.
My ideal client is ready for rapid transformation because they want to dive into the deep end of their personal life and their relationships. I am a focused therapist. I use time intentionally, always with an eye toward the client’s goals. My ideal client likes to be challenged, is willing to expand their worldview, and wants to examine their internal and external life.
My therapeutic style is systemic. Meaning, I believe that our history, culture, community, and relationships are integral parts of understanding current experiences and I explore all of this with clients. In broadening the scope to view these systems we also deepen our understanding of the self. I love to ask my clients insight-oriented questions, aimed at helping you understand yourself and your relationships better. I like to challenge clients with my honest observations and insight while providing unconditional, positive regard for where you’re currently at. My goal as a therapist is for you to leave your sessions with the openness and self-knowledge to carve the path of your preferred life.
I like to get creative: we will occasionally do art therapy and other unique interventions. I love to flow with the spontaneity and epiphanies of the session rather than adhering to a rigid therapeutic structure.
In my free time, I am obsessed with doing every outdoor sport in mediocrity: mountain biking, skiing, climbing, hiking, I love it all! I am a voracious reader and love to keep learning in all areas of my life. I have been married to my husband for 2 years. Together, we have navigated our own extreme differences and found extreme closeness in the process.
Couples & Relationship Therapy
Deconstructing & reconstructing
An important part of my practice is deconstruction. We think, feel, and live the ways we do because we have preexistent narratives around what we “should” be doing, what we can be doing, and who we are or are not. It is a goal of mine to deconstruct these narratives with clients, pulling them apart to find out where they came from, why we believe them, and how they impact us. In so doing I create a blank canvas for clients to begin creating your own meaning, beliefs, and values informed by your preferences and what works for your life. My style is very collaborative and leans heavily on postmodern frameworks like Solution Focused Therapy and Narrative Therapy, as well as integrating my love for profound questioning and philosophy.
My Specialties
1
Mixed Faith Couples
There are general challenges that every couples faces, but mixed faith couples oftentimes present with concerns unique to their faith traditions as well as discouraging cultural narratives. I can support couples with learning how to respect each other’s differences, as well as support each other.
2
Religious Trauma & Faith Crisis
As a therapist who specializes in these topics, I provide knowledgeable guidance to assist clients through unpacking and overcoming these experiences. My approach is trauma informed and sensitive to the particularities of faith crises and religious trauma. I help clients heal from the past while co-creating a future defined by growth and self-empowerment.
3
Equal Partnership
Whether at the beginning of the relationship or after many years of marriage, we can strengthen equality and fairness. My approach begins by uncovering how a relationship prioritizes the time, labor, and values of both partners and then provides psychoeducation and strategies on how to improve the equality of those important factors.