The Help You Need

Here’s why giving couples’ counselling a try during these stressful times is a good idea – and where you can get support

- Duenna Mambana

It's been flagged as one of the biggest concerns of the lockdown – how will couples survive being forced to be home together all the time?

Will they thrive or will they be casualties of the virus currently ravaging the country?

There’s one way to make sure you stay on top of your game as a couple, in and out of lockdown, experts say.

Therapy will help you deal with the mental-health issues that have plagued some South Africans since the lockdown, they believe.

And they’re not alone in trusting in the power of therapy.

Nandi Madida and Zakes Bantwini are one of the celebrity couples who’ve previously spoken out about going to therapy together.

“We go to therapy not because we have issues but because, historically, as Africans we are communal. Growing up, there was always therapy readily available everywhere but it was never labelled.

“There were grandparents, aunts, and uncles who would guide you and help you understand your wife and help your wife understand you better. Now you’re in Sandton without all that and you’re just doing this life thing just the two of you.

“So therapy is not white, and it is very important,” he said during an interview at a couple’s event in Sandton before the lockdown.

Couples have taken to social media to detail how the lockdown has affected their relationships. Some have been positive, like finding out how your significant other acts at work.

But some have been negative, including finding out just how much of a short temper your husband or wife has.