Razzleberry, yes, it can be beneficial for your therapist to meet and get to know the other members of your family, including your spouse. But not always. Every situation is different. Plus, not all therapists are trained to accommodate seeing multiple members of the same family. My T is a family systems therapist, so is trained for this. He learns so much about the family and its individual members by seeing the members interact and hearing their stories. I was in individual therapy for 7 months with my T before I found the courage to bring my husband with me for couples therapy. I remember after the first session, T described one little moment from our couples work, one small interaction, and said it was a like a snapshot to him that encapsulated all of our relationship. Even though I had told him much about our situation, it was like this snapshot was more powerful than a thousand words. He instantly "got it" at a level he hadn't before.

One of the biggest problems of moving from solo to couples therapy is the sense of divided loyalties. The therapist must be able to handle this and be able to connect with all the family members while providing reassurance to everyone that he has not "abandoned" them. So if you want to add your spouse to the therapy mix, I would recommend making sure your T has the training and philosophy for this. My T has said to us both, "when I'm talking to one of you, don't worry, I haven't left the other one. I'm still here and haven't forgotten you. You can see me and hear me and if you wait, I will be right back with you when I am done talking to your partner. It's OK."