Helping

Couples

Reconnect

& Thrive

Offering personalized therapy and coaching to help couples build deeper connections and navigate challenges with compassion

Shimekia Williams

Hi, I’m Shimekia "Trudy" Williams, a couples therapist deeply committed to helping partners strengthen their emotional connection, navigate conflict with compassion, and create the kind of relationship that supports mutual growth and healing. My work is rooted in evidence-based approaches like the Gottman Method, and is guided by a deep respect for the lived experiences, cultural identities, and unique rhythms of every couple I work with.

 As a Black Jamaican woman and healing practitioner, I bring not only clinical training but also lived insight into how love, legacy, and liberation intersect in intimate partnerships. I believe in the power of curiosity, laughter, and presence. My clients often describe me as both deeply intuitive and refreshingly honest—someone who creates space for vulnerability while gently nudging them toward change.

 I work primarily with LGBTQIA+ and BIPOC couples who are seeking a space where they can be fully seen, heard, and held—without having to explain or shrink who they are. Whether you're navigating intimacy, family dynamics, intergenerational trauma, or simply want to feel more connected, I offer therapy that honors your whole self.

​I support couples across the spectrum of partnership—from pre-engaged and newly committed to those in long-term relationships—especially those who want to move beyond survival and into joy, intimacy, and emotional freedom. I also affirm and celebrate LGBTQIA+ love, non-traditional relationship structures, and the many ways people create home and belonging with one another.

​Outside of therapy, I value openness, connection, and slowing down enough to listen. I enjoy sitting by the water, being in nature, and allowing these spaces to be my teachers. I love visiting family, spending time with friends, reading, and being a lifelong learner. I stay rooted in practices that nourish the spirit and continually explore how embodiment, ancestral connection, storytelling, and community support our journey.

​I believe our relationships can be powerful portals for healing—and I’d be honored to walk alongside you.

Services

Marital Counseling

$175/h

Marriage can be a source of deep connection, but it can also bring up patterns, pain, and growing edges. I offer marital counseling for couples who want to strengthen their bond, repair trust, improve communication, or rekindle emotional and physical intimacy. Whether you're navigating transitions, facing recurring conflicts, or simply feeling distant, this work provides a space to reconnect with yourself and each other. Proven tools to:

  • Improve Friendship

  • Enhance romance and intimacy

  • Manage conflict constructively

  • Make life dreams come through

  • Maintain for a lifetime

Relationship Coaching

$175/h

Coaching services are available for couples residing outside of Maryland who are seeking support but are not eligible for therapy due to state licensing laws. This offering provides guidance, tools, and a supportive space to explore relationship dynamics, emotional wellness, and personal growth from a holistic lens.​​​.

Premarital Counseling

$175/h

Before you say “I do,” let’s make sure your foundation is strong. We’ll explore communication, values, intimacy, and future goals to help you build a marriage rooted in understanding and trust. I will assist with:

  • ​Build love Maps

  • Rituals for connection

  • ​Effective listening

  • Honoring individuality

  • Create shared meaning

Relationship Support Group

Free

As part of our work together, you’re invited to join a free monthly community space designed to support your relationship in real time with other couples doing the work too.

This space is all about learning, connection, and shared insight. No pressure. Just presence.

We’'ll Explore:

  • Common relationship challenges (trust, communication, repair, desire)

  • Tools and practices to stay connected

  • Shared reflections and guided group conversation

  • A sense of community and “we’re not the only ones”

Seven Principles For Making Marriage Last Program

This isn’t just another relationship class. It’s a space where couples come together to reconnect, laugh, learn, and build lasting habits, side by side with other partners doing the same. Rooted in the Gottman Method, this group experience blends education, honest dialogue, and partner-focused exercises that support emotional connection and relational strength.

What the program offers:

  1. A supportive, nonjudgmental space to grow with your partner

  2. Tools to deepen trust, rebuild intimacy, and manage conflict

  3. Group wisdom, because healing in community creates momentum

  4. Reflection exercises that help you understand your patterns and each other

  5. Time for joy, laughter, and meaningful reconnection

  6. Optional follow-up consultation or couples therapy after the group ends.

This workshop is ideal for:

  1. Married couples

  2. Pre-engaged couples (those considering marriage)

  3. Engaged or Premarital couples (those taking steps towards marriage)

  4. Every phase of relationships, from newlyweds to senior couples

  5. Those who wish to enhance an already “good” marriage or relationship

  6. Those needing better conflict management tools

  7. Those considering couples therapy but who are not "ready" for weekly therapy yet

  8. People of all backgrounds, ages, faiths and sexual orientations

Group Exercises Include:

  1. Mapping your inner world and love stories

  2. Building rituals of connection and shared meaning

  3. Practicing “turning toward” in real time

  4. Deepening emotional attunement and respect

  5. Exploring dreams and unspoken values

  6. Learning how to stay connected, even in disagreement

Group Tier Pricing

Tier

Description

Rate

For small groups, nonprofits, or grassroots orgs (10–15 couples)

Community Event

Standard Engagement

Mid-size workshops for orgs or churches (15–25 couples)

1, 500-2,000

2,000-3,500

Large events, retreats, or keynotes (multi-day engagements)

Premium Retreat

3,500+

Travel fee may apply for in-person bookings.

You will need one of the following to complete your workshop experience:

Purchased Separately

$49/Set

The Seven Principles Box Set

(includes one book, two workbooks, plus the Love Maps and Open Ended Questions Card Decks)

Allows you to fully experience the Seven Principles together during and long after the workshop.

$12/Book

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work

(includes one book)

Gives you everything you need to work through the program together. 

Relationship Wellness Evaluation

A deep dive into your relationship’s strengths, challenges, and potential for growth. This isn’t ongoing therapy, this is a guided experience designed to give you and your partner clarity, tools, and a roadmap forward. Whether you’re preparing for commitment, navigating conflict, or just feeling disconnected, this offering helps you see your relationship with fresh eyes. Grounded in the Gottman Method and shaped by lived experience, this evaluation holds space for truth, tenderness, and transformation.

What’s Included:

  • 30-Minute Consultation Call

  • Gottman Relationship Checkup Assessment

  • 4.5 Hours of Live Sessions

    • One 90-min couples session

    • Two 45-min individual sessions

    • One 90-min feedback + planning session

  • 4–6 Hours of Therapist Preparation
    (Analysis, reflection, and design of a personalized experience.)

  • Written Summary Report (A clear overview of your strengths, challenges, and suggested next steps).

  • Custom Resource Kit with tools to support your connection (Hand-selected exercises and tools to support your relationship beyond our time together.)

What You’ll Walk Away With:

  • A grounded, non-judgmental understanding of your relationship’s dynamics

  • Key strengths and pain points mapped out clearly

  • A deeper view of how you both show up emotionally, mentally, and in conflict

  • A therapist's lens on what’s working, what’s wounded, and what’s worth rebuilding

  • Tools you can actually use

  • A personalized report + live feedback session to help you decide how to move forward, together or apart

This Is For You If:

  • You’re dating or pre-engaged and want to explore your compatibility

  • You’re preparing for marriage and want to build a solid foundation

  • You’re feeling stuck, distant, or unsure of how to move forward

  • You’re in a non-traditional or culturally nuanced relationship and want support that affirms your experience

  • You’ve been together for years and want a relationship check-in

Cost: $1500 per couple

Testimonials

  • My significant other and I were looking for a couples counselor and found a perfect match!! We first discovered Shimekia on psychology today and from the first moment we spoke with her we found it to be a great fit! She gave us so many helpful tools in our relationship and we continue to use her tools Outside of therapy. I would recommend all couples whether you have a pressing issue or just want some insight to seek out counseling and I would recommend anyone to her!

    Kristen L

  • Working with Shimekia has been the best time in therapy I've ever had. She's very personable and great at relating and being understanding. I reached out to her for couples counseling and the tools she's been providing us has really worked. My husband and I take our time with Shimekia and our personal healing seriously. I am appriative for her services

    Danyella K

  • Shimekia is relatable and easy to talk to. The work is hard, but she makes it so that it doesnt always feel like work. Under her guidance there have been changes in the dynamic of my relationship with my partner and I would HIGHLY recommend her to anyone.

    Elizabeth M

Book a Consultation.

Not sure where to start? Let’s talk. Schedule a free 20-minute consultation to explore your needs, ask questions, and see if we’re a good fit. This is a no-pressure space to clarify your next step, together.