Hi, I’m David Lechnyr, Certified Gottman Therapist. I’ve been in practice for over 20 years.
And couples often come to me when they’re in crisis. They’d like to make some changes: Fight less, grow closer, or sometimes they’re not even sure if they want to stay married or be together with each other anymore.
Yet you don’t want a therapist who just sits there, patiently nodding, and saying, “And how does that make you feel?” You want someone to help guide you. Hold you both accountable. And challenge you to be the best versions of yourselves so that your relationship can be something you’ve long since desired.
And through the research that we have from the Gottman Institute over the last 50 years, we can now actually do just that. No longer are we saying, “Well, this relationship concept sounds like a good idea. I read it in an airline magazine, or saw it on Oprah, so I think this is going to change your relationship.” No. We don’t do any of that.
We now know, with alarming evidence, what successful couples do that makes their relationship come alive, and what others do that guarantees defeat. The technical nitty gritty version of this is that we know what has a strong correlation between couples succeeding and couples failing.
And that’s my job, to help you sift through the falsehoods and learn the skills to bring your relationship back on track. Tackling what we actually know about relationships, one step at a time.
And the bottom line? I don’t want you to struggle. I’d like to help you move forward, together. Just like you once dreamed it could be.
Moving Beyond Standard Talk Therapy
You’re here because something in your relationship is not working. You have tried talking it through, reading the books, and promising each other to do better, but nothing has made a lasting difference. It is exhausting to feel stuck in the exact same argument week after week, watching the emotional distance between you, grow wider.
Most traditional couples therapy models fail because they rely on passive conversation and the therapist’s shifting intuition. You do not want another therapist who just sits there nodding their head and asking, “And how does that make you feel?” You want someone who will look at your patterns objectively, point out blind spots, and call you out on your B.S. if it gets in your way. When your marriage is experiencing acute distressed, you do not need a referee to watch you argue. You need a structured, diagnostic system built on 50 years of data-driven relationship science.
Our work together centers on concrete skill-building, structured homework, and objective assessments. This methodology is directly grounded in peer-reviewed research, which has successfully predicted relationship stability and divorce trajectories with over 90 percent accuracy across multiple independent validation trials.
When we work together, you can expect direct feedback, focused sessions, and absolute accountability. I will tell you exactly what I observe in your patterns, even when it is uncomfortable, because you deserve honesty over passive agreement. Whether your goal is to repair a marriage hanging by a thread or to gain ultimate clarity on your future, we deploy an intentional roadmap tailored to your unique relational dynamics.
Specialized Clinical Relationship Frameworks
Ultimately, it’s not whether there’s conflict in your relationship that will make or break it. It’s how you manage the conflict that really matters (J.M. Gottman, 1993). These patterns are so accurate that they tend to predict divorce with 93% accuracy (Gottman & Levenson, 2000). And yet, no one has taught you the skills you need for this.
Gottman Couples Therapy
For partners trapped in constant arguing, emotional distance, or gridlocked resentment. This track uses the Gottman Relationship Checkup to map your strengths and target the specific behaviors driving the conflict.
Discernment Counseling
For mixed-agenda couples, where one partner is leaning out of the relationship and the other wants to save it. A short-term, specialized protocol built to achieve safety, clarity, and direction, not to talk anyone into staying. Success here isn’t measured by whether you stay together, but by whether the decision comes from clarity instead of exhaustion.
Marathon Sessions
For couples in acute crisis, living out of the area, or whose schedules can’t sustain weekly sessions. A concentrated, multi-day format that compresses months of typical progress into a single block of time. Every marathon is private and individualized, one couple and one therapist for the whole block, not a group workshop.
Self-Paced Training & Diagnostic Resources
Fight Right: The Self-Paced LMS Course
You do not have to wait for an appointment to begin shifting your relationship dynamics. Access are custom interactive learning management system (LMS) platform to learn actionable conflict management strategies at your own pace.
Enroll in the Fight Right Course
The Interactive Relationship Snapshot
Take a quick, immediate assessment of your relationships, primary communication habits, and identifying hidden strengths. Get instant, objective insight into your current connection blocks.
Take the Relationship Snapshot Quiz
Licensed Cross-State Service Areas
Our clinical network operates out of a primary physical base in Portland, delivering secure and HIPAA-compliant telehealth sessions.
Real-World Impact Metrics
The structured assessment gave us a complete data map of our arguments. For the first time in 10 years, we stopped, blaming each other and started working as a team.
– Verified Couple, Portland OR, October 2025
We entered discernment counseling, feeling completely stuck. David didn’t force us a reconciliation; he gave us the exact safety clarity. We needed to make an honest decision.
– Gottman Intensive Track Participant, Phoenix AZ, March 2026
Read More Client Case Feedback
Frequently Asked Questions
Are you accepting new clients?
Yes. Our practice is actively accepting new clients for structured couples therapy, intensive marathon tracks, and discernment, counseling paths throughout our licensed jurisdictions.
How is this different from other couples counseling?
Most couples therapy relies on subjective emotional processing, whereas the Gottman method utilized in our practice is structured and research based, focusing on concrete skills and tools
How long does therapy take?
While progress varies, many clients see measurable improvement within the first month by actively practicing skills between sessions, with long-term habits, generally forming over three to four months.
Do you bill insurance directly?
No, I operate as an out of network provider. We provide necessary documentation (superbills) for potential reimbursement.
Do you serve couples outside Oregon and Arizona?
Yes. For clients outside of our licensed states, we offered a modified version called Relationship Coaching via secure video.
Can this help if we are considering separation or divorce?
Yes. We offer specialized discernment counseling: A structured, five-session approach designed to help couples gain clarity on their relationship’s future.
