Relationship advice & insights.
I'm Mark Ryan, a BACP Accredited Psychotherapist and NCPS Accredited Relationship Therapist working with relationships, couples, individuals, and polycules across London. This is where I write about the things that come up most often in the therapy room; jealousy, coming out to a partner, separation, sex and intimacy, and the ordinary arguments that usually aren't about what they first appear to be about.
Some of what's here is written for couples working through something together. Some of it is for one person trying to make sense of their own experience before bringing a partner into it. All of it is grounded in research and real clinical practice, not generic advice dressed up as insight.
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- Attachment 7
- Attachment and Patterns 2
- Communication 5
- Communication and conflict 7
- Consensual Non Monogamy 2
- Couples therapy London 85
- Emotional Abuse 4
- Ethical Non Monogamy 2
- Grief and Loss 1
- Infidelity & Betrayal 5
- Jealousy 3
- LGBT+ Therapy 19
- LGBTQ+ Couples 13
- Labels 4
- Mental Health and Wellbeing 20
- Money and Relationships 4
- Neurodiversity and Relationships 6
- Non-Monogamy and Open Relationships 5
- Parenting 6
- Polyamory 2
- Pre-Marital Therapy London 1
- Relationship Therapy London 1
- Relationship therapy London 83
- Separation and Divorce 7
- Sex and Intimacy 12
- Summer 4
- Trust and Repair 4
When Therapy Doesn’t Work (Yet): Understanding Setbacks, Stuck Points, and the Hope Ahead
Psychotherapy can be an extraordinary space for healing, growth, and insight. For many, it offers relief, clarity, and renewed strength. But what happens when therapy doesn’t seem to work? What if you feel stuck, disappointed, or even more confused than when you began?
This experience can feel disheartening and isolating—but it’s far more common than we often talk about. Importantly, a lack of immediate success in therapy doesn’t mean therapy is inherently flawed, or that you are. It may mean the timing isn’t quite right, the approach needs adjusting, or something vital has yet to fall into place. Therapy is not a one-size-fits-all process. And just because it hasn’t worked yet, doesn’t mean it won’t work—or that it can’t work beautifully, when the conditions are right.