Couples therapy for Indians abroad — with a clinician who understands both the marriage and the two worlds it lives between.
Yes — NRI couples can do marriage counselling online with an India-based clinical psychologist, and for many it works better than local options. Dr. Prerna Kohli, a clinical psychologist with more than 30 years in practice, sees NRI and diaspora couples by secure video from India — in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, Singapore and across the Middle East. Sessions are scheduled around your time zone, conducted in English and Hindi, and grounded in the Indian family context — in-laws, joint-family expectations and cross-cultural strain — that therapists abroad often miss.
“The couples I see abroad rarely arrive because the marriage failed. They arrive because two people migrated, and only one of them was ever given permission to grieve what they left behind.”
— Dr. Prerna Kohli, Clinical Psychologist
Why couples abroad choose an Indian clinician
A marriage carried across continents carries things a Western therapist rarely names: the parent on a video call at 2 a.m. India time, the wedding obligations owed to two families, the quiet loneliness of building a life with no extended family nearby. You should not have to explain your own culture before you can be helped within it.
The concerns below come up again and again in work with the Indian diaspora, and they are rarely about one partner being difficult. They are about a marriage doing a job it was never designed to do alone.
Two families, no village
Building a marriage far from the extended family that traditionally cushions it — without the everyday support, and often with the long-distance pressure fully intact.
In-laws across time zones
Expectations, visits and obligations that don't pause for distance — and the conflict they create between partners.
Cross-cultural & mixed marriages
Differences in faith, language or upbringing that surface once the honeymoon of relocation ends.
Relocation & visa strain
The career move that reshaped the marriage — one partner's job, the other's lost footing, and the resentment no one planned for.
Bicultural parenting
Raising children between two cultures — when partners disagree on language, discipline or values, and there are no grandparents nearby to share the load.
Distance from your own support
When your spouse becomes your entire support system because no one else is near, ordinary strain has nowhere to go.
Where the difficulty has moved beyond distance and into secrecy or withdrawal, it may be worth reading about emotional affairs and where the line really sits, or about how attachment patterns shape the way each partner reacts under pressure.
What the research says about diaspora strain
Sources: India's Ministry of External Affairs; peer-reviewed research on South Asian immigrant mental health.
How the work is done
Dr. Kohli works with a limited number of couples directly — there is no associate pool and no case is delegated. The approach draws on evidence-based methods including Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and the Gottman Method, adapted to the realities of an Indian family system rather than applied from a purely Western frame.
- One senior clinician, start to finish — the same person every session
- A deliberately small caseload, so the work is unhurried and continuous
- Secure video sessions you can take privately, from home
- A pace and plan set with you, not a fixed package sold to you
- English and Hindi, whichever lets each partner speak most freely
Session lengths, fees and formats are set out in full on the consultation page. Couples usually book the longer session so both partners have room to speak.
Scheduling across your time zone
Sessions are booked in IST and mapped to comfortable evening or morning windows wherever you are. For Gulf and Singapore couples the time difference with India is small, so evening slots line up easily.
| Your region | Comfortable local window | IST window |
|---|---|---|
| US East / Canada (ET) | Morning / late evening | Evening IST |
| US West (PT) | Evening | Morning IST |
| UK & Ireland | Morning / evening | Afternoon–evening IST |
| UAE & Gulf (Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah) | Evening | Evening IST (only ~1.5 hrs behind) |
| Singapore / SE Asia | Evening | Evening IST (only ~2.5 hrs ahead) |
| Australia (AEST) | Evening | Afternoon IST |
Start from wherever you are
Send your country and time zone, and you'll be offered a session window that fits your local hours. Both partners can join from different locations.
Request an NRI couples session WhatsApp +91 9811862338In their own words
“As an Indian couple in Dubai living in a joint-family setup, we were struggling with boundaries and constant misunderstandings that were starting to affect our marriage. Dr. Kohli's understanding of Indian family dynamics — especially within expat families in the Middle East — made us feel truly understood. She helped us communicate better and rebuild our connection without ever taking sides. Our relationship feels stronger and calmer now.”
— R. & N.M., Dubai, UAE
“Moving to Canada was meant to be a fresh start, but the transition was far harder than we expected. My husband had settled into Toronto 18 months before I arrived with our two young children, and I struggled — isolated, dependent, and unheard. Dr. Kohli helped us understand each other's experiences without blame, gave me back my sense of identity, and brought empathy back into our marriage. We feel like partners again.”
— K. & M.B., Toronto, Canada
“When we moved to London, my husband's career took off while I felt I'd left my identity as a doctor behind and was starting from zero. The recertification was exhausting, and I began feeling invisible and resentful — at one point I was seriously considering separation. Dr. Kohli helped us see the grief and sacrifice beneath our conflicts: she helped my husband understand what I'd lost, and helped me feel heard without having to fight. Our marriage feels more honest now.”
— A. & R.M., London, UK
“For years I stayed in an unhappy marriage believing it was the right thing for our two children. From the outside everything in Singapore looked stable, but I felt trapped and unsure of my own future. I came to Dr. Kohli not to save the marriage, but to understand what I truly wanted. She never told me what to decide — she helped me rebuild my self-worth and make choices from strength rather than fear. For the first time in years, I felt I had agency over my own life.”
— N.S., Singapore
“Moving to Perth was my husband's dream, and our children adapted quickly and thrived. For me it came with a deep sense of loss — my career, my identity, the community that had sustained me — and a loneliness I was afraid to admit. Dr. Kohli helped me acknowledge that grief without guilt, and helped my husband see that migration can be experienced very differently within the same family. Perth feels like a shared journey now, not one person's dream the other simply followed.”
— S. & A.K., Perth, Australia
Starting from outside India
- Send an enquiry with your country and time zone
- You're offered a session window that fits your local hours
- International card payments accepted; you receive a secure video link
- You and your partner join from anywhere — same session, different locations is fine
Common questions
What share of the practice is NRI and diaspora couples?
A substantial part of Dr. Kohli's couples work is with Indians living abroad — across North America, the UK, the Gulf, Singapore and Australia — so the diaspora context is familiar rather than something you have to explain from scratch.
Can my partner and I join from two different countries?
Yes. Online conjoint sessions work with each partner on a separate device in a separate location — a frequent setup for couples separated by work or visa timelines.
Do you see partners individually as well as together?
Yes. Sessions are usually joint, but individual sessions are used when the work calls for it — including when one partner is ready to start before the other.
What if my partner won't come at all?
You can still begin. A great deal of useful work happens with one partner in the room — understanding your own part in the pattern, deciding what you want, and learning how to raise things differently. Many couples eventually attend together after one partner has started alone. Waiting for both people to be ready at the same moment often means waiting a long time.
Is online couples therapy as effective as in person?
For most relationship concerns, structured video sessions are comparably effective, and many couples speak more openly from the privacy of their own home.
Are you trained in a couples-specific approach?
The work draws on evidence-based couples approaches, including Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) and the Gottman Method, adapted to the Indian family system rather than applied from a purely Western frame.
Can you work across different time zones?
Yes. Sessions are booked around your local evenings or mornings — see the time-zone guide above. For the Gulf and Singapore the overlap with India is small, so convenient slots are easy to find.
Do you have experience with in-law and joint-family dynamics?
Yes — this is among the most common reasons NRI couples seek help, and the focus is on protecting the marriage without forcing either partner to choose sides.
Do you understand the country I live in?
The focus is the marriage and the Indian family context that shapes it — which travels with you regardless of which country you've settled in, from the US to the UK to Dubai to Sydney.
Which language are sessions conducted in?
English or Hindi, or a mix. Partners sometimes use different languages within the same session, which is fine — what matters is that each person can say the difficult thing in the language it lives in.
How many sessions will we need?
There is no fixed package. Some couples come for a defined piece of work over a few sessions; others continue longer where the difficulty is older or more layered. The pace is agreed with you rather than sold to you, and it's reviewed openly as you go.
How do payments work from abroad?
International card payments are accepted and you'll receive clear details when you book. Sessions are billed per session. Full fee information is on the consultation page.
Will I always see Dr. Kohli herself?
Yes — your sessions are conducted by Dr. Kohli directly, not delegated to an associate.
Is what we discuss confidential?
Yes. Sessions are private and what is said in them stays in them, within the ordinary professional limits that apply to any clinical practice. Those limits are explained clearly at the outset so nothing about the arrangement is a surprise.
What if we're considering separation rather than repair?
That is a legitimate reason to come. The work is not to keep a marriage together at any cost — it is to help both people understand what is actually happening, so that whatever is decided is decided clearly rather than in the middle of a bad week.
Book a session from anywhere in the world
Sessions in English and Hindi, scheduled around your time zone, conducted directly by Dr. Kohli.
Request an NRI couples session WhatsApp +91 9811862338This page is general psychoeducation and is not a substitute for individual professional advice. If you or your partner are in immediate danger or at risk of harm, please contact your local emergency services straight away.