RLT Training

Explore our range of short online courses directly from Terry Real on the Relational Life Therapy (RLT) model and specific aspects of couples therapy to enhance your work. 

RLT Core Curriculum

Establish a solid understanding of RLT theory and techniques with our three core courses which build on each other. 
ACEP 7495

Relational Life Institute (RLI) has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7495. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Relational Life Institute (RLI) is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.

RLT Level 1

5 Modules  10 CE Hours when offered LIVE ONLY For Continuing Ed Details: CLICK HERE

Learn how to use RLT data-gathering and diagnostic tools to get to the root of the problem in couples therapy and begin the path to reconnection. 

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RLT Level 2

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credit not available)

Building on your knowledge from RLT Level 1, this course helps you move beyond the initial stages and explores RLT’s unique approach to inner child work.

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RLT Level 3

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credit not available)

After completing Levels 1 and 2, this training introduces you to the cultural context and spiritual dimensions of RLT. You’ll cement your understanding of RLT stances and teaching relational skills.

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RLT Level 1 Practicum

LIVE on Zoom.   24 CE Hours Available: Click HERE for Details

Put the theory of RLT Level 1 into practice working in small groups of max. 10 students, guided by the RLT faculty. Each practicum contains live lectures, demonstrations, group discussions, and role plays to dive deeper into the content.

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RLT Level 2 Practicum

LIVE on Zoom.   24 CE Hours Available: Click HERE for Details

Put the theory of RLT Level 2 into practice working in small groups of max. 10 students, guided by the RLT faculty. Each practicum contains live lectures, group discussions, and role plays to dive deeper into the content.

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RLT Level 3 Practicum

LIVE on Zoom.   24 CE Hours Available: Click HERE for Details

The Practicum 3 course offers an in-depth exploration of how to apply Relational Life Therapy (RLT) to trauma work with clients. Through this course, therapists will learn how to identify and work with the adaptive and wounded child in their clients, addressing the core dynamics that often underlie relational trauma. Working in small groups of maximum10 students, guided by the RLT faculty. Each practicum contains live lectures, group discussions, and role plays to dive deeper into the content.

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Special Topic Courses

Take your understanding of specific aspects of RLT and couples therapy to a deeper level with our ever-growing library courses on special topics. 

The Relational Brain

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Discover how neurobiology is applied to the core of Relational Life Therapy themes: the Wise Adult, the Adaptive Child, and the legacy of multi-generational trauma.

The Art of Relational Living

10 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Learn how to apply RLT principles to your personal relationships to experience the power of this work for yourself. You will dive deep into the essential skills for building healthy relationships.

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Working with Grandiosity

6 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Learn to work with the “other” self esteem disorder. Explore the theory and treatment for clients struggling with issues of grandiosity.

Working with Infidelity

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Discover how RLT approaches infidelity as a catalyst for deeper transformation—in both partners and the relationship as a whole.

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Working with Men

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Learn the Relational Life approach to working with some of the most challenging men who come into the therapy room.

Grandiose Women, Shut Down Men

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Terry talks a lot about grandiose men, but women can be in the one-up position also. Learn how to work with them effectively in couples therapy.

Multi-generational Trauma

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Understand how trauma is passed down from generation to generation and how RLT’s approach to trauma and inner child work can break the chain.

Evolutionary Relationships

7 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Terry and Thomas Hübl guide you through understanding your own and client’s relationship dynamics in order to create deeper, and more intimate partnerships.

Men and Women in Love

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Explore the influence of patriarchy on relationships between men and women and how to deconstruct symptoms in couples therapy by deconstructing traditional gender roles.

Love, Sex, and Power

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

A deep dive into how to help clients navigate the extraordinary complexity and changing landscape of sex and intimacy.

Relational Parenting

5 Modules (Continuing Ed credits not available)

Discover the RLT approach to parenting, including how to set limits with compassion, effectively build your child’s self-esteem, and form a robust parental team.

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CE REQUIREMENTS:

The Relational Life Institute is pleased to offer:

Working With Men

Relational Life Institute (RLI) has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7495. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Relational Life Institute (RLI) is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.

ACEP No. 7495

FORMAT: A LIVE Online Course facilitated by Terry Real, LICSW; and Julie Rudiger, LCSW

Continuing Education credits offered: 12  credit hours

Course Description:

Over eight live online classes, learn the skills to engage, motivate, and create breakthrough change with resistant male clients in this live, practice-focused training led by renowned couples therapist and male-psychology expert Terry Real, alongside RLT Faculty Member Julie Rudiger, LCSW. Grounded in Relational Life Therapy (RLT), the course unpacks how patriarchal conditioning and performance-based self-worth fuel disconnection, defensiveness, and shutdown, then shows you how to build trust with even the most challenging men through clear, compassionate confrontation that preserves the therapeutic alliance. You’ll learn to create effective leverage for transformation without triggering collapse, withdrawal, or escalated resistance; tailor interventions for the three common presentations—“boys, bullies, and avoiders”; and reframe masculinity so emotional expression is aligned with strength, honor, and integrity rather than weakness. Through demonstrations and actionable tools from both instructors, you’ll guide men in trauma healing and relational skill development that supports healthier partnerships and parenting. Leave with a concrete RLT roadmap you can use immediately to help clients move from resistance to responsibility and from disconnection to genuine intimacy.

Learning Objectives: At the completion of this course, participants can expect to be able to:

  • Summarize the cultural shaping of masculinity and its consequences.
  • Recognize shame and grandiosity as dual defenses tied to male self-worth.
  • Develop skills to help men shift from defensiveness to compassion.
  • Identify how shame and performance-based esteem show up in male clients.
  • Discuss culturally sensitive ways to challenge entitlement and grandiosity.
  • Identify and work with three major types of difficult men: boys, bullies, and avoiders.
  • Describe how to use leverage as a tool to create change.
  • Identify patterns of resistance in men and learn how to engage them effectively.
  • Utilize leverage to create internal or external motivation for change.
  • Illustrate empowerment to the partner or family system to create pressure that opens the door to transformation.
  • Compare and differentiate between their wounded child, adaptive child, and functional adult selves.
  • Develop an internal caregiving relationship with their inner children rather than expecting partners to repair old wounds.
  • Demonstrate full relational responsibility as an adult, especially in high-conflict, high-defensiveness relationships.

Target Audience: Social Workers, MFTs, Counselors, Substance Abuse Counselors, Nurses, and LMHCs, LMFT’s, Educators, Coaches, Chemical Dependency Counselors 

Course Content Level: The course content is appropriate for Beginner level clinicians.

Cost:   $497 or three payments of $197 each.

Course Date & Hours:   

1pm-2:30pm Eastern Time on:

September 10, 17, 24; October 1, 8, 2025 

TO REGISTER: https://relationallife.com/working-with-men

Cancellation Policy: You may cancel your registration up until September 16, 2025

Please contact support@terryreal.com if you wish to cancel.

If you need special accommodations or have questions, please contact us at support@terryreal.com 

Please contact our Support team if you have any questions support@terryreal.com 

Instructor’s Bio:

Terry Real, LICSW: Terry Real is the bestselling author of I Don’t Want to Talk About It: Overcoming the Secret Legacy of Male Depression, the straight-talking How Can I Get Through to You? Reconnecting Men and Women, The New Rules of Marriage: What You Need to Make Love Work and most recently Us: Getting Past You & Me to Build a More Loving Relationship just debuted in June 2022.  Terry founded the Relational Life Institute, offering workshops for couples, individuals, and parents as well as a professional training program for clinicians.   Terry’s work, with its rigorous commonsense approach, speaks to both men and women. A proponent of “full-throttle marriage,” Terry has been called “the most innovative voice in thinking about and treating men and their relationships in the world today.”

Julie Rudiger, LCSW has been a Licensed Clinical Social Worker for the last 30 years. In 2002, Julie opened her private practice, where she has helped hundreds of individuals and couples over the last two decades. Her professional journey took a transformative turn in 2008 when she began training with Terry Real, the founder of Relational Life Therapy (RLT). Julie has since used RLT to guide clients in discovering self-esteem, healing early wounds, and fostering deeper, more authentic relationships. A faculty member at the Relational Life Institute since 2022, Julie now trains other therapists and leads community workshops, including Men’s Groups and Relationship Skills Bootcamps. Additionally, she is trained in EMDR, ACT, DBT, Gestalt, and the Enneagram.

CONFLICT of Interest: There is no known conflict of interest or commercial support for this event.

Grievance Procedure:

If a student believes they have been discriminated against, they can submit a written complaint that includes their name, address, phone number, location, date, and a detailed description of the issue. If a student with a disability disagrees with the accommodation provided or has any other grievances, they can schedule a meeting to discuss and attempt to find a solution together. If the student is still not satisfied with the accommodation after further discussion, they can contact the Operations Director for

the Relational Life Institute (RLI), Lisa Sullivan, via phone, email, or mail. If the grievance cannot be resolved, the complainant will be advised to contact the appropriate Ethics Committee or Licensing Board. The Operations Director will keep all grievances and their resolutions confidential in locked files.

A copy of this Grievance Procedure is available upon request.

Contact information: ACEP Administrator & Operations Director for Relational Life Institute (RLI), Lisa Sullivan follows: 291 Nahanton Street, Newton, MA 02459; 617-861-3030 lisa@relationallife.com