Testimonials

St. Louis Marriage Coaching

1120 Technology Drive Suite 112, O'Fallon

27 reviews

• Kara Klindworth ★★★★★ 8 months ago
  The stresses of life (child, loss of parent, work) had slowly come down on us and began to creep into our marriage. We were once so connected, but then found ourselves … read more constantly fighting and not coming to agreement on anything anymore. We both agreed something had to change and were willing to see someone outside of our support circle to get an unbiased look at what was going on. After the first appointment we were shell shocked, or at least I was! Dave's non-standard approach to helping couples works. You may feel you are in place where you can't get help, but rest assured if you are willing to take Dave's advice and put it into action he can help your marriage. I highly suggest Dave, he is a great coach and has very valuable resources to help your relationship. I will continue to suggest him to anyone I know who is going through a difficult time in their marriage. We all have hard times, it is how you deal with them that counts! Now go make your appointment with him.
• Chrissy Plesser ★★★★★ a month ago
  My husband was having an affair. He had moved out and wanted nothing to do with me. He wouldn't return my phone calls or messages. He was in love with another … read more woman and wanted a divorce. After scouring the internet in a desperate attempt to save my marriage, I came across Dave's website. His unconventional approach to mending and rebuilding a phenomenal marriage is what drew me to him. During our first call, Dave promised me that he would help me save my marriage...AND HE DID. He gave me hope when literally everyone else was telling me to walk away. I worked with Dave by myself, implementing the practices he taught me daily. It took about six months for my husband to come home. When he did, he loved and appreciated me more than ever, and was so grateful that I never gave up trying to save our marriage.
  Ultimately, I was the one who decided to end the marriage. My husbands decades-long alcohol addiction had finally became too much for my own mental health, and I needed to get off the roller coaster. Nevertheless, my time with Dave was NOT a failure. I saved my marriage, and in doing so, I grew as a person and learned more about myself along the way than I had in 38 years on this earth. I owe that to Dave.
  Now... fast forward two years. I had met an amazing man (when I least expected it). We wanted to get married, but there were some issues we needed to work through first. My boyfriend suggested we go to couples counseling, and I immediately knew the man to call! Dave worked with us to not only help us to understand each other's perspective and resolve our issues, but he gave us the tools to make our relationship even better and stronger than it was before! I'm happy to say that, because of Dave, we are now happily engaged and getting married in May 2023. We asked Dave to be the officiant at our wedding. It only seemed fitting that the man who helped us to get to such a phenomenal place in our relationship, be the one to officiate our happily ever after.
• Mystle Schellhorn ★★★★★ 3 weeks ago
  No need to wait until marriage to visit! We've been visiting David with STL Marriage Coaching for several months while we've been dating.
  There were no … read more major 'issues' (as people like to say), but more so wanted to ensure we had a strong foundation for our relationship before marriage. David has made it easier to have some of those 'hard' conversations. He also doesn't force us into uncomfortable conversations until we're ready. He helped us set up some best-practices to take home and begin integrating them into our daily lives which has tremendously helped our communication and happiness!
  I would HIGHLY recommend David with STL Marriage Coaching to anyone -- whether you're in a committed relationship, looking for pre-marital counseling after engagement, or already married.
• D. Randolph ★★★★★ a week ago
  David has helped us tremendously. He is so kind and genuinely passionate about saving marriages. I would definitely recommend going to David if you want to save … read more or improve your relationship with your spouse/partner!
• Opal Owens ★★★★★ 2 months ago
  I wish there were more stars available. Where do I start, I gues from the start. My husband and I were really at our lowest points and needed immediate help!!! We … read more were against all odds, in a fairly new marriage, and now new parents. Nonetheless, before throwing in the towel I started praying and searching for a therapist to then discover scary reviews, virtual sessions, and closed ended results.
  Though I knew it was urgent, I went back to the drawing board and continued praying and a few days later came I across The Marriage Coach. I remember saying to myself hmmmm, we really need a counselor not a coach but at the same time I was willing to try something new. Along with faith, prayer, and his amazing reviews we decided to give it a try..... Let me start with this, for the couple debating financially...you must invest in yourself and your marriage IF you really want it to elevate. That was us too, can we really afford this and I remember thinking but divorce is so much more so we stepped out on faith and it was THE BEST DECISION EVER. David is truly a blessing. He is annointed and will bless way more than millions of lives.
  Through his program not only are my husband and I reconnected as one but we have both grown individually. We found ourselves excited for the next session and challenge. David was open and honest and allowed us to be ourselves. We were able to express deeply our true emotions without having the feeling of needing to beat one another up verbally. It was honestly a transformational experience.
  As a person who has tried counseling before, I challenge you to get coached. You will not regret it. Once again for the person reading this whether you are inquiring about marriage, a newlywed, or someone going through hell in marriage LOOK NO FURTHER. Your new beginning starts here. I have been there, so know that I am rooting for you too!
  To David and Jessica, continue to bless lives. Our marriage will now have a testimony because of your annointing and obedience. My son will have an amazing future because we took a risk...and that risk was the transformation. We are forever grateful and working towards a new forever!
• Alexis Bridwell ★★★★★ 5 months ago
  David and his staff are very upbeat positive people. Since receiving his services for the last few months, he has given us tools and strategies to work on to better … read more our relationship. It’s not overwhelming and continues to give us a brighter future and focus on where we want to go. I would recommend this company to any couple wanting to become stronger as a team in this game of life.
• Jennifer James ★★★★★ a year ago
  “Save my marriage” and “My spouse is having an affair” is what I Googled. I found Dave shortly after I discovered my husband was having an affair. I quickly realized … read more that it does not take 2 people to save a marriage. It simply takes 1 person who is willing to fight for their spouse and does not give up. Throughout my time with Dave, he was a great source of comfort, hope, and strength as he showed me the exact steps I needed to take to save my marriage. So many counselors spend time looking in the past and talking about who did what wrong and trying to fix what can’t be undone. With Dave, every session is a positive experience. Every session ends with an action plan of what needs to be done to end up with the marriage of your dreams, even if initially you are on your own as I was. Other counselors talk to you for an hour and then you leave their office not knowing what to do next. Not with Dave! I tell everyone I meet who has marriage troubles to talk with Dave, and I have seen him work miracles in my friends’ marriages as well. His unique strategy doesn’t leave anyone feeling beat up, is extremely positive and forward focused, and has great end results and success. You will leave each session filled with hope and in a better place than where you began every time. He truly has an ability to connect with and relate to everyone and understand your situation, and you never feel judged. If you are having trouble, give Dave a call! Whether you are on your own or working with your spouse, you will feel that every session has great value. I am so glad I reached out to Dave. Today, I am happily married and I would not be where I am now if not for the strategies Dave shared with me. I am also so glad I did not let finances affect my decision to work with this highly rated coach. While he may charge a little more than his peers (and he should! His strategies are that much better than any other counselor I have seen!), the fact that he is much cheaper than any divorce lawyer made him well worth the investment to keep my marriage and family intact. For me, there is no price tag on this. I cannot say enough good things about Dave. Without him, I would not have the marriage I have today. What started out as a desperate Google search and reading reviews has turned into the best thing I could have ever asked for!
• Kylie ★★★★★ a year ago
  My husband and I had been separated on and off for 2 years and were trying to work on things to no avail. I started working with Dave alone for several months and … read more was finally able to schedule a day long with Dave with my husband agreeing to come. It was a turning point in our marriage and we've continued to work with Dave since. We still have a lot of work to do, but Dave is great with working with our differences and our handling our issues and our pain with sensitivity and compassion. My husband and I have both had bad experiences with therapists in the past, but we both feel comfortable with Dave. He knows how to encourage our strengths and support us when we struggle. I am very grateful that we were able to have a daylong with Dave and will be forever grateful for his support and guidance. I would recommend him to anyone.
• S Freant ★★★★★ a year ago
  Dave is an amazing marriage coach! My wife and I knew right away that we were in the right place upon speaking with Dave for the first time. Every advice he gave … read more us helped move us forward in our relationship. Thanks to Dave, we are so much further ahead of where we would be without him. Do your marriage a favor and go see him!
• Danielle Peyton ★★★★★ a year ago
  I can’t say enough about Dave. He took his time with my husband and myself at each appointment. He tried different ways to help us communicate which resulted into … read more bettering our marriage. There’s always ways to improve your marriage and finding those ways helps you achieve that. I highly recommend and would contact him again if needed.
• Lindsey Joy ★★★★★ a year ago
  David has been walking our journey for many years. In 2012, my husband started having an affair and left myself our twin boys who were 2 years old. I was devastated, … read more and the only person that told me there was hope was David. He coached me for 6 months until the miraculous night when my husband returned home. He then walked me through forgiveness and restoration and ultimately an incredible marriage.Here we are 9 years later leading the marriage ministry at our church and our relationship is thriving. We coach and help others going through similar situations leveraging our story and the tools David equipped us with.When we had further issues in our marriage because of enemy attacks, we doubled back straight to David. In just a few sessions he helped us work through anger, forgiveness and ultimately restoration. He quickly caught up to our situation and had amazing advice to encourage us and strengthen us. We will be forever grateful for the role he played in both our restorations.
• Ellen Gooch ★★★★★ 5 months ago
  My husband and I requested Dave's professional counseling because after 23 years of marriage we had entered into a stale place. We loved each other but found … read more we kept re-hashing old wounds and falling into familiar hurtful patterns that were eroding our happiness. We did not want to get a divorce. But we did want to improve our relationship and how we behaved toward each other. Enter Dave Rispoli. He has started every session with tools to improve our connection, communication and intimacy. The focus has been on building trust and closeness again, not picking bones with each other. We are using the tools Dave has recommended and are seeing a positive impact. Dave's calm and non-judgmental approach is very much welcome. It is exactly what we needed. I highly recommend Dave's counseling service for anyone needing to repair their marriage or if you just want to take your relationship to a deeper level.
• Bonnie Simonelli ★★★★★ 2 years ago
  We found Dave through a friend who met him while traveling on a plane, oddly enough. When my friend found out what was going on for us she strongly recommended Dave … read more and told me that his goal was to “save a million marriages”. I was not sure ours could be saved, but for some reason I decided to email him that night. The very next day, I got a call from a St. Louis number and he we connected. I told my husband about the referral and the phone call and he pretty much said we needed to try, “what did we have to lose”? So, we set up our first appointment via Zoom for a few days later on a Friday night. After our first session, we both felt that we were ready to work and Dave was the perfect fit for us.His approach is focused on the positive and moving forward, but he also encourages that we communicate about how we got to the place we were at, but he is sure to bring it back around to positives. Dave helped us to focus on what we need to do to not only heal, but to make our marriage better than it has ever been and to find each other again in a new way.We are both definitely working together, better than we ever have, and are using the tools that Dave helped us to develop, every day, to keep moving forward and building a stronger marriage. As we work on us, we are finding things that we forgot about and rediscovering each other and ourselves. We are sticking with Dave for support and reinforcement to keep us on track, but we know that what we thought was broken forever is now getting better than ever. Thanks again Dave for everything.
• Marisa Heying ★★★★★ a year ago
  What a great transformation! 2021 was the year we decided to take priority on strengthening our marriage to improve communication and connection. Even though our … read more marriage was strong, we both knew we could do better and had room for improvement. Working with David was the best decision! His coaching and guidance strengthened our marriage in more ways than we ever imagined.
• Karen Moloney ★★★★★ a year ago
  Dave gives us the fundamentals we need to get from where we are to where we want to be. He is caring, honest and tells it like it is with love and understanding … read more towards both of us. Great tools with books and tips of how to go from arguing to loving. I would recommend Dave to anyone needing help, or who just wants to enrich their relationship. Love you Dave
• Michael Weaver ★★★★★ 2 years ago
  Dave’s counsel via the Marriage Fitness construct saved us and our family. I now view my marriage as a gift.When I met Dave I had filed for divorce from my wife. … read more My wife and I met in high school, dated for 6 years and had been married for 29 years. The last ten years I had become increasingly unhappy. Before I met Dave the only path to happiness I could imagine was to break up my family. Even when our son and daughter begged us to stay together we were not able to find a way to reconcile our differences. We had already tried couples therapy with three different counselors before meeting Dave.It's been about a year since we began working with Dave and we are more connected than we’ve ever been. We are both very happy. We respect each other. We laugh again. We haven’t argued in months (even during this stressful pandemic). Our family is back together. Our children are happy and thriving. Dave helped me find my best friend again. My happiest vision of the future is growing old with my wife. My life’s goal has become attending our 50th wedding anniversary celebration with our large and growing circle of friends and family. This happy vision is only possible thanks to Dave.So what did Dave do that was so different? While I’d need a year to explain it fully, I will summarize this miracle by sharing the ways this worked for us. First, the Marriage Fitness program that Dave uses allowed us to create a roadmap and plan together that worked and continues to work every day. This is the only plan that ever helped us or made sense to us. I am happy today that I spent the time and money to get “marriage fit”. Second, Dave is uniquely capable to counsel married couples to save their marriage. He has an impressive and powerful intellect. He is grounded in his inspiring faith in God. Dave has lived a full and varied life. As a veteran I respect his service in the Marines. As an Ivy League graduate I respect his three Masters Degrees and PhD. As a lifelong Catholic I admire his ordination. Most of all I am inspired by Dave. He shares the story of his first wife, his love and loss, and finding love again. You will be inspired as well.Finally, Dave is the only person I’ve met that convinced me to open my eyes to the joy and the happiness that I could not see. Dave has many life experiences to truly empathize with my life journey. He understands the temptations, challenges, joys and disappointments in our lives. With Dave’s help I was persuaded to save my marriage and repairing my marriage has saved my life. I now look forward to every precious day with my wife, children and entire family. Had I not invested the time and money in this program I am certain that I’d be like so many other divorced people I know living a broken life with a divided family. They are mostly unhappy and regretful. With Dave’s help this program can help you save your marriage too.
• Teeba Alkhudairi ★★★★★ a year ago
  David is absolutely the most phenomenal marriage coach. He not only helped me saved my marriage when there was no hope and it was falling apart but he’s the most … read more compassionate person who is always available when there are bumps along the road. After trying so many things, he’s really the only thing / person that I would recommend for a marriage / relationship journey.
• Jennifer Wright ★★★★★ a year ago
  My husband and I had been going through some difficult times. We were separated and I thought that divorce would be the only way to fix our problems. My husband … read more found David Rispoli online for some help. I was skeptical that anything would help at that point but I would give it a try. Then we could at least say we tried. After seeing him a couple times my hubby moved back in and things have been getting better ever since. It’s nice to have him as a mediator and counsel us through. He is very professional and made me feel very comfortable in discussing my concerns. If you are having difficulties in your relationship then I highly recommend him.
• Julie Grelle ★★★★★ a year ago
  David is truly an amazing man! He guided us through a really hard time in our marriage. Within 6 months of seeing David we bought our home together. Without him … read more we would not have made it this far. The best investment we’ve ever made for our family
• Sherri Courtney ★★★★★ 3 years ago
  My husband and I had been to traditional marriage counselors numerous times throughout our 20 year marriage and spent more money than I care to remember because … read more our insurance didn’t cover marriage counseling. After almost every marriage counseling appointment we left the office more angry, frustrated and hopeless than when we arrived.When we found St. Louis Marriage Coach David Rispoli, my husband and I were on the verge of a divorce. David helped save our marriage and did it without either of us having to dredge up and relive all our past hurts and failures. Our extremely positive experience with having David as our marriage coach was incredibly refreshing after suffering years of frustration at the hands of the traditional marriage counseling approach.A marriage counselor generally keeps you stuck in the past and you often end up rehashing old arguments and problems that you can’t go back and change or solve, which only leads to further animosity in the relationship. A marriage coach, on the other hand, keeps you focused on the future and gives you concrete and sustainable tips and ideas on how to keep your marriage moving forward instead of looking back at all the past hurts and mistakes.David is extremely skilled in keeping you forward focused and redirecting you to keep you moving in a positive direction that will allow you to build the marriage you have always longed for. He continually offers heartfelt encouragement and hope. His positivity is contagious. You simply can’t end a session with David feeling anything but renewed hope and positivity, no matter how frustrated, hopeless and lost you were feeling 60 minutes earlier.After just one session with David I could tell this wasn’t simply a career for him—it was his passion. David truly has a gift and seizes every opportunity he can to share it with as many people as possible in an attempt to fulfill his goal of saving one million marriages.Instead of letting you rehash and get stuck in the negativity of the past, which I think becomes a default for couples who have been struggling in troubled marriages, David keeps you focused on learning new skills and implementing effective choices to build a better, more fulfilling marriage with a strong foundation.David is incredibly empathetic and encouraging and is genuinely invested in seeing your marriage succeed. My only regret is that we didn’t find him sooner.
• A J ★★★★★ 2 years ago
  David was great to work with and a great person overall. We needed a third party to sit us down and learn about the importance of our marriage. Thanks David for … read more your help! We will continue to use your suggested strategies to help our marriage grow stronger in the future.
• sarah smith ★★★★★ 4 years ago
  Hi my name is Sarah and I worked with David Rispoli 6 years ago, and I want you all to know what working with him can do for your life.David helped me thru an extremely … read more rough time in our marriage. My husband wasn’t willing to go to therapy, so I went by myself and focused on fixing my part.Long story short: my husband (Ray) had an affair, drained the bank account, & walked out on me a few days before our one year wedding anniversary. Oh and if any of you were wondering: Ray and his mistress broke up. We then started the divorce process, hired attorneys, and had gone to court and were dividing our assets. At this time I was four years sober from alcohol, and was a hot mess. I knew I needed professional help to stay sober and walk thru this divorce process with grace and dignity. I started working with David to learn what my part was, and change what I could. I knew that if God wanted to bring us back together that he would, but if He didn’t I knew that it meant that God had an even better man in store for me~either way I needed to become the best me I could be. My main focus was to not bring my problems into another relationship again. David gave me the tools to forgive my husband, and learn how to love him again. Now I’m sure that some of you may be thinking, “why is she trying to make something work with a man that cheated on her.” Well ladies and gentlemen I don’t give up and I have a strong faith. I knew that if we did get a divorce that I would be able to stand tall and say that I did everything I could to reconcile our marriage. David walked me thru forgiving my husband, and taught me how to fall in love with Ray all over again.The process was challenging, and at times I was frustrated that I was the only one trying/going to therapy in our marriage; however I later learned that although Ray didn’t come to therapy with me, he was transforming and becoming a new better husband in his own way. I’m so grateful that David taught me to stay focused on my own side of the street, and to stop trying to control my husband, as well as to stop being a victim in my marriage. I’m so happy I did, because three weeks before finalizing our divorce my husband said that he wanted to make it work, and for the first time he was willing to do the work. We started to date each other for about 1year, and then we moved back in together.Working with David changed our marriage! His methods were to move us closer together. We learned to love each other in a way that we never knew possible. I’m so blessed that my husband had an affair, because since he did we now have a marriage that’s better than ever!Today I am 10 years sober, and we are about to celebrate 7 years marriage, and we have 2 awesome boys (3 year old & a 7 week old). Now don’t get me wrong we have had some challenging transition periods over the last 6 years and I’ve continued to use David’s marriage advice/tools to bring us closer together thru the chaotic times. We are now a united team, that takes on life together. It’s quite a miracle, and quite a wonderful reminder that God works in mysterious ways.I wanted to write this review to let you all know that going to marriage counseling with David Rispoli works if you work it! Marriage counseling with David is not conventional & can work if only one person wants to go. His professional advice transformed our marriage, and continues to change it everyday. If you need help with your marriage CALL DAVID! You will Not regret the decision!!!
• Yvette Arias ★★★★★ 2 years ago
  My husband and I will be celebrating our 28th wedding anniversary this upcoming fall. We have two absolutely incredible children, now 25 and 18. As I sit here … read more and type this I am completely in awe of what God has done in our life. You see, my husband and I were high school sweethearts and married at the age of 19 and 21. We had been best friends our whole lives, there was nothing we didn’t know about each other. As any married couple we too have had our fair share of ups and downs throughout the years but nothing could have prepared me for what we experienced 4 years ago. I discovered my husband was having an affair. I could not believe what was happening, it was all a nightmare and my world suddenly crashed in on me. I desperately sought counseling from our church and marriage counselors which seemed to make the situation worse rather than helping. My husband had decided to leave the house after one of the marriage counseling sessions and I recall sitting that night in tears holding on to my two kids crying out to God for help. I grabbed my phone to search for answers and there by the Grace of God on my google results, I stumbled across St. Lous Marriage Coaching.I asked my husband if he would be willing to attend a coaching session and he reluctantly accepted. He did not want anything to do with reconciling the marriage and he made sure to tell Dave during our first session and then left the room. Dave encouraged me, reminded me to have faith, gave me tools to focus on putting myself first, he spoke life over our marriage and shared that if I trusted him and would put in place the things he would share with me it would speak to my husbands heart. I felt so much peace and hope in speaking with Dave. Dave’s heartfelt belief in our marriage and in my husband slowly began to bring down my husband’s walls. My husband began to see such a huge change not only in me but also in how the children were loving him unconditionally that he agreed to scheduling a Day Long Session. This was truly life transformational! From the moment we arrived every second of the day was purposeful and intentional. We can not thank God enough for placing Dave in our life at just the right moment. He was so instrumental to the miracle that God was doing in our marriage and in our family. Words can not express the gratitude and love we have for Dave. His passion and love for marriages goes beyond anything you can imagine. Dave never once gave up on us, he believed alongside us, he laughed with us and cried with us. He became family! We are so blessed and honored that God chose him to be such an integral part of our story and there isn’t a day that goes by that we do not share with someone our beautiful experience with our friend from St. Louis! If you have never had the pleasure to have a session with Dave, hurry and do so because your life will never be the same!
• Mel Lewis ★★★★★ a year ago
  Well it’s really hard to just put it in a few words how much I look forward to talking to Dave .1st. He really shows that he cares about u genuinely. He doesn’t … read more waste time with trying to sell books . He lets u talk , but he likes to interact with each topic. And trys to get u to move on to next topic ..He doesn’t just let u talk your way through the hr. He ask u questions like what do u want out of this . He digs into the problem. Gives it a name . And makes a suggestion on how to change ur behavior. And he really seems like he wants u to succeed. It’s not just a job for him . I have never approved of the councilor thing . But I approve of Dave . And look forward to my next visit. Oh .. and he might just give u a book ..
• Shawn Fox ★★★★★ a year ago
  David is an awesome guy we have had three seasons with him i think it is working so far but we still have a long ways to go
• Sarah Marquart ★★★★★ a year ago
  Dave was very knowable about our problem and he knows what hes doing he helped us save our marriage
• Wilhelmina Jablonowski ★★★★★ 2 months ago
  David is an awesome counselor/coach. I like that he is straight and forward about addressing issues. I like that he does not sugar coat anything. The assignments … read more that he gives really do work. I think that if you are the couple looking to get back on track or as David calls it hitting the reset button, he would be the person that could definitely help you do that.
• Sherry Ruyle ★★★★★ 3 months ago
  I have gotten the pleasure of getting to know David through a Professional Networking group over the past year and I am always amazed with his passion to help others … read more to be true soul mates. He has given our group so many great tips that I have incorporated into my own day to day life.