VIDEO Juan Pablo Galavis and Nikki Ferrell admit to relationship issues in Couples Therapy preview

To the surprise of no one who witnessed the uncomfortable moment when The Bachelor‘s Juan Pablo Galavis refused to say “I love you” to Nikki Ferrell on the March finale, the pair admits they need a bit of help communicating — which is why they have (officially) turned to Couples Therapy‘s Dr. Jenn Berman.

“I was criticized a lot for not saying ‘I love you’ to Nikki,” Juan Pablo said in a preview video for the VH1 show. “In the Venezuelan community, it means something. I mean, to propose to someone, it means something. Am I going to say ‘I love you’ to Nikki? I don’t know yet.”

The preview video also shows that Juan Pablo hasn’t quite gotten over his awkward way with words. Case and point: When he says his girlfriend is “on the right track,” which implies there’s some kind of checklist.

“Is she the one or not? That’s a great question,” said the 33-year-old dad. “I think she’s on the right track. Everything she does that I don’t like, I’m like, ‘Is this gonna work?’ It’s just a process, but I think we could communicate better; that’s one of the reasons why we’re here.”

For her part, Nikki seems to be patiently awaiting the day when Juan Pablo does say he loves her.

“Just because he hasn’t said it to me, doesn’t mean that I don’t say it to him,” said the Kansas City-based nurse. “I don’t expect him to say it back when I say it. Maybe one day, he will.”

The new season of Couples Therapy premieres on VH1 on Wednesday, Sept. 10 at 9/8c.