LEARN MORE ABOUT COUNSELING
What Is Counseling?
Simply put, counseling is a
process through which a person explores with another
or others an issue that is affecting his/her life.
The art of counseling is as old as mankind and
continues to today. From the ancient Egyptians
seeking the advice of the high priest to the current
day use of consultants to address a corporation’s
marketing issues, counseling has been a way to arrive
at a new perspective on a problem.
The science of psychotherapeutic
counseling, however, traces its roots back to Sigmund
Freud’s work in Germany. Since then,
psychotherapy has come a long way in understanding
what needs drive a person and what approaches can
most effectively help to discover solutions to the
“stuck points” in someone’s life.
It is fair to say that today most
therapists use a combination of techniques in their
practices. The counseling process no longer
means “lying on the couch and getting psychoanalyzed”
nor does it equate to “getting your head shrunk”.
These days counseling is a dynamic interaction
between a client and a therapist in which both work
on the issues at hand. The topics can range
from substance abuse to parenting and from depression
to career choices. Most important in this
process are not the techniques that the counselor
utilizes but the relationship of trust and openness
that he/she and the client develop. In an
effective therapeutic relationship, a “chemistry”
exists that allows the therapist to challenge and the
client to explore even through emotional pain or
struggle.
Most often, the methodology used
in counseling falls into one, or a combination of,
five approaches:
Individual sessions
in which a client meets one-on-one with a
therapist. In the beginning of treatment
the two determine which issues to discuss, the
goals of the counseling and what support systems
exist outside counseling to bolster the changes
that the client wants to implement in his/her
life. Individual sessions can last for a
very short time (e.g., two sessions for feedback
on a decision that is nearly complete) or a
longer period (e.g., 18 months of weekly sessions
to deal being a victim of child sexual abuse).
Usually, ten to twenty sessions are enough to
address and resolve most issues or problems.
Individual counseling is used to gain insights,
explore alternatives, generate solutions, and
change behaviors and attitudes.
Couple sessions
in which two adults in a personal/intimate
relationship address issues that are affecting
that relationship. The overall goals are to
help partners listen to each other, clarify
expectations each has of the other, change
attitudes, let go of built-up resentments, and
reconnect. Often the specific topics
covered include communication, sexual conflicts,
financial tensions, child rearing and day-to-day
living agreements. There are three basic
types of couple counseling: premarital,
relationship growth, and decision whether or not
to continue a relationship. The last one,
while difficult, can help keep a marriage
together or help to make a separation/divorce be
a positive and supported change for both
partners. In couple counseling, if one of
the clients discovers issues that he/she has been
carrying for a long time (such as childhood
trauma) or that he/she needs to address alone
(such as depression), individual sessions are
arranged.
Family
sessions in which parents and children in
a family come together to handle struggles that
they are all experiencing. Usually, the
types of issues that family counseling address
are specific and can be dealt with in a few
sessions. However, some problems, such as
substance abuse of a family member, can go much
deeper and require an investment of time to
resolve. The beauty of this approach is
that many of the players in a family system look
at their problems together and jointly decide
what to do to change their life together.
It allows the therapy to progress much more
quickly because they are all working toward the
same goals.
Therapy Group
sessions in which four to twelve, usually
unrelated persons come together in a structure
that is led by one or two therapists. In
group counseling, the leaders define the purpose
of getting together, lay out the rules of
interaction and confidentiality, and guide the
members in exploring their issues. For
their part, the members are both receiving help
from others and giving help to their fellow
members. Group sessions are a very powerful
way to explore common themes and grow
individually. Groups come in many shapes.
They can be ongoing with no special topic on
which to focus (called general therapy groups).
On the other hand, they can be very specific and
time-limited (such as an eight-week group for
teens whose parents are separating).
Support Group
sessions in which two to any number of
persons gather to help each other. Like a
therapy group, a support group can be topic
related (such as parenting support) or open
ended. And, it has a rule of
confidentiality that lets members feel
comfortable enough to reveal themselves.
While it does not have leaders who are
therapists, usually one or two members take on
the role of organizing, ranging from where and
when the group meets to who brings the
refreshments. The support group is a
powerful tool to help people change and renew
their lives. The largest one is the
world-wide Alcoholics Anonymous. But on a
smaller level, ones such as women-in-transition
groups are just as effective in supporting
growth.
Counseling by itself cannot change
a person’s life. Rather, change occurs only
when a client explores his/her issues, looks at
alternatives, makes a decision to alter an attitude
or a behavior and then puts that decision into
action. Counseling, in whatever form it takes,
is merely the catalyst and guide in helping a client
through that process. |
