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Counselling

Counselling Information

For some people, seeking professional help is out of the question. Counselling is thought to be for losers, not people who are strong and capable. However, the vast majority of people who seek counselling do so because it takes great courage and strength to work on their own issues and become proactive in improving their life.  How do you view counselling? The following are some misconceptions about what counselling is and how it works:
 

1. Counselling is only for people who have serious emotional or mental problems.
   You don’t have to be in a crisis to go for counselling. When your vehicle isn't running properly or as well as it should, it doesn't necessarily mean it needs a major overall but rather a tune-up. The same could apply to you; counselling could be used only as a tune-up for problems you may be facing. Why wait until you can no long function at home, school, work before seeking help.  When you are not feeling well physically, you seek the help of a physician.  The same principle applies to if your not feeling good about your life or some aspect of it.
    
2. Counselling is for people who are too weak to overcome an addiction or has some other type of inadequacy in dealing with problems on their own.
   An individual is not psychologically impaired or weak if they are going for counselling. Confronting and addressing your problems through counselling takes courage, self-discipline and motivation.  It is a proactive, smart decision to address issues before they start affecting you negatively.
           
3. The main purpose of going for counselling is to get good advise.
   The counsellor will teach you how to cope with your problem. Counselling helps to draw out answers within yourself and identifies your beliefs, values, and thoughts which affect how you act and feel. Counselling can teach you how to express repressed feelings of anger, joy, guilt, etc.
   
   Counselling is essentially a safe place for an individual to explore their lives and help to process their thoughts, feelings, beliefs, etc.
   
   This is not to say that counselling is not a place to find solutions.  Yes, finding solutions that make sense to the client is critically important! But it can be much more.
    
4. A good counsellor will provide you with a quick solution to your problems with little to no effort on your part if you ask them.
   The counselling process requires some patience. Although the process may seem slow and drawn out at times. Counselling is not a instantaneous answer to all problems. It can take a lot of self exploration. Before things can get better, they often get worse because old wounds are being opened up and looked at in order to deal with them in an effective manner.
    
5. When in counselling, the counsellor does most of the talking and you listen.
   People tend to have two different views about this.  Some people seem to think that all counsellors do is sit and listen to clients with no input at all.  Other people think that counsellors do all the talking and that clients are going to get lectured to.
   
   Counsellors are listeners, but the process of working through a person's problem is a collaborative one. Counsellors need to go at the "speed" of the client and need to custom fit their way of working to suite the needs and desires of the client. This means that there will be an interaction that involves participation of both the client and the counsellor.
    
6. Counsellors will work towards changing your beliefs and values to conform to the right way to feel and act.
   Counsellors help you draw out answers from within yourself.  Each person is different and dealing with problems takes personal evaluations and self-discovery in order to deal with the problem effectively.
    
7. If you choose to seek profession help, you are considered mentally unhealthy.
   
   Quite the contrary, confronting and addressing your problems through counselling takes courage, self-discipline and motivation. There are many reasons for seeking professional help, the following are some of them:
    
• feel depressed, sad, downhearted, hopeless and don’t understand why or what to do to change the way you feel.
• have no purpose or direction in your life
• going through a personal or professional transition.
• feeling stressed due to work, school, family or financial problems.
• is or has been a victim of abuse, whether physical or mental.
• cannot control your anger, becomes resentful and says/does things you regret later.
• have lost someone close to you and feel you cannot go on with your life.
• feel alienated from yourself from others.
• most of the times your drinking gets out of hand.
• arguments with spouse almost never result in an efficient compromise.
• time spent gambling is taking away from my family life.
• in the process of ending a relationship or divorcing.
• have problems communicating with your teenager or teenager with parents.
  Counselling doesn’t stay and end in the counselling room. The skills you learn can be applied to many aspect of your life, to empower and enrich your relationships at home, at work and in your community, as well as provide you with increased well being to becoming the person you were meant to be and always wanted to become. The skills and growth you experience will be carried with you in your everyday life.
   
8. Counselling is painful, unpleasant and serious!
        As much as issues can be painful and hard to face, the counselling relationship can be very pleasant. There can be times when there is a lot of humour within the counselling room.
   
        Some people become relieved that they can simply be themselves within the counselling room and once they experience that it is a safe place for them, they relax and enjoy working on improving their life. They learn that the counsellor is not there to judge them or make them feel bad. Once safety and trust has been established, counselling can be the best investment you ever make in yourself!
   
         
      9. Can it really be confidential - even from my employer or supervisor?
        Yes! All counselling at the SIHTC is strictly confidential. No information disclosed (even the fact that you walked in the door) by you can be divulged to any third party without your written permission to do so. As a matter of fact, even if you gave your written consent, you have the power at any point in time of revoking your consent.
   
        In other words, you are the one in the "driver's seat" with regards to who you wish to have and not have your personal information.
   
        If you have any questions regarding confidentiality, please ask your counsellor regarding it.
   
         
     10. What rights does a client have when they go for counselling at the St Ives Holistic Therapy Center?

The following is the Client's Bill of Rights by which we abide:

CLIENT’S BILL OF RIGHTS

1.     Clients have the right to know what the problem is (from the perspective of the counsellor) in clear language that they can understand.

2.     Clients have the right to participate in selecting the goals and objectives of their treatment.

3.     Clients have the right to know specifically what is going to happen during the counselling process – who is supposed to do what to whom and under what conditions.

4.     Clients have the right to know how long the counselling is likely to last (time dimension). This includes having an appointment or group session begin on time.

5.     Clients have the right to know alternate methods of dealing with their problems, and what the probability is that the one(s) selected will lead to successful resolution of the difficulties.

6.     Clients have the right to know what records will be kept and who will have access to them.

7.     Clients have a right to assume control over their own lives, so far as they are able, or to know (or have a guardian know) why this is not so.

8.     Clients have a right to know in advance about termination of services.

9.     Clients have a right to be a part of, and informed about, the evaluation of their own situations, in order that they may profit from and make decisions based on this data.

10. Clients have the right to assert grievances with respect to infringement of these rights and to have such grievances considered in a fair, timely and impartial manner.

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