Core Conditions Essay

Empathy is a two way process, its about trying to fully understand what your client is saying and feeling and also showing your understanding to your client.

When we look at other professions like social workers, housing officers, the emergency services, the police and priests who utilise counselling skills we realise that some of the key concepts that are fundamental to the counselling profession are not their main priority. If such people were to introduce themselves as counsellors their clients may be under the impression that such things as confidentiality will be upheld. An example is the work of doctors, social workers, nurses and carers, in these types of professions advise is given to the client as to what to do and what not to do, medication is administered to the client whereas in the case of counselling especially with

I understand counselling to be a helping practice that differs from other helping activities, such as teaching for example. Counselling requires professional training and is specifically contracted or explicitly agreed. It has a theoretical base and uses specific methods within an ethical framework. The relationship between the counsellor and the client is built upon mutual expectation and is central to the process of the client under-going significant change in their lives.

By discussing this particular experience in detail, I can begin to understand the specific skills a counsellor may use in many different situations in order to help others (Egan, 2007, p. 13). In this reflective

This essay intends to introduce the reader to the most important skills involved within developing and maintaining a therapeutic relationship between a client and the therapist or counsellor. The onus will be on Humanistic counselling but many of these skills are central to all counselling types.

As a counselor in training, I believe that counseling is a collaborative process between you and I. Counseling is a personal and safe process that deeply respects and honors each individual’s unique life experiences. Here are some aspects of counseling and therapy as I perceive and practive it: Therapeutic counseling

Many people will, at some point in their lives, find themselves in the role of a counsellor without having a true understanding of the concept of counselling or what the role of the professional counsellor entails. There is a big difference between a professional counsellor and a person who uses some counselling skills as part of their role, for example their role as a friend or colleague. A professional counsellor is a highly trained individual who is able to use a different range of counselling approaches with their clients (Anon, 2001).

and felt her distress as she became emotional telling her story. Carl Rogers ( 1980 ) felt very passionately about empathic listening. He states: ''Empathic listening means entering the private perceptual world of the other. It involves being sensitive moment by moment to the changing felt meanings which flow in the other person and temporarily living the others life without making judgements''. ( Rogers, 1980. p.142 ). In being empathic towards the client during the session I also was able to reassure her, particularly when during the session she questioned her own capabilities.

To be able to help a client to access their deepest thoughts and open up for discussion that is both helpful and meaningful, there are several specific microskills to know about to enhance the communication with the client (Australian Institute of Professional Counsellors, 2009). These communication skills are built through different stages and may feel a little unnatural at the beginning. However, counselling is not about giving advice, but about supporting and helping the client to find his/her own solutions. This makes counselling challenging on many levels as you need to be aware of your own behaviour (Perinatal Mental Health Project, n.d.).

Thankfully, weather we realise it or not we all have the ability to offer empathy when communicating with people dealing with loss, trauma, grief etc.. This can be a personality trait that some people naturally have or this skill can be picked up and developed from interacting with other people throughout our lifetime. Social carers are trained to use this skill when interacting with clients who may be suffering in any way. These people may be experiencing very low points in their life and need empathy to feel accepted and feel like they are not alone on this journey. This emphatic approach also helps the client open up more about their struggles as a result of this effective approach.

After reviewing the article written by Lisa Moore, I began to reflect upon how I would incorporate empathy in my interactions with a client during the assessment phase of therapy. Empathy in a nutshell is attempting to match your feelings or current state of mind with that of another individual. In our field, empathy is of the utmost importance. It allows the speech-language pathologist (SLP) to meet clients where they are, to enter their world, and truly understand what it feels like to be them. SLP’s must not only view the client from an external frame of reference, but they must attempt to extract the client’s thoughts, feelings, ideas, beliefs, and values before and whilst administering an assessment protocol. There are several ways in

Counselling is a process of assisting individuals go through worries and difficulties, (Geldard and Geldard 2012). Consequently, many people strive for counselling help when they cannot handle issues or sometimes when they require expert support to provide

* People are resourceful and capable of self direction, possessing the capacity to regulate and control their own behaviour. Counselling is a means of tapping into the client’s personal resources with the ultimate goal to empower the client to realise their potential.

When someone has empathy if gives them the ability to look at the situation from the perspective of the client. According to Martin (2014), “empathy in a counseling relationship, involves the ability and willingness to experience a client’s beliefs, thoughts, and feelings through the client’s personal lens” (63). Consequently, by having empathy it will allow you to properly evaluate the whole situation, and provide sustainable help. An empathic heart will promote active listening skills. Being empathic will give you an engaging mindset. Martin states (2014), “Active listening counseling relationship also includes behaviors such as maintaining direct eye contact and observing the client’s body language. This will make for better

From a counseling stand point empathy is more meaningful than sympathy. Empathy is when we have the ability to understand and then reflect that understanding and those feelings back to the client. Sympathy is when you feel sorrow for someone else’s misfortune. Some clients come to counseling to seek sympathy and not empathy those types of clients want the counselor to feel sorry for them. Another barrier to the development of empathy could be the pressure we put on ourselves to say the right things. Empathy is about listening and acknowledging feeling and/or understanding. We may overcome these barriers by simply just listening for understanding and remembering that the counseling sessions are not for the counselor but for the client, so we must not impose our emotions and feelings on the