Megan, I noticed that you, in my opinion, made a great point in terms of struggles which the field of counseling as well as individual counselors still face today: The stigmatization of not only mental health care but also counseling as opposed to psychological services. According to research, large parts of the general population still associate seeking mental health services, counseling in particular, with weakness and/or social unacceptance (Ludwikowski, Vogel & Armstrong, 2009). This phenomenon, in fact, has been observed in all counseling specializations including career and school counseling, which are among the oldest forms of counseling (Noah, Schiller, Williams & Laudenbach, n.d.). As you mentioned, the field of counseling emphasizes
The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the counseling profession and its ability to work on cases in multidisciplinary teams. A variety of scholarly journal articles were taken into account in order to gain insight into the field of counseling and some of its specializations. For this paper, the focus was, aside from general counseling, on marriage and family therapy as well as addiction counseling.
As I go down this road which is considered my life. I have realized that I have chosen the path of the person that I am today. My life up to this point was not an easy road and still has bumps in my future. In my past I have faced physical and emotional child abuse from my parents, death of my younger brother at a young age, my house burning down making my family homeless, Department of Family Services placing my brother and sisters into foster homes, and me becoming homeless again while trying finish high school. All of this led to me to joining the Army to realize there were different options in life. Learning from the past hardships is what led me to want to help others figure out to show they also can overcome hardships and that their past does not have to dictate their future. Throughout this paper I am going to take you through my journey by leading you through the concept of counseling as a professional identity, key characteristics of a counselor, duties and functions of the different areas I could pursue as a counselor, then the four career paths I would pursue, followed by the top two career paths I would enjoy, and top two professional settings that I would like to work.
In the coaching discussion it was not said that my conduct was not meeting expectations, but not allow myself to be in situations where it appears I’m being insubordinate.
It is my belief, a school counselor must have the personality characteristics of an effective counselor and have a personal approach to treatment. Personal characteristics of an effective counselor are as follows: making life oriented choices, being authentic, sincere, and honest with students at all times. Other characteristics consist of appreciating the influence of different cultures and being passionate with students as they are counseled. Having the respect for others, regardless of culture, race, and ethnicity are also characteristics of being a great counselor. Being authentic, honest, and sincere helps build a great rapport with students, parents, and co-workers. Students need someone to be passionate and show genuine concern when helping them through their educational journey. Each child is a unique individual who needs a secure, caring, and stimulating atmosphere in which to grow and mature emotionally, intellectually, physically, and socially. It should be a counselor’s desire along with teaching staff to help students meet their needs to their fullest potential in these areas by providing an environment that is safe, supports risk-taking, and invites shared ideas.
Earning a Master’s in Guidance and Counseling would be the ideal next step to fulfill my goals becoming a youth counselor. The program offered at The College of New Rochelle is a perfect match or my career and educational aspirations. I hope to refine my knowledge counseling therapies and techniques, learn more about disorders and associated symptoms, develop effective interviewing skills, and sharpen my ability to work as a professional in youth counseling.
The American Counseling Association website defines professional counseling as “a professional relationship that empowers diverse individuals, families, and groups to accomplish mental health, wellness, education, and career goals.” As the counseling profession has grown and the demand has increased over the years there has been some confusion of what the difference is between counseling and psychotherapy. Sharf (2012) reports, often times
My personal philosophy of life and my philosophy of counseling has been deeply affected by my life experiences as a young child and also as an adult. I am fortunate that my life has been a good life and I consider myself to be fortunate to have to have good parents and many loving family members. I do not recall having any events in my childhood that I would consider to be abusive or neglectful on the part of my family, and for that I consider myself to be lucky. I know several people who were abused as a child and it seems to have impacted them in many aspects of their lives even into adulthood.
The American Counseling Association (ACA) is the most sizeable worldwide association for counseling professionals ("American Counseling Association.", n.d.). The American Counseling Association (ACA) is a nonprofit organization ("American Counseling Association.", n.d.). The American Counseling Association (ACA) is based out of Alexandria, VA ("American Counseling Association.", n.d.). It was founded in 1952, by the convergence of four different associations in Los Angeles, Ca ("American Counseling Association.", n.d.).
The profession of counseling has a rich and bold history, evolving through the years from varied disciplines and birthing diverse specialties and branches along the way. Often referred to as the youngest of the counseling specialties is clinical mental health counseling. Despite physical health’s grasp on the nation, mental health has been a major focus at various times throughout history and continues to become an ever growing concern for people in general. As people come to better understand mental health issues and the demand for services grows, it is important to look at how clinical mental health counseling, and the counseling profession in general, has developed over time and how it has advanced to meet the needs of those seeking services.
I believe counseling is a collaborative partnership between client and counselor. Furthermore, this collaborative partnership is built from trust and acceptance of both client and counselor. I hope in conjunction with clients to understand the issues and concerns so to help them tap into their wisdom, creativity, and strengths to meet their current challenges. I believe in a comprehensive perspective through which clients can better comprehend themselves in the framework that our thinking about events can lead to emotional and behavioral upset. Moreover, counselors are to provide a safe environment for clients to explore their challenges and identify ways to move differently in overcoming these challenges.
The philosophy that underlies the counseling profession is unique among mental health professionals. According to Remley & Herlihy (2014), the philosophy is made up of four components. First, counselor 's view mental health challenges through a positive, wellness-oriented lens. The primary goal of the wellness model is for the client to achieve the highest degree of mental health possible. Psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers follow the medical model of mental health. The goal of these clinicians is to cure the client’s illness, which differs drastically from counselor’s view of clients.
Values, Morals, and Beliefs are components that play a role in an individual’s self-identity. The establishment of these components shape human nature, behavior, and the development of an individual’s purpose. The basis of these fundamentals has contributed to my desire to become a counselor. This paper will discuss my views of human nature, factors of behavior changes, goals of therapy, the roles of a therapist, and the counseling approaches that I chose to incorporate in a practice.
As a counseling student, it is very important to formulate a counseling theory tailored to ones’ own personality and beliefs. A counselor may choose a single theory to model when practicing therapy or pick and choose components and techniques from various theories, otherwise known as eclecticism. No theory is considered right or wrong. Understanding the different therapeutic approaches are important to effective counseling, however, counselors must also understand their own personal value, view of human nature, human behavior, counseling techniques and the purpose and goals of counseling. Understanding these components along with the different theoretical approaches will provide the counselor with a 9 knowledge of their own counseling, orientation and is essential to not only the productivity of counseling but the growth of the counselor as well.
Integrated approach to counseling is when you combined theories to cover the clients’ feelings, cognitive patterns, and behavior (Corey, Theory and Practice of Counseling and Pschotherapy 8e, 2009). Each theory focuses one of these key components of a client but in counseling you need to focus on each of these to fully help a client. The key to integrative counseling is to have multiple theories function in harmony (Corey, Theory and Practice of Counseling and Pschotherapy 8e, 2009).
This quarter’s course of “theories of counseling” felt like a whirlwind of theories, theorist, therapeutic techniques, and proper application of theoretical framework to help counsel students. As the course continued each new theory and therapy style I learned about seemed more appealing and useful than the last. In deciding which therapy styles I would favor using I have to take into account the general demographic of the students and communities I wish to work in. I plan to work with middle school to high school students that are from urban low social economic status and are recent arrivals to the country. Some of the characteristics of obstacles these students and families face daily are, single parent home/income, past/recent trauma, history of low family education level and legal trouble. I am fortunate to live in the community and society I want to help and that I have grown up in. I am equally blessed to be raised and have the opportunity to give back to my community and society the best way I know how by giving back in a positive manner.