The Importance of Self-Awareness in Counselling

The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) define counselling, along with psychotherapy, as being “umbrella terms that cover a range of talking therapies” (BACP, 2012: 1). In addition, counselling is provided by practitioners who “work with people over a short or long term to help them bring about effective change or enhance their wellbeing” (BACP, 2012: 1). Those who practice counselling in a professional manner undergo intensive training and personal development, the latter of which has been “defined in terms of self-awareness and change” (Wheeler, 1996: 75). These changes, according to Johns, “influence the

In everyday life people experience difficulties and problems that they feel they are not able to deal with on their own and need help with. The help that people receive to overcome their problems can be in many different forms. People may receive help in an informal way, such as having a chat to a close friend or relative, who can offer support and advice or they may seek help in a more formal capacity from various helping professionals, such as counsellors, social workers, psychiatrists, doctors, etc. For all of these professionals it is their

It’s important as a counsellor to be non-judgement of a client whether that be around the age, sex, religion, sexuality, culture, disability the counsellor should remain professional at all times, sticking to the equal opportunities act, but also be true to their own limitations regarding the above, for instance I recently counselled a client who brought up the subject that tested me because what they wished to explore I personally am against, from my own personal feelings and values this really pushed my comfort zone, but I feel I was able to be non-judgemental regarding the situation and supported my client on their exploration of it, for me this was a great achievement and gave me a real sense of how things that cross my own beliefs can crop up, I feel I dealt with the situation in a professional manner, it showed me that it’s with experience that you learn whether or not your own beliefs, values and morals can be pushed aside while helping a client.

In this assignment I intend to define ‘counselling skills and knowledge’ and then show how I actively employ these qualities during my everyday life. These include informal helping interactions with family and friends, in a supervisory capacity at work and during skills practice sessions as part of my counselling course. Finally I’ll analyse the effects that these helping interactions have on me personally and the various ways in which I deal with those effects.

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.

Counseling others is a difficult job that requires people to listen, take notes, and respond in ways that are positive and helpful. It is important that trust be built between the counselor and the patient so that the patient will feel comfortable speaking about issues that are private or embarrassing. There are many different types of counselors including drug counselors; marriage counselors, grief counselors, job counselors, diet and exercise counselors, and others that can help people improve their lives in different ways. Counselors are trained to offer advice and listen to issues that may be bothering other people. They are not allowed to prescribe medication or expected to provide

Geldard, G & Geldard, K (2012) 7th Ed. Basic Personal Counselling: A Training manual for counsellors. N.S.W Australia. Pearson.

Counselling, in the profession, refers to the creation of relationships that are helpful and positive between a counselor and a client. Counselling is intended to aid in adjustment and growth. Usually a client come to counsellors when they do not how to change so that they can lead a better and satisfying life. There are many skills and concepts that makes a great counsellor but in this essay, I will go back to the most fundamental basic skill which is "joining".

Counsellors do not offer advice as such but instead give an insight into a client’s feelings and behaviour and they help the client to change their behaviour accordingly. They do this by actively listening to what the client has to say and comment from a professional perspective. Counsellors are trained to be effective helpers, especially in sensitive and difficult situations. They have to be independent, very neutral and professional as well as respecting the privacy and confidentiality of a client. Counselling can help clients to clarify their problems, identify the changes they wish to make and give them a fresh perspective. Counsellors should help them to seek other options and look at the impact that life events have made on the

Not feeling judged or criticised by the counsellor or that the counsellor is likely to not accept you if you share something ‘bad’

The counselling process is based on the exchange of emotions between the client and the counsellor which aims to form an alliance (Hough, 1998). It involves the counsellor using skills in which they possess in order to communicate effectively with clients (Hough, 1998). This reflective essay clearly articulates my application of counselling skills used in this practice session and suggestions for improvement. It will provide a summary of the session, identification of a range of skills used and a brief explanation of the reasons for using the skill. It will also provide an evaluation of my application of the skills chosen, including verbatim examples, suggestions for improvement, also including verbatim examples to demonstrate what could

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

Self- Awareness is being met by respecting client’s personal moral, ethical and values. I am an intake specialist at my current employment. I am the first person who meets with the client to get all consents sign before they start treatment. If I do not feel comfortable working with a client, I inform my supervisor so another person can finish the paperwork for me. As an intake specialist I respect clients personal moral, ethical and values and if I do not feel comfortable working with them I will refer them to another provider that will help them more.

Talking it out has always been a way for me to cope with the difficult times in my life. Friends and family can be great listeners, but they are often biased in their attempt to help because they know what you want to hear. A counselor can look at your situation objectively, and know the right questions to ask to help you understand what you are feeling. I have seen several therapists over the years and they have always been just what I needed to help bridge the gap I was feeling in my life.

“Self-awareness is the first step in creating what you want and mastering your life. Where you focus your attention, your emotions, reactions, personality, and behavior determine where you go in life. Having self-awareness allows you to see where your thoughts and emotions are taking you. It also allows you to take control of your emotions, behavior, and personality so you can make changes you want” (Warmerdam, 2017). I feel that I am more self-aware because of how I tackle many tasks daily. I know my major downfall is poor time management. I did not manage deadlines will nor did I observe to them. I am continuously working on making myself a better person by managing my time well. I have learned that I work well under pressure than I do when the deadline is far away. I remember I was planning my family reunion and my cousin had not arrived with the fish for the first night and all my family was hungry and we were waiting on another fish fryer to arrive. My quick thinking allows us to feed everyone in a record time. I located a few additional fryers and bought local fish and French fries from the area. By the time my cousin arrived all my family was sitting down eating and was grateful that they did not have to continue to wait to eat. I feel I do work better under pressure because I need that extra push.