Therapeutic Impairing Essay

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.

Wellness is the health of a person as a whole. It encompasses the person’s physical, as well as mental and emotional health. Over time, therapist came to the realization that clients needed to be well in every aspect of their lives in order to be healthy ("Wellness in Mental

Counseling is defined as ”the use of therapeutic strategies to help clients address personal concerns and mental health issues” (Nystul, 2016). Pursuing counseling as a career involves many years of formal study and certification or licensure. After receiving licensure to practice as a professional counselors it is a requirement to maintain involvement and certification in certain associations in order to hold your license. These association often require further education and/or professional practice in order to maintain membership in these associations. It is quite obvious that counseling requires a large amount of commitment and passion in order to pursue it as a career and maintain a title as a counselor. I have conducted an interview with a professional counselor in order to further understand the experience of being a counselor. The interview that I conducted explores the requirements of maintaining and receiving a counselling career, the experience of being a counselor, and what characteristics or skills a professional may have. The Individual who agreed to the interview was a counselor by the name of Susie Facio. Susie Facio, through this interview, will be giving us a look at what influenced her to become a counselor, what her work entails on a day to day basis, and what qualities and skills she has acquired in order to become a successful counselor.

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

This model focuses on both affective and cognitive learning. It allows for discussion of the choice and application of a particular theoretical model and attempts to stimulate personal and professional growth (Gysbers & Henderson, 2006). There are three stages of counselor development. The first stage is one of reliance. In this stage the supervisees are highly motivated but they lack basic counseling skills. During this stage, the supervisee’s focus is mainly on how to perform a skill and master that skill. They rely significantly on their supervisor at this time. They depend on textbook theories rather than real world experiences and the utilization of theories in practice. During this stage, it is required that the supervisor teaches the fundamentals of counseling to enhance the trainees’ skills. Stage 2, the trial and error phase, is when a lot of the performance anxiety and lack of confidence comes into the picture. It is the job of the supervisor to support the supervisee and build their self- confidence. Supervisors need to bring awareness to the ineffective behavior that the supervisee may exhibit without destroying their confidence and desire to work in the field. During this stage, the supervisor’s focus shifts from reflection on data from the counselor/client relationship to the supervisee’s performance anxiety. This is a time for questioning and experimenting allowing

Burnout is defined as an internal psychological experience that involves feelings, attitudes, motives and expectations. Burnout means the energy of an individual has been consumed by helping others. Energy crisis occurs when the psychic demand exceeds the supply. Burnout is often experienced with a state of physical, mental and emotional exhaustion caused by a long-term involvement within an emotionally demanding situation. Burnout is often accompanied by physical depletion, feelings of helplessness, disillusionment, negative self-concept and negative attitudes toward employment, people and life in itself. Burnout represents a breaking point where it’s hard for an individual to cope with the environment surrounding them. Compassion fatigue is often caused by a work related stress and it is also an increase of loss in compassion over a period of time. Compassion fatigue can share similar

As mentioned previously, the focus of self-care within the field of counseling is imperative. The counselor must adhere to proper self-care in order to lead a successful career. Norcross (2000) explains that there are several self-care strategies that the counselor must follow, however, the strategies may vary from counselor to counselor. A few of the most universal strategies are as

Burnout is a gradual onset with symptoms coming on over time slowly. Burnout symptoms may include physical exhaustion, hopelessness, negative self-concept, having difficulty leaving home, and inability to concentrate are just some of the symptoms. Due to the gradual onset of symptoms, it is often hard to detect early (Dass-Brailsford, 2007). In McCann and Pearlman’s article they discuss burnout as a, “psychological strain from working with difficult populations” (McCann & Pearlman, 1990).

Wellness is a vital aspect to the counseling profession. Lawson and Myers (2011) indicate that counselors are more susceptible to mental and emotional disorders than others within the population. Therefore, it is imperative for counselors to understand wellness and build strategies for resilience. Furthermore, wellness is the healthy balance of a person’s mind, body, and spirit. For counselors to be effective within the profession it is important for them to understand the need for wellness (Wolf, Thompson, Thompson, & Smith-Adcock, 2014). An inability to manage both personal and work life can cause burnout and affect the counselor’s wellbeing and the clients they serve (Lee, Cho, Kissinger, & Ogle, 2010). Research depicts that well counselors are more likely to promote wellness, while impaired counselors are likely to harm their clients (Lawson & Myers, 2011). Counselor educators and students are learning the importance of self-care to help maintain mental, physical, and spiritual health. Self-care is the strategy that an individual uses for relief, which include extracurricular activities that are relaxing and fun to that individual. Self-care includes healthy activities that can include sewing, gardening, exercising, and many other

There are two specific empirically supported wellness models which influence the field of counseling and counselors’ work with clients: the so-called Wheel of Wellness as well as the model of the Indivisible Self (as cited in Myers & Sweeney, 2008, p. 483). The goal of a counselor’s work with clients is to help the latter achieve a state of optimal wellbeing which consists of an equilibrium between physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health (Myers & Sweeney,

When attempting to identify as a professional counselor, it is important to understand the basic elements of counseling as it pertains to individual specializations. The wellness model and the key philosophies of the counseling profession: wellness, resilience and prevention are examined. The ability to articulate the roles and characteristics to understand how they relate to the different professional roles is

Working as a therapist can be exhausting, but yet, rewarding at the same time. As a therapist we deal with daily encounters of other people’s lives, issues, problems etc. Taking multiple cases of providing therapeutic interventions has an effect on the human body and the psyche. The wear and tear over time begins to haunt us without recognizing how neglectful we can be towards ourselves because our focus is for the sake of other people’s sanity. The profession is hard, and can be detrimental to professionals who do not take care of themselves. Self-care is an important aspect when working as a therapist. Our health, mental health, spiritual values, etc. should matter just as the client’s health, mental health and spiritual values matters

Counseling is a relatively young profession when compared to other mental health professions. In my brief personal and professional experience with the field, I have come to define counseling as a process of engagement between two people, both of whom are bound to change through a collaborative process that involves both the therapist and the client in co-constructing solutions to concerns.

Recognizing hazards in the workplace and setting clear boundaries initially and maintaining them throughout therapy will go a long ways in a therapist “keeping their sanity” intact. It is better to be proactive than reactive in this respect and dismiss the notion that “Boundary issues or countertransference issues won’t affect me.” “Those who understand the etiology and impact of these liabilities are most effective in minimizing their negative consequences, and thus more successfully “leave it at the office” at the end of a long workday” (Norcross & Guy, 2007, p. 36). I believe that all counselors will carry pieces of their clients with them at all times, but remaining aware of the risks and dangers associated with our specific occupation will allow counselors not to be affected as