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What is Counselling at The ARS
Really All About?
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:
- Counselling is only for people who
have serious emotional or mental problems.
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| 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 overhall 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
longer function at home, school or work before seeking help. When you
are not feeling well physically, you seek the help of a
physician. The same principle applies if you're not feeling good
about your life or some aspect of it. |
- 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.
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| 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. |
- The main purpose of going for
counselling is to get good advise.
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| 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. 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.
Counselling is essentially a safe place for an individual to explore
their lives and help to process their thoughts, feelings, beliefs,
etc.
Counselling can teach you how to express repressed feelings of anger, joy,
guilt, etc.
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- 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.
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| The counselling process requires some patience. 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. |
- When in counselling, the counsellor
does most of the talking and you listen.
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| 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 suit 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.
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- Counsellors will work towards
changing your beliefs and values to conform to the right way to feel
and act.
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| 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. |
- If you choose to seek professional
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:
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feel
depressed, sad, downhearted, hopeless and don’t understand why or
what to do to change the way you feel.
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have no purpose or
direction in your life.
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going through a personal or professional
transition.
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feeling stressed due to work, school,
family or financial problems.
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is or has been a victim of abuse, whether
physical or mental.
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cannot control your anger, becomes
resentful and says/does things you regret later.
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have lost someone close to you and feel
you cannot go on with your life.
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feel alienated from yourself and from
others.
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most of the times your drinking gets out
of hand.
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arguments with spouse almost never result
in an efficient compromise.
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time spent gambling is taking away from my
family life.
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in the process of ending a relationship or
divorcing.
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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 aspects 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.
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- Counselling is painful, unpleasant
and serious!
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| 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 humor 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!
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- Can it really be confidential -
even from my employer or supervisor?
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| Yes! All counselling at the ARS 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. |
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