+353
(0)86 277 5212 ~ lara@laraoconnell.com
|
Counselling
Attending a Counsellor is something relatively new in Ireland. I don't mean it hasn't existed before, but maybe I would be more accurate in saying its popularity has increased over the past 10 years. The Irish were not very good at dealing with their emotions, things that happened within a household didn't go beyond the front door. Strained matters of the home were seen as nobody else's business and you just had to get on with it, which can be a very sad and lonely place to be.
Thankfully that has changed. We as a nation have started speaking out more about how we feel, what we want, and generally speaking up for ourselves. The next step that is also thankfully improving, is that people are starting to seek professional guidance for when things get a little too much to cope with on their own. What I would love to see, is people not waiting as long in seeking that help. Life is short and precious, and things happen that we wish they hadn't and things go wrong, Life can be very difficult and complicated but it doesn't have to be. By seeking professional help, it is possible to work through those concerns. Counsellor's are there to give guidance in how best to change your circumstance, through helping you discover your belief and strength in yourself so that you can make the necessary changes on your own. You may even surprise yourself by not making the changes you thought were the problem through dealing with older issues still lurking around causing you to see things differently. We tend to carry old issues along with us unnecessarily, creating new ones. We all go through difficult experiences. We all need healing at some stage in our lives. It is OK to get help through these times. Often just being able to talk about it is enough to lift the burden. So share, talk, let it go and learn how to move on.
Well rather than me rattling on with my opinion, I will list a number of psychology styles/approaches used in counselling with a few links where you can find out more about each. They all have the same ultimate goal of wanting to help the individual, they just have different ways of going about it. Many Counsellors would use a combination of styles gearing towards whichever they felt was best suited at any given time. What I would say is, reading up about the different approaches can leave you a bit confused. Don't worry, knowing these approaches isn't your job, its the job of the professional you are seeing.
Finally, if you have taken the wonderful step of seeking guidance but find yourself somewhat uncomfortable with the first person you chose, it is perfectly acceptable to find somebody else - don't feel guilty, just try again. But also be careful that you are not using this an excuse not to open up. Be honest with yourself and give them a genuine chance to begin with, perhaps even sharing your uncertainty with them. Their professionalism will also allow them be honest with you and decide whether they believe they can help you or not. If not, they should be able to recommend somebody else instead.
Reality/Choice Therapy — Dr William Glasser 1965
http://www.wglasser.com/ ~ http://www.journalofrealitytherapy.com/realitytherapy.htm ~ http://www.realitytherapy.org.uk/Client/Person Centered Therapy — Carl Rogers 1902-1987
http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/rogers.html ~ http://pandc.ca/?cat=carl_rogers&page=rogerian_theory
http://counsellingresource.com/types/person-centred/index.htmlGestalt Therapy — Fritz Perls, Laura Perls and Paul Goodman in the 1940s–1950s
http://www.aagt.org/html/introduction.html ~ http://www.g-gej.org/4-3/theoryoverview.htmlFreudian Therapy — Sigmund Freud 1856 - 1939
http://cepa.newschool.edu/~quigleyt/vcs/psychoanalysis.html ~ http://www.iep.utm.edu/f/freud.htm
http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/freud.htmlCognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mentalhealthinfo/treatments/cbt.aspx ~ http://www.nacbt.org/whatiscbt.htm http://counsellingresource.com/types/cognitive-therapy/Yungian Therapy— Carl Young 1875-1961
http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/jung.html ~ http://www.nyaap.org/index.php/id/4
http://www.mdani.demon.co.uk/wword/types.htm
|