Is counselling a waste of time?
All you do is just sit around and talk right?
Why not just talk with a friend, partner, family member or spouse?
You should!
You should absolutely talk to people you are close to and share what’s going on in your life.
But sometimes it's also helpful to have another type of communication and connection.
With a Counsellor , it’s different.
With a Counsellor you are talking in compete confidentiality.
You can say anything and express your feelings and thoughts completely without needing to be concerned about the impact like you might with a friend family member or significant other.
Your Counsellor is always on your side, has your best interests in mind and has no other competing interests.
In other relationships it’s natural and normal that we have some competing interests and differences of opinion. Those can flavour the conversation and make certain topics off limit or awkward or challenging.
And sometimes you might even worry that what you say might be shared with someone else.
Even though friends and family care, they may share or talk with others, who then possibly talk to someone else.
When talking with a Counsellor you can say things and know they are kept between you. And there’s no judgement, you know that you are accepted as a person unconditionally -- everything is understood with compassion.
Friends, family and partners may give you advice, their thoughts about how you should handle a situation. It’s usually given in kindness and out of caring but does not always take into account who you are and what makes sense and feels right for you.
In counselling you are in charge.
A Counsellor will support you in examining your values, interests, preferences and needs and will guide you through a process of finding the choice that feels right for you.
Counsellors also have a wide variety of tools, resources and skill sets they can share with you.
These techniques and frameworks are invaluable in helping you to reframe situations, discover unique solutions and possibilities, understand, manage and process emotions; and develop a mindset that leads you to “health wealth and happiness” - however you define those terms.
There is no competing interest, no hidden agenda, no ulterior motive involved - the goal is always to help you, the unique and individual person that you are, live the best version of your life.
