Monster in the Cupboard

A lot of mystery surrounds counsellors and counselling which appears to make some people wary of seeking help. I often wonder what it is about me that is so terrifying. How can I portray my true self, which I believe is open, welcoming with an ability to allow people to talk freely around and with me. People have expectations of what I will be like as a counsellor and part of this blog will show you I am a real person.

Writing a blog about counselling? What aspects should I consider? What would make this blog interesting without conflicting with the ethics of counselling. Looking through the papers people like to read about tragedy, disaster, politics, world and local issues. All things that involve people. The people in the news are named and described, and their motivations are examined in full.

As a counsellor I cannot write specifically about my clients or their stories or this would conflict with confidentiality that I have offered my clients. This means anecdotes about their behaviour in my counselling room is forbidden. I could analyse the news and the people’ actions that are involved except my analysis might make my clients think that I judge them.

As a person-centred counsellor I hope to offer empathy, acceptance and congruence. Empathy is shown as I can put myself in other people’s shoes and see the world from their point of view. As a blogger this means that I am considering my readers feelings as I write this. Acceptance of others allows people to be themselves and not worry about my judgement of them.  Congruence in writing a blog is shown by the fact that I am very aware of my feelings of caution whilst writing this blog. I am aware that I do not want to preach, I want to own my own thoughts and impart these to others mindfully.

As I work within a cosmetic dental and facial aesthetics practice I do see people come in with huge expectations of aspects of their looks they wish to change. I can get involved by allowing clients to voice their concerns with their looks and ensure their expectations of what they want is achievable. Through this process we can explore any underlying depression or anxiety that is making their expectations more exaggerated. As we build a relationship any decision for cosmetic work will be more grounded in reality and a benefit to both the client and practitioner.