MY SERVICES

WHAT DOES COUNSELLING WITH ME LOOK LIKE?

Counselling with me is like an extended conversation - one that is based on respect, understanding, and delving deeper. In session, this may involve: talking, listening, asking questions, reflecting, thinking, identifying feelings, gaining clarity, writing things down together, creating metaphors, accepting, committing, creating goals, and just being. Outside of a session, counselling may involve: paying attention to thoughts and feelings, experimenting with new ways of being, and noting examples or situations to discuss in the next session. 

The first couple sessions involve getting to know each other, understanding the process and limitations of counselling, discussing what brings you to counselling at this time, hearing about your life, both past and present, and creating goals for counselling. Further sessions can include reflecting on how your past informs your present, discussing recent and current life events, identifying skills, strategies, strengths, and areas of growth, learning new information, identifying and applying values, gaining insight and new perspectives, and reviewing counselling goals. Ending counseling can look different for different people. Some people can clearly identify when they feel they have met their counselling goals, and will prepare for 1-2 final counselling sessions to solidify their work. Other people will start to spread out their counselling sessions, and book future sessions on an ongoing basis as needed. Both processes can work.

Counselling can bring up a lot of emotions for people. Indeed, digging deeper and allowing serious personal reflection can stir up memories, feelings, and reactions. Parts of counselling will feel uncomfortable and may trigger feelings of guilt, sadness, and anxiety, especially in the short term. However, on the flip side, counselling can also create feelings of clarity, contentment, lightness, and peace, especially in the long run. This can be poetically summed up by Carl Jung, one of the fathers of psychology. He said, “people will do anything, no matter how absurd, to avoid facing their own souls.” But he also said “Who looks inside, awakes.”