posted 30 Apr 2012, 07:45 by Christine Schneider
[
updated 30 Apr 2012, 07:47
]
The following extract shows the abstract of the paper only. In order to read the full text, please click on the following link: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/14733145.2010.485688
John McLeod (2010): The effectiveness of workplace counselling: A systematic review, Counselling and Psychotherapy Research: Linking research with practice, 10:4, 238-248
Abstract: Background: In response to the stresses of the contemporary workplace, the challenges of maintaining satisfactory work-life balance, and the costs to business of employee mental health problems, many organisations have contracted to make counselling services available to their staff. It is essential to evaluate the effectiveness of workplace counselling, in order to maintain standards, and to identify examples of good practice. Objectives: This paper presents a comprehensive, systematic review of the effectiveness of workplace counselling. Findings are analysed in terms of client satisfaction, psychological functioning, the meaning of work, work behaviour, and negative outcomes. Findings: Taken as a whole, the results of research suggest that counselling is generally effective in alleviating psychological problems, has a significant impact on sickness absence, and has a moderate effect on attitudes to work. Discussion: Methodological issues are discussed, and it is recommended that more high-quality research is required in order to reinforce the evidence base for workplace counselling in relation to a number of key questions.
Keywords: counselling; Employee Assistance Programmes (EAPs); effectiveness, review; work |
posted 26 Jan 2012, 04:47 by Christine Schneider
[
updated 27 Jan 2012, 00:35
]
Hearts of Glass: Integrative Psychotherapeutic Approaches to Autism by David Moat
A person with autism is first and foremost, a person. Their needs are
no different to the rest of us, especially the need for “connection”,
and yet it is exactly this “connection” that is so difficult to achieve
through the mask of autism. The presentation of many children with
autism is one that removes opportunities for connection – the
connections that are so important for the development of a sense of
self, and for the development of personality. In my work in the
UK, I see a number of people across the whole range of autism who have
poor self-awareness, poor self-esteem and a very fragile personality.
Whatever our view of the causes of autism, the effects are very clear,
and it is these effects that can be worked through using various
psychotherapeutic approaches.Key PrinciplesA
major clue to opening up pathways of working lies in acknowledging the
autism and its effects. Autism is characterised by problems in
communication, social understanding, flexibility of thought and sensory
integration. These characteristics can create a perception and
perspective on the world that is very different to that of other people.
If we add a learning disability to the profile, then those
perspectives and perceptions will be altered yet further. The core
deficits within autism are bound to lead to high levels of social and
emotional stress. Understanding these perspectives is vital to
successful therapy.A second clue to successful working is
understanding that whilst a person’s autism may be a major feature of
that person’s life, there are other things going on for that person as
well, as they do for other people. We all operate within an
environment; we all have individual personality traits; we all have a
genetic inheritance of some sort; and we all have an experience of life.
Each of these things affects who we are, and how we react to things.
In autism, the impact of these things may be distorted, but that does
not mean we should discount them.Thirdly, a therapist should
understand that autism affects those around the individual perhaps at
least as much as it does the individual themselves. An awareness of
projection, introjection, transference and counter-transference is vital
in unravelling the sometimes complicated relationships that can develop
around the individual. Understanding a little about group dynamics and
disrupted functioning can also be useful.Other factorsIn
the UK, and perhaps in other parts of the Western world, we have a very
medical and behavioural view of autism. The reliance on a medical
perspective risks ignoring emotional stress. A solely behavioural
approach risks becoming stuck in “symptom management”. A combination of
the medico-behavioural perspectives risks over-reliance on
anti-psychotic medication. An integrative and holistic
psychotherapeutic approach can help to avoid these risks, and lead to
very real and lasting progress.Another factor involved in poor
outcomes and overall prognosis is negativity. A doctor might say to a
parent, “I’m sorry, but your child has autism…” A mainstream school
might view the autistic child as “a nuisance”. Peers might view the
child as “strange” or “odd”. Poor social functioning might create
isolation and loneliness. And thus the child may develop a poor
self-esteem, low confidence and motivation. These things can then lead
to anger, frustration, depression and anxiety as the child grows up.
The good news is that these emotional elements are all treatable using
psychotherapeutic approaches.And if we use other language to
describe some of the key autistic behaviours, we can see how
psychotherapy can help there, too. For example, autistic behaviours are
often listed like this:• A need for “sameness” and routine• Rituals and obsessions• Withdrawal• Physical control – everything in its place• Physical control – aggression• Hyperactivity (or is it hyper-reactivity?!)• AngerIf
we call them defensive or reactive behaviours instead, then we can see
how psychotherapy aimed at easing social and emotional distress can
reduce these, and other, behaviours. Autism affects those around
the individual in various ways. This is sometimes overt, as in the
case of a parent who quickly becomes depressed and/or frustrated.
Sometimes the effect is more subtle, where these things happen over a
longer period of time. But sensitive psychotherapeutic approaches can
also benefit everybody within the autistic person’s network. And if the
network functions well, it can only be good for the individual at the
centre of it.Useful ApproachesIt is
essential to build rapport with the individual. This can be done by
paying attention to interests and key behaviours. It might be easier to
achieve with clients who have a greater intellectual capacity, but it
can also be done with people with severe autism and co-morbid learning
disabilities, even if they are non-verbal. An approach called
“Intensive Interaction” has been developed to enable the forming of
connections with severely disabled people. It requires us to “switch
off” our natural communication systems, and to mirror key behaviours,
thus showing acceptance to the individual. Whichever approach we use,
rapport helps us to enter into the world of the autistic person.We
can use the rapport to build up a perspective of the individual’s life –
the current situation, the history, and perhaps even the hopes and
dreams that the individual has.Other useful approaches will
almost always involve relaxation methods, and the provision of
alternatives to negative behaviour. Relaxation helps to lower general
arousal levels. For other clients, their perception of the world leaves
them under-stimulated. Here we can provide exercise programmes and
sensory integration therapies.Cognitive Behavioural Therapy is
often cited as being useful in autistic spectrum conditions, especially
for those with Asperger Syndrome. CBT seeks to alter behaviour through
changing the way we think about things. Neuro-Linguistic Programming
has also been shown to be helpful here. The risk, however, of using CBT
by itself is that we can miss the underlying emotional distress, and in
some cases it can risk making the situation worse. This is because
some people on the autism spectrum display repetitive negative thought
patterns (sometimes called ‘ruminative’ or ‘catastrophic’ thinking) – we
need to make sure that CBT does not simply exacerbate these symptoms.The
use of creative approaches (music, drama, art, play, story-telling etc)
is useful right across the range of disabilities in autism. Such
approaches enable emotional expression where previously it was
impossible. “Life-story” work enables the client to re-frame
their perspective on life. Many people with autism and depression
fixate on negative events in their lives, and effective Life-Story work
helps to reconstruct the pattern into a more positive format. Hypnotherapeutic
approaches can also be used. The therapist needs to be mindful of the
need for clear informed consent before engaging in direct work of this
nature. But there may be one or two hypnotherapeutic techniques which
can be used in the course of other therapeutic interventions. We have
already talked about the usefulness of relaxation techniques. It might
also be possible to use story work to guide imagination towards more
positive ends. Where necessary, a major factor in achieving more
positive outcomes is in the use of social skills interventions. If
much of the stress and anxiety in autism has its root in social
dysfunction, then helping to improve social performance will remove some
of this stress.Other useful approaches will involve anger
management and conflict resolution techniques. Anger in autism usually
comes from conflict, and conflict usually happens at the point of
interaction. We can do a lot to avoid such conflict by improving our
understanding of the autistic heart and mind. But sometimes conflict is
inevitable, and management techniques will be vital. Providing
positive alternatives to anger can be helpful – as long as we do not
forget that anger is a natural human emotion, and we all have a right to
express it. Suppression will often only lead to further problems.Psychotherapy
at a deeper level, is more difficult, but progress can be made towards
improving self-esteem and self-value, as long as the therapist is
sensitive to the defences that people build around themselves. Bruno
Bettelheim published a book called “The Empty Fortress”. Perhaps this
was a mistake – the autistic “fortress” is far from empty. It is very
well defended, but it is full of life, vitality and potential. All we
have to do is to find a way into the box, remaining sensitive to the
reasons that the defences went up in the first place. Some of those
reasons have been shown to be pathological, and could well be improved
through medical treatment, or physiological interventions (for example,
dietary approaches). Perhaps the real challenge is finding the courage
to offer holistic and integrative approaches that encompass all these
factors, whether emotional or physiological, thereby helping people with
autism to become much more integrated, and far less isolated. And part
of that challenge might be working towards altering the low value that
society places on disability and those living and working with it.David MoatTranspersonal Psychotherapist and HypnotherapistTraining and Advice Consultant, Autistic Spectrum Conditions
About the author: In addition to working as a therapist, David provides training, advice and consultancy services, including
assessments, to assist others in providing care, education and support to
people with an Autistic Spectrum Disorder.
|
posted 6 Dec 2011, 05:23 by Christine Schneider
[
updated 27 Jan 2012, 00:38
]
Solution Focused Brief Therapy
Very often Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) is referred
to as ‘Solution Focused Therapy’ or even much more simply as ‘Brief Therapy’. The
term Brief Therapy as such may refer to both counselling and psychotherapy, in
each case however with the aim of completing therapy within a much shorter time
frame than the more traditional approaches to counselling. Usually, clients
seeking counselling or psychotherapy would expect to spend a minimum of 6
months with a therapist in order to achieve meaningful and lasting change. This
is usually done by exploring the past as well as present and by analysing how
events that took place in the past are influencing the way clients react today.
Once this has been established, clients can then work on finding ways to heal
and repair any damage they may have suffered in the past and to change their
lives for the better. Patterns of behaviour that may have been ingrained over
decades can be spotted and analysed. Once clients understand why they react in
certain ways, they can then, together with a therapist, work on how to change
these reactions. A gross oversimplification of this process could be described
as:
- Where
am I now?
- How
did I get here?
- Where
do I want to be?
- How
am I going to get there, considering where I came from?
Brief Therapy, on the other hand, does not focus on
exploring the past or any underlying issues that may be affecting a client’s
present. Instead, Brief Therapy focuses on what a client’s preferred future
would look like. Together client and therapist then work on moving closer
toward that preferred future. An oversimplified approach to Brief Therapy might
be therefore be described as:
- Where
do I want to be?
- What
aspects of my life or myself are already there?
- What
else do I need to do to get the rest of me there?
Clients who seek Brief Therapy usually do so because they
need to achieve a certain goal quickly or change a specific behaviour within a
limited time frame. Brief Therapy usually aims to draw to a close after 6, 12,
or 18 sessions. This doesn’t mean that clients who seek Brief Therapy cannot
continue to explore other aspects of their lives once they have achieved their
goals. In fact, clients who have achieved their initial goal sometimes choose
to then continue with a more traditional approach to psychotherapy in order to
work on underlying issues, to learn more about themselves and to promote
further personal growth.
Back to all articles
|
posted 30 Nov 2011, 04:09 by Christine Schneider
[
updated 27 Jan 2012, 00:38
]
So what about CBT*
then? (*Cognitive
Behavioural Therapy)
Imagine the following conversation:
You come to me and say: “I’m looking for somebody who can
help me use my Windows PC, would you be able to do that?”
And I reply: “Sure, I can do that.”
So you continue by asking: “Do you use Excel? I have heard
that it’s great. It’s in the news all the time and a lot of magazines seem to
be talking about it, and that’s why I would like to use it, too.”
I then say “I don’t really use Excel on its own much, I
sometimes use it a little bit in combination with other programs. You see, for the
type of work I do, I tend to mainly use Word, PowerPoint and Photoshop. But if
you are looking for somebody to just teach you Excel specifically, I can refer
you to my friend Janet, she uses it exclusively all the time in her work. Just
while I’m looking up her address, would you like to tell me a little bit more
about what you are trying to do with your PC?” to which you answer: “I’m hoping
to write a book. I’ve been wanting to do this for years now, but somehow I just
can seem to do it on my own. The material for it is all up there in my head and
it keeps spinning round and round, and it’s really starting to cause me quite a
lot of stress. It might sound silly, but it’s actually keeping me awake at
night and because I’m not sleeping terribly well I’m exhausted during the day.
This means that I’ve had to take time of work and, you know, I’m a little bit
embarrassed to admit this, but I’ve even started to have panic attacks over
this.”
So I say: “I see; but you know Excel isn’t really suitable
for writing a book. I think you really want to use Word. You see, Excel is
suitable for producing charts and tables that can do automatic calculations
whenever you update them and things like that, but it’s not really going to
help you with your book, I’m afraid. I would suggest that we do go ahead and work
on this together, but we use Word for the main body of text that you’re going
to write. If you want to include pictures in your book as well, then I’d
suggest we do those in Photoshop and then embed them into our Word document.
And similarly, if there are some tables that you want to include in your book,
we can produce those in Excel and then also incorporate them into our Word
document. Does that sound like something you’d like to do?” and you say:
“Yes, that sounds
like a plan; but basically you’re saying that Excel isn’t suitable for what I’m
trying to do?”
I reply: “No, I’m afraid it isn’t.”
Then, finally, you say: “So why does everybody keep going on
about Excel, if in reality it’s so utterly useless?” and I’d say: ”Well it’s
not useless, in fact it’s really quite good for some things, it just isn’t
suitable for everything.”
In those last few lines, substitute Excel with CBT and you
get the gist of a conversation that I have with new clients about once every
week.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (or more commonly known as CBT) is one of
several different types of talking therapies available today. The reason it is
featured so much in the news is because it is, at the time of writing, the only
form of talking therapy that is available on the NHS. The difference between
CBT and other talking therapies, such as counselling or psychotherapy, is
usually the approach to what can be addressed in sessions and the focus of the therapy
itself. CBT tends to be a lot more directive with sessions focusing on very
practical issues. A CBT therapist may give you specific exercises and
‘homework’ to do in between sessions, and you won’t generally have as much of
an opportunity to explore your feelings and any underlying issues that may have
triggered your crisis.
In their introduction to CBT, the NHS website puts it this
way: “CBT cannot remove your problems, but can help you to manage them in a
more positive way.”[1]
At Cambridge Therapy Centre your therapist will be able to
recommend which type of therapy is best suited for your own specific needs and
goals, giving you the best possible results. Together we can treat a wide
variety of issues, including:
· Abuse
·
Addiction
·
Anger Management
·
Anxiety
·
Bereavement
·
Depression
·
Eating Disorders
·
Family Issues - Insomnia
·
Panic Disorders
·
Phobias
·
Post Natal Depression
·
Recurring Nightmares
·
Relationship and Marriage Counselling
·
Stress
·
Traumatic Experiences
Why not contact us today, to see how we can help you?
posted 29 Nov 2011, 08:26 by Christine Schneider
[
updated 20 Mar 2012, 04:56
]
How to find a good counsellor or psychotherapist (Part II)
(Please note that, as
mentioned in part 1 of this article, I am using the terms counselling,
psychotherapy, and therapy interchangeably.)
With so many different theoretical approaches to counselling
and psychotherapy, it is difficult to state exactly what makes a good
counsellor and what makes a bad one. I am certainly very reluctant to recommend
one particular theoretical approach to counselling over another one, as very
often clients respond better to one approach then another, making it all very
individual and dependent on the actual client and counsellor in question.
Nevertheless, it does strike me how many clients come to me stating that they
have made a bad experience with a counsellor in the past, or tell me that they
have had therapy in the past, but that “it hadn’t worked”. Counselling is a
process and for it to work it will take time, effort and patience on both parts,
counsellor and client. So, whilst I am aiming to give you an overview of what
qualities to look for in a therapist, I’d also suggest that you don’t
immediately give up and seek another therapist, just because you felt that your
counsellor is no good after an initial session. Keep in mind that it is your
counsellor’s job to challenge your views and perceptions, how you currently
view the world and how you act, in order to help you to achieve meaningful and
lasting change. A therapist who simply agrees that you are right and everybody
else is wrong and that all of your problems really are your partner’s, your work
colleagues’ or your parents’ fault may be telling you exactly what you want to
hear; Whilst this kind of positive reassurance may well provide you with some
of the nurturing and comfort you may so desperately need, it will probably not
help you to move on and change the way you react to your partner, work
colleagues or parents.
So how do you know then if your psychotherapist is providing
you with the right kind of support you need in order to achieve your own
specific goals? My answer to that would be to trust your instincts. One of the
most important aspects for therapy to work is the rapport and relationship you
have with your counsellor. Sure, during several months of therapy there may
well be occasions where you don’t agree, where you may feel frustration, and
maybe at times your counsellor may even genuinely get it wrong and misinterpret
something you have said, but overall these occurrences should be easily
resolvable. If, on the other hand however you do feel a very strong dislike for
your therapist from the very start and do not feel that this is the kind of
person you want to work with, then there will be little point in battling on.
If you have never had any form of counselling or
psychotherapy before then it may be difficult for you to know what to expect.
The following is a list of some of the attributes that I would personally want
to see in a counsellor. I would expect a therapist to be warm, empathetic and
kind. I would expect them to show genuine interest in what I am trying to
achieve through therapy and to make me feel heard. Also, especially where
therapy is long term and taking place over a period of six months or more, I
would expect a counsellor to carry out regular reviews to keep track of the
progress and to evaluate which methods and interventions work best for me. Another
big issue is confidentiality and trust; I would want to know exactly what the
therapist’s procedures are for keeping my data secure and what level of
confidentiality I can expect.
This leads us on to another aspect of counselling: who
should not be your therapist? In part one of this article I explained that my
reason for writing this guide was the fact that I am often approached by people
who I cannot ethically take on as clients for counselling or psychotherapy
myself. These include people who are my friends, friends of friends, very close
friends or relatives of work colleagues or even anybody frequenting the same
social groups as I do. This includes people who I may meet regularly in art or
exercise classes or similar. When I explain this, people will often say: “…but
I don’t mind you knowing personal stuff about me, as I know that you will keep
it confidential.” That may be true, but
keep in mind that therapy is supposed to provide you with a secure environment
where you can feel safe to explore your most personal thoughts and feelings.
Whilst you may feel right now that you’d be happy for me to know about those
thoughts and feelings, imagine sitting in my counselling room, wanting to talk
about something quite personal, when all of a sudden there is a slight niggle
in your mind that says: “…but I’ll see her at the coffee bar tomorrow….” or
“…she’ll be seeing my husband at the squash club later tonight…” Can you see
how this might affect and restrict what you might feel able to share with a
counsellor? And that is why it is usually not a good idea to choose a therapist
whom you or your close friends or family will meet regularly in other settings
outside of the therapy room. Having said that, your counsellor does of course
have a social life, too, and may well be a member of the same fitness club as
you are, and as long as you don’t bump into each other on a daily basis that’s
fine. In fact, most counsellors will discuss with you what their procedure for
chance meetings is, in case you ever were to meet by coincidence outside of
your therapy sessions.
Another important aspect to consider is moving from
individual one to one counselling to couples or family therapy. Very often
counsellors will conduct some sessions where both partners (or the whole
family) are present and some sessions where individual members are seen on
their own. This is quite normal, however, family and couples counselling
usually does require all of the members to start counselling together. This
means that whilst a client may have one or two sessions with a counsellor and
together they may then decide that it would be more beneficial to bring in the
other partner or the rest of the family, it is not normally appropriate to see
a therapist for several months and to then decide to move on to couples or
family therapy with that same practitioner.
Finally here is a list of warning signs that may help you to
decide if things are going wrong between you and your therapist. Watch out if
your counsellor:
- Interrupts
you frequently
- Seems
impatient
- Does
not seem to listen properly or give you their full and undivided attention
- Takes
telephone calls or answers the door/front desk during sessions
- Does
not seem to stick to the same session length every week
- Is
frequently very late or cancels sessions at short notice
- Will
not give you any information about their professional background, training
or ways of working, if asked
- Will
not give you any information about how data is kept secure and what their
procedures for ensuring confidentiality are
- Seems
judgemental and/or prejudiced
- Is
telling you what to do and regularly uses terms such as “you should”, “you
must” or “you can’t”
- Seems
to be giving you advice rather than options
- Seems
to just agree with everything you say
- Instigates
any form of social contact with you outside of sessions
- Is
regularly talking more than you in sessions
- Just
lets sessions happen from week to week without any from of plan, structure
or regular review sessions
- Allows
other people (such as the receptionist or other counsellors) to enter the
room unexpectedly during sessions
If you are still not sure, try addressing any problems you
may be experiencing directly with your therapist. If you do not feel able to do
this, then that in itself can be an obvious sign that things aren’t right between
you and your therapist. In this case you could contact a different counsellor
and ask for a second opinion to see what they say about your concerns.
Back to all articles
posted 29 Nov 2011, 06:19 by Christine Schneider
[
updated 27 Jan 2012, 00:40
]
What is Online Counselling?
Online counselling provides an opportunity to explore a
personal difficulty in a confidential and supportive environment, very much in
the way that face to face counselling does. This process may include expressing
feelings that are painful, and which many of us experience at certain times in
our lives.
When this happens, it can be difficult to stay positive and
cope with everyday life, yet at the same time you may not find yourself in a
position to go and visit a counsellor in his or her practice. This is where
online counselling can give you the opportunity to access counselling support
at a time and in a place that is convenient to you. There are basically three
different methods of conducting counselling online, email, video conferencing,
and instant text messaging. With the first method, email counselling, clients
will send an email to their counsellor by a specific date. This could for
example be every week, by Wednesday 4pm at the latest. The counsellor will then
reply to the client's email by a time previously agreed between counsellor and
client, for example by Thursday 6pm at the latest. There are some differences
in how counsellors ask their clients to structure their emails, some will
suggest clients use a word limit, other will suggest clients spend a specific
amount of time writing their email. The latter approach generally mimics the
process of real time counselling more closely and tends to give clients a more
structured and boundaried approach, just as face to face counselling would. The
second method listed above probably comes closest to mimicking face to face
counselling: where counsellor and client use video conferencing for their
sessions, both will meet online at a previously agreed appointment slot and
conduct their session with the use of a web-cam. The third approach, instant
text messaging is the one most frequently chosen by clients who would like to
stick to writing, but are looking for a counsellor's instant input and
interventions that email counselling cannot provide due to the time delay.
Where a counsellor and client use instant text messaging, the counselling session
is conducted similarly to an online chat session, where counsellor and client
meet online for their appointment.
What sort of issues can I contact an online counsellor
about?
You can contact Christine with any of
the issues that you would bring to a face to face counselling session, as
online counselling may be able to help with a wide range of issues. Some
clients seek online counselling in order to work through a very specific issue,
whilst others are looking for a means to cope with life's challenges, like
bereavement, work stress, separation or emotional trauma. Yet others seek online counselling as a way
of improving their lives and gaining greater stability and emotional well
being.
You need to remain aware though that not all types of issues
can be resolved through online counselling, and your counsellor will advise
you if face to face counselling, or some other form of support might be more
suitable for you. Where your counsellor considers that online counselling would
not be the most suitable means of support, they will make
every effort to assist you in a referral to a suitable alternative source of
support.
When is online counselling not suitable?
- Online counselling is not suitable for clients who find
themselves in an acute crisis situation. In this case you should always contact
the appropriate emergency services first; these may include A&E, your GP or
the Samaritans.
- Furthermore, online counselling is not suitable for clients
who are suffering from psychiatric disorders and/or are experiencing psychotic
episodes, including hallucinations, delusions, or feelings of derealisation.
- Online counselling is not suitable if you need intense
support, such as ongoing telephone support or hospitalisation.
- Also, online counselling is not suitable if you need a
medical diagnosis or a prescription.
You can learn more about online counselling and how it may help you by going to the relevant sections of this website.
Back to all articles
posted 30 Aug 2011, 09:08 by Christine Schneider
[
updated 24 May 2012, 08:13
]
How to find a good counsellor or
psychotherapist
Part I: What qualifications should a therapist have?
(tl; dr? Scroll down to the summary at
the end of this article!)
I am often approached for counselling by people who I can't ethically take on as clients. That includes friends, close relatives of friends or people who belong to the same social circle as I do. Sometimes I am able to refer them on to colleagues, but more and more often, all I can do is to give them some help and advice as to how to find a good counsellor. I have started to write some guidance on what to look for, but soon realised that I could end up writing a whole chapter on the subject. This is why I have now broken it down into different sections about what to look for in a counsellor. The first part is all about what type of qualifications and other professional aspects you should be looking out for when choosing a counsellor. Please note that I have used the terms
counsellor, psychotherapist and therapist interchangeably, the article itself
explains why. Also, please keep in mind that this article is based on UK
standards and that the information contained herein is correct at the time of
writing. There may be different rules and regulations applicable in your
country.
The
probably most important aspect of therapy is the rapport you have with your therapist. That’s why, unless you know a
lot about counselling and you are specifically looking for a therapist who
works in a certain way, it isn’t really too important for you to know whether
your counsellor is a Jungian, Adlerian, Gestaltist or Rogerian counsellor. What
is much more important is for you to check that the therapist you are going to
see actually has any reputable professional
qualifications.
The
terms ‘counsellor’ and ‘psychotherapist’ are at the time of writing not protected in the UK. This means
that anybody could go and call themselves a counsellor/psychotherapist, and
unfortunately, a lot of people who aren’t really qualified therapists do so. I
have even seen salespeople for weight loss products advertise themselves as
counsellors. This is also one of the reasons why I have used the terms ‘counsellor’, ‘therapist’ and psychotherapist
interchangeably in this article.
I
would suggest that you ask three main
questions when looking for a counsellor or psychotherapist:
- What are their professional qualifications?
- Do they belong to
or work in accordance with a governing
body?
- How is their work supervised?
Let’s
look at qualifications first. A
person with a long string of acronyms listed behind their name isn’t
necessarily better qualified than a person with fewer letters. I personally
tend to avoid stating my qualifications with my name in any promotional
material, unless I am being asked to do so by an organisation I might work for.
The reason for this is that unless you are familiar with a specific field, most
of these acronyms won’t really mean anything to you and they can even be used
to deliberately mislead. You can see it here: [Christine Schneider IMO, IMTU, LOL]*
See how easy it is? If a therapist has genuine
qualifications, then you should be able to verify them on the internet without difficulty.
You can try it out with this example: Sometimes I
will state my name as [Christine
Schneider MBACP]. See
if you can find out what that means, but most importantly, once you have done so, make your own judgement on
whether you think that this makes me an adequately qualified counsellor or not**.
If
looking up your prospective therapist’s qualifications hasn’t helped you to
decide whether they are trustworthy or not, you might want to find out a little
bit more about what kind of training
course they actually attended. There are many very good and thorough
courses available that will provide therapists with excellent theoretical foundations as well as
expert practical knowledge and experience. Some of these courses are
taught at degree level, others are taught at further education colleges or
polytechnics. The kind of institution
where your therapist has gained their qualification isn’t as important as the type
of course they attended. The biggest problem is that there are many places that
offer short term courses, some as short as six weeks or even distance learning
diplomas in counselling and psychotherapy. This, as you can imagine will not do,
but it will still allow a therapist to display a genuine and probably very impressive looking certificate. A
professional therapist should have spent at
least three years on a training course (some psychotherapy courses are five
years long) and a proportion of that time should have been spent in a placement, working as a trainee
counsellor. During their training your therapist should also have spent a
considerable amount of time in therapy
themselves.
So
when you are looking for a counsellor, don’t be shy, ask them about their qualifications and what kind of training
course they attended. If they are genuine, they
won’t mind answering your questions. (But do be prepared for a truly
person-centred counsellor to respond with: “I wonder what makes it so important
for you to ask me this question?”)
Once
you have established that your counsellor or psychotherapist is professionally
qualified, you might want to ask whether they belong to any professional body or whether they at
least work in accordance with such a
body. The reason I have phrased this so carefully is that just as I said that
there isn’t just one specific qualification that makes a good counsellor, I
don’t want to state that a therapist has to belong to one specific professional
body in order to work ethically. There are several
reputable professional bodies for counselling and psychotherapy and each of
them charge an annual membership fee. If a therapist were to belong to all of
them (and some therapists do belong to more than one) the costs would quickly
add up. There is another reason why I would not want to state that a therapist
has to have professional membership
of their own. For years I have worked both in private practice as well as for
counselling organisations where I have been covered under their organisational membership without the
need to pay my own fees. It has only in recent years become necessary for me to
take out my own membership since I have moved the main focus of my work more
and more onto private practice. However, even when I did not pay individual
membership fees and was covered through organisations that I worked for, my
private work has always had the following disclaimer: “I am bound by the British
Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy’s (BACP’s) Ethical Framework for Good
Practice in Counselling and Psychotherapy.” This is what you will need to
know about your prospective therapist: do they work in accordance with a
governing body and if so which? This is to make sure that they are governed by
some sort of ethical framework and aren’t just
making up their own rules as they go along. The following is a list of some
governing bodies in the UK. I do not want to present this list as complete or
compare any of the individual organisations; you can make your own judgement by
looking them up online. When you ask your therapist which organisation’s ethical
framework and good practice guidance they adhere to, they might mention one of
the following: BACP (British
Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy), UKCP (United Kingdom Council for Psychotherapy), COSCA (Counselling and Psychotherapy in
Scotland), ACC (Association of
Christian Counsellors), BPS (British
Psychological Society).
Finally,
I mentioned supervision. Every
professional counsellor or psychotherapist should have regular sessions with a qualified supervisor. This is to ensure
that your therapist is providing you with the best possible course of therapy
and has somebody to double check their
work. This doesn’t mean that your therapist’s supervisor will know who you are
though as any work presented to a supervisor should always be anonymised. A supervisor is a bit like
a therapist for a therapist. They have additional qualifications and are
registered, just in the same way professional counsellors are. The amount of
supervision that a therapist has depends on their workload and on how
experienced they are; the minimum amount of supervision required by the BACP is 1.5 hours per month.
In Summary:
- The titles
counsellor and psychotherapist are at the time of writing not protected in the UK. This
means that people can use them in a variety of confusing or misleading
ways.
- Where therapists
list acronyms after their names you should look up what they mean and
verify their relevance
yourself.
- It doesn’t matter
so much where your therapist gained their qualification, what their
theoretical background is and whether they gained their professional
status at a university, polytechnic or a further education college. What is important is that they spent at least 3 years in training, have
had therapy themselves during
their training and have had to complete a placement as a trainee counsellor as part of their training.
- Your counsellor
should either be a member of a
recognised professional body, or
at least adhere to the ethical
framework and best practice guidance of a professional body. Remember that some counsellors might be
covered by organisational membership and simply not see the need to pay
membership fees for themselves. Again, look up that professional body to verify its reputability and
relevance for yourself.
- Finally, ask you
therapist how their work is supervised. Every professional counsellor or
psychotherapist should have regular sessions with a qualified supervisor to ensure their work is of a professional standard.
End of part 1, you can carry on reading part II of this article here.
[*] ‘In my
opinion’, ;I made that up', ‘laughing out lout’
[**] If you
have indeed looked it up, you will have found out that MBACP only
refers to my membership with a professional body and doesn’t actually tell you
anything about my qualifications.
Back to all articles
|