Corey C2 - The Counselor as a Person and as a Prof
All documents for this subject (18)
Seller
Follow
modockochieng06
Content preview
Corey Chapter 2: The Counselor: Person and
Professional Big Ideas
Issues that beginning counselors face - ANS-when you complete formal course work and begin
helping clients, you will be challenged to integrate and apply what you have learned and are
likely to have some real concerns about your adequacy as a person and as a professional.
beginning therapists typically face a number of common issues as they learn how to help others.
problems include: dealing with anxiety, being yourself and self-disclosure, avoiding
perfectionism, being honest about your limitations, understanding silence, dealing with demands
from clients, dealing with clients who lack commitment, tolerating ambiguity, becoming aware of
your countertransference, developing a sense of humor, sharing responsibility with the client,
declining to give advice, defining your role as a counselor, learning to use techniques
appropriately, developing your own counseling style, maintaining your vitality as a person and as
a professional
dealing with anxiety as a beginning counselor - ANS-most beginning counselors have
ambivalent feelings when meeting first clients, a certain level of anxiety demonstrates you are
aware of the uncertainties of the future w/your clients and of your abilities to really be there for
them. a willingness to recognize and deal w/these anxieties instead of denying them is a good
sign. having self-doubts is normal, it is how we deal w/them that matters. one way is to openly
discuss our self-doubts w/supervisors and peers. the possibilities are rich for meaningful
exchanges and for gaining support from fellow interns who likely have many of the same
concerns and anxieties
being yourself and self-disclosure as a beginning counselor - ANS-if you feel self-conscious and
anxious when starting counseling, you may have a tendency to be overly concerned w/what the
books say and w/the mechanics of proceedings. inexperienced therapists often fail to appreciate
the values inherent in simply being themselves, which if done in our therapeutic work, along with
appropriately disclosing our reactions in counseling sessions, we increase the chances of being
authentic. it is this level of genuineness and presence that enables us to connect w/our clients
and establish an effective therapeutic relationship w/them. it is possible to err by going to two
extremes. some counselors lose themselves in their fixed role and hide behind a professional
facade, so caught up in maintaining stereotyped role expectations that little of their personal self
shows through. counselors who adopt this behavior will likely remain anonymous to clients, and
clients may perceive them as hiding behind a professional role. at the other end is engaging in
too much self-disclosure. some counselors mistakenly and inappropriately bruden their clients
w/their spontaneous impressions about their clients. judging the appropriate amount of
self-disclosure can be an issue even for seasoned counselors, and it is often especially
worrisome for new counselors. in determining the appropriateness of self-disclosure, consider
what to reveal, when to reveal, and how much to reveal. it may be useful to mention something
about ourselves occasionally, but we must be aware of our motivations for making ourselves
, known this way. assess the readiness of a client to hear these disclosures and the impact doing
so may have on them. remain observant during any self-disclosure to get a sense of how the
client is being effected by it. the most productive form of self-disclosure is related to what is
going on between the co
avoiding perfectionism as a beginning counselor - ANS-perhaps one of the most common
self-defeating beliefs w/which we burden ourselves is that we must never make a mistake.
although we may well know intellectually that humans are not perfect, emotionally we often feel
there is little room for error. to be sure, you will make mistakes, whether you are a beginning or
seasoned therapist. if our energies are used up presenting an image of perfection, this affects
our ability to be present for our clients. Question the notion that they should know everything
and be perfectly skilled, share mistakes and what you perceive as errors during their
supervision meetings. those willing to risk making mistakes in supervised learning situations and
willing to reveal their self-doubts will find a direction that leads to growth
being honest about your limitations as a beginning counselor - ANS-you cannot realistically
expect to succeed w/every client. it takes honesty to admit that you cannot work successfully
w/every client. it is important to learn when and how to make a referral for clients when your
limitations prevent you from helping them. however, there is a delicate balance between
learning your realistic limits and challenging what you sometimes think of as being "limits."
before deciding that you do not have the life experiences or the personal qualities to work with a
given population, try working in a setting with a population you do not intend to specialize in. this
can be done through diversified field placements or visits to agencies
understanding silence as a beginning counselor - ANS-silent moments during a session may
seem like silent hours as a beginning therapist, but this silence can have many meanings. the
client may be quietly thinking abut some things that were discussed earlier or evaluating some
insight just acquired, or may be waiting for the therapist to take the lead and decide what to say
next, or the therapist may be waiting for the client to do this. either the client or therapist may be
distracted or preoccupied, or neither may have anything to say for the moment. the client and
therapist may be communicating without words. the silence may be refreshing or overwhelming.
perhaps the interaction has been on a surface level, and both persons have some fear or
hesitancy about getting to a deeper level. when silence occurs, acknowledge and explore
w/your client the meaning of it
dealing with demands from clients as a beginning counselor - ANS-a bit issue that puzzles
many beginning counselors is how to deal w/ clients who seem to make constant demands. b/c
therapists feel they should extend themselves in being helpful, they often burden themselves
with the unrealistic idea that they should give unselfishly, regardless of how great clients'
demands may be. these demands ma manifest themselves in a variety of ways. clients may
want to see you more often or for a longer period than you can provide, or want to see you
socially, or expect you to continually demonstrate how much you care or demand that you tell
them what to do and how to solve a problem. one way of heading off these demands is to make
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller modockochieng06. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $7.99. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.