Counsellors and Psychotherapists
Provide counselling services to assist individuals to identify, define and overcome their relationship, addiction, mental health, social and health issues through a range of therapeutic interventions.
A day of appointments at the service
You are a counsellor at a community service, with four client appointments today and a short gap between each. It is 9am. Your first client is due, the waiting list is long and your supervisor has asked to see you at lunch. Some of what comes up today will not fit neatly into fifty minutes.
Choose what you would do. Then see what happens. There are often good reasons for each choice.
Honestly, I do not think this is helping. I come in, I talk, I feel the same when I leave. Maybe I should stop. I do not want to waste your time or mine.
Reassure her that change takes time and encourage her to keep coming
That may be true, but Sasha hears that her concern has been brushed off. She agrees to come once more, with less hope than before.
Agree that it may not be a good fit and offer to end the sessions today if she prefers
She nods and leaves, a little relieved and a little hurt. You have not explored what was not working, and she may decide that counselling in general is not for her.
Thank her, ask what she hoped would be different and agree what to try next
Sasha says she wants more practical tools and less going over the past. You adjust, and she leaves with something to try. Naming a doubt can be the start of a better session.
A man is on the phone saying he is Mr Alvarez's brother. He wants to know whether his brother is coming to his appointments. He sounds really worried. Can I tell him anything?
Confirm that his brother has an appointment today so that the family can relax
You have just confirmed that Mr Alvarez is a client, something he may not have told his family. When he finds out, he stops coming. Even saying someone is a client can break trust.
Ask Tom to say you cannot share anything about anyone, but offer to pass on a message
The caller is frustrated but accepts it. Tom takes a message. Mr Alvarez later decides to tell his brother himself, which is far better than it being done for him.
Take the call yourself and say as little as possible, but listen to the brother's worries
You protect the information, but you take ten minutes from the next appointment, and the brother ends up telling you a lot you are not sure what to do with.
A new referral has come in and the referrer says it is fairly urgent. Your list is already full. Can you see them this week, or should I allocate them to someone else?
Say you will fit them in by running late and skipping your lunch breaks
The new client is seen quickly. But by Thursday you are tired, and your later clients get less of your attention. Being generous with time is not the same as being sustainable.
Be honest about your capacity and ask Ms Bianchi to help find the best option
She finds a colleague with a free slot tomorrow and arranges a brief handover. The client is seen sooner, and your own clients keep their full attention.
Say no because your caseload is full and the new referral is not your responsibility
It is true you are full, but you did not offer to help find a solution. Ms Bianchi has to start again, and the client waits longer than they should.
How it went
When the last appointment is over you write your notes and lock the files away. Counselling is mostly listening, but it also means keeping confidences, being honest about limits and looking after yourself, so that you can keep doing it. How would you feel about holding other people's stories every day?
This is a simplified, fictional situation to help you explore. It is not professional instruction or a test of your ability.
Case study: The client who wanted to stop after one session
A fictional case set in a community counselling service with small, quiet rooms and a busy front desk.
The situation
Joanne was a counsellor at a community service. Mark came to her after his marriage ended, mostly because a friend had pushed him. In the first session he spoke in short sentences and kept checking the clock. At the end he said he did not think counselling was for him, and that he'd probably cancel the next appointment. Joanne had a full day and a waiting list of people hoping for his time slot. She also knew that the first session is often the hardest to sit through.
What they did
Joanne did not try to talk him into it. She asked what he had hoped for and what had felt uncomfortable. He said it felt strange to sit in a chair and talk about feelings, since he was used to fixing things with his hands. She suggested they keep the next session practical, focused on one thing that was bothering him that week, and agreed that he could decide again after that. She also told him honestly that it was fine if it turned out not to suit him.
How it turned out
Mark came back, kept the second session short, and brought a list of three things. He stayed for several months. He still described himself as not a talker, but said the list helped. Joanne noted that she'd have lost him if she had defended counselling instead of asking about his experience.
What would you do?
- Why might the first session be the hardest one?
- What could a counsellor do to make a practical person feel welcome?
- How would you respond if someone said this is not for me?