Counselling, in its simplest form is a confidential space where you can meet with another person (your counsellor) to explore anything that may be on your mind.
This may be to discuss feelings you are having that are having a negative effect on your day to day life. Or you may have experienced something in your life that is hard to digest and you may feel you need a space to work through these things. Counselling offers you a space to be able to lay bare all of the things that may be currently troubling you in a confidential space that is intended only for you. When you discuss troubles with friends or family you may find you are sometimes met with plenty of opinions and often may feel unable to disclose as much as we’d really like. The difference you’ll find in counselling is your counsellor is there to listen to you and aid you in telling your story and does this without passing any judgement. You are the expert on yourself and your counsellor is there to guide you and help you explore what is currently troubling you, in a safe environment. This is extremely important – as when you commit yourself to uncovering certain aspects of your past for example, it is important for your counsellor to be here with you to ensure you are able to return to your usual sense of self, as you may find yourself unexpectedly feeling a lot of unease or even distress when accessing certain parts of yourself in therapy. A large part of counselling is attributed to the relationship built up between counsellor and client. If a successful therapeutic relationship is built, this acts as the bedrock of the work which allows both counsellor and client to explore the issues that have brought you to counselling in a more in depth and trusting environment. This usually results in better success in therapy and helps you as client feel heard and respected. Counselling does not just have to be used when you are feeling in distress. Another role of counselling is for personal development. This can come at any stage of your life, where you may just want to work on yourself. This can be to develop confidence, self-awareness, be more assertive or to help gain a positive outlook on life. This may come at a time when you’re going through a transitional period in your life or you may just want to take time out to work on you.