Counselling Essay

The task of counselling can help another person to explore thoughts and feelings to reach a clearer understanding or make appropriate decisions and take appropriate action.
Carl Rogers is an important figure in the approach and use of counselling. Rogers devised a person centred approach model which recognises that individuals are responsible for themselves and will grow and develop as they work through obstacles, as they are the true experts on themselves.
Rogers identified four main qualities which are needed by workers in the counselling process. These are:
Empathy – Rogers describes empathy as the ability to sense the client’s world as if it were your own. He emphasised the importance of being able to sensitively identify and understand the client’s feelings without getting them muddled up with your own.
Genuineness – This involves the counsellor being his or her real self without a front or facade and without acting like an ‘’expert’’. It also means that the counsellor should not deny or avoid but be aware of his or her feelings and then not be afraid of expressing them if appropriate.
Non-judgemental acceptance – This involves accepting people as they are without judging them. It means that the counsellor must believe that the client is a worthwhile human being. It does not mean that the counsellor must accept all of the behaviours of a person, it simply means that the client is seen as a human being of equal value.
Warmth - non-threatening and welcoming experience where an atmosphere of trust can develop.
Last Tuesday in my placement while I was sitting in on a course for people with addictions one of the clients began chatting to me. He began to tell me how they had just split up from his partner of ten years. It was clear to me that he was getting upset so I suggested that we move to a quieter area so we could have some privacy. I explained that whatever he wanted to talk about and whatever he told me would be kept confidential and that I wouldn’t share anything he told me with anyone else. While doing this it came to mind about Carl Rogers Person Centred Approach.
I made sure we went to a quiet area of the room so that no one could interrupt us. I positioned our chairs so that we were face on each other; this was so I was able to maintain good eye contact with him and also so as I could sit in the solar position to make him feel comfortable and at ease with me. I then repeated what he had already told me, so that he knew I had been listening and also so that it gave us a starting point for him to open up. He began by saying that because of his drug problems his partner decided to leave with their five year old son. He said that he blamed himself for everything that has happened in his life. He was getting really upset but I felt it was doing him good to be able to talk about things and getting his feelings out in the open. I sat and listened and nodded my head to show I was listening to him. Every so often I would repeat what he had told me, again so he knew I was listening to him. I found that when I done this he would open up a bit more as he felt that he could trust me and he knew I had been paying attention to him. On occasions he would go quiet so I would just ask him an open question, for example, can you tell me more? How did that make you feel?
After talking with him for nearly an hour I realised that the rest of the group had begun packing things away and it was time to finish for the day. I began to summarise everything that he had just told me then I politely told him that it was time to pack things up and I explained that although we had to leave things there that day that I would be willing to meet him again at the next group meeting so as we could continue where we left off. He said that would be great as he felt he had really benefited from talking to me. He said that usually when he talks to people he felt like they judge him but he never felt that way with me.
Looking back at what happened that day I was really please with myself that I was able to offer support to him and I was able to use the counselling skills that I had learned. I made the client feel at ease and he was able to open up to me and I remained non-judgmental throughout. The one thing I would change for next time would be to ensure we had a private room to go to. As it was unplanned for the chat to happen we had to sit in a quiet corner away from the group, so although we had our own space I feel that having a private room would be more beneficial to the client next time.

References
HNC in Social Care, Elizabeth Bingham, Cathy Busby, Aileen Conner, Billy Grier, Sue Price, Helen Russell, Shona Shaw, 2009
Course materials

References: HNC in Social Care, Elizabeth Bingham, Cathy Busby, Aileen Conner, Billy Grier, Sue Price, Helen Russell, Shona Shaw, 2009 Course materials