Introduction to counselling - Essay Example

In general counseling seeks to create self-awareness within a client; therefore, it is incumbent upon the counselor to help the client realize the issues affecting their life and guide them towards discovering possible solutions that will aid in the mitigation of the specific issues. Finally, the opening phase provides a platform for the client and counselor to explore goals and the expected timeframe of therapy. During the second lab session, it became clear that a counselor needed to adopt proper listening and speaking skills.

A counselor ought to remain attentive throughout the counseling session to avoid missing pertinent information. Proper note taking skills enables the counselor to keep tabs of the important points, which eases the process of referring later. Conversely, among the speaking skills explored was paraphrasing. Counselors are able to highlight the session’s important points by paraphrasing the clients’ words based on their subjective conceptualization of the information. Gestalt counseling techniques were also reviewed during this lab session.

The predominant focus of Gestalt counseling centers on placing the client in their current state of mind whereby, the client experiences full awareness of their present situation. It utilizes techniques that encourage a client to take on a more proactive role in their healing; for example, the empty chair technique, guided fantasy and body movement techniques among others. During the third session, Behavioral therapy techniques were explored. The main objective of behavioral therapy entailed guiding a client towards adopting socially reinforcing or positive behaviors.

This technique endeavored to instigate behavioral changes in a client displaying maladjusted behaviors, which impede normal functioning. The counselor encourages the client to log their daily activities, a process referred to as self-monitoring. After which, both parties develop a list of new activities for the client to