Individual Counselling involves communicating with a suitably trained Counsellor in a safe and confidential atmosphere. The Counsellor’s role is to support and enable their clients to explore and express their thoughts, feelings and experiences. In so doing the client is able to develop and maintain positive changes within their lives.

Your Counsellor and Therapist can help you break down goals into small, achievable steps. When you start Counselling, you will be receive support to clarify what is not working in your life. You will then be able to increase your clarity about:

* The scope and impact of your presenting problem
* Your belief's about the presenting problem
* The kind of changes you want to make
* The kind of life you want to build
* The kind of person you aspire to be in order to build the kind of life you want
* Your blocks to becoming the kind of person you aspire to be
* The skills and knowledge necessary to achieve your goals

Your Responsibility

While having a good Counsellor is important, what you actually do with your Counsellor is just as important. Therapy is not passive, it requires your active participation, motivation and commitment. Clients who work hard at helping themselves are more likely to have successful therapy outcomes.

During your Counselling sessions, try to:

* Give your Counsellor access to the real you. This means being totally honest and vulnerable.
* Take down the barriers you have built to protect yourself. Only when you remove them can you fully reveal your true thoughts and feelings. As a result you will receive honest, useful feedback.
* Give your Counsellor feedback. Tell him/her about how you experience the session, what you find helpful/unhelpful, and your reactions to both the Therapist and the therapy in general. Providing this feedback enables your Counsellor to better meet your needs.
* Periodically ask your Counsellor to assess your progress with you (if your treatment is long term).
* You can maximize the benefit you get from your therapy by devoting time to your growth between sessions, as well.

Before every Counselling Session, try to:

* Reflect on your goals for being in therapy
* Think about the next step you want to take to get closer to reaching your goals

To create the life you really want, you will have to prioritize your therapy and your growth. This process is different for each person, but may mean spending some of your free time differently, tolerating temporary emotional discomfort in the name of lasting change, and being open to change

Listen to Your Discomfort

Expect emotional discomfort, as it is always part of the growth process. In therapy you will take risks and try novel ways of thinking and behaving. Your growth depends on your ability to tolerate this discomfort. It is crucial to choose a Counsellor that you can trust so that when discomfort strikes, you feel safe enough to let down your walls and examine the cause.

Though it can be a painful time, discomfort is revealing and useful -- often it signals a problem area for you, exploring it with your Counsellor can be a catalyst for profound change.

Be Open to Change

You are entering Counselling for support and guidance as you make changes in your life. Since how you have been living (thinking, behaving, etc.) is no longer working for you, it is time to take your life off of autopilot and try something new. If you are with a Counsellor you trust, take the risk, you have nothing to lose and so much to gain!

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