Counselling and Psychotherapy

Counselling and Psychotherapy are two words often used to describe the same thing, although some therapists would argue that they are in fact very different. There are probably as many explanations for these terms as there are therapists. Below you will find but one explanation and you are encouraged to seek out more if you wish.

Counselling is a place and a space where a person can begin to look at the difficulties and problems in their lives. Through this process, they can then examine how the difficulties developed, what keeps them going, what internal resources the person has at present to help and what resources may be needed to help the person get more out of teeir life. This process is facilitated through talking and often through experiential exercises.

Often when people hear that counselling involves talking they have reactions such as "What good does talking do? I'm sick of talking about this!", whilst for others they may have spent many years trying not to think about the past, never mind talking about it. In reality, Counselling is not simply about talking. Like many, seemingly simple, things in life Counselling is actually a complicated process. Counselling is a process of self-discovery in which you are guided (but not actually directed) by your counsellor. You decide the direction adn distance of your journey and your couonsellor guides you while you need their guidance. This journey is uniquely personal and so too should be the type of help that you get; specifically, you should get a style of help that suits you, that is aimed specifically at your needs and is not simply a "one size fits all" approach.