For the LORD takes delight in his people; he crowns the
humble with victory. Psalm 149:4
Winter Roads © Sorin
Petcu
Chapters 1-3 of Thomas and Sosin (2011). Brings one to not
only self-reflect about the journey of becoming a counselor, but also of the spiritual
journey that one must walk, to become a Christian counselor, and in all aspects
of life. Thomas and Sosin discussed the importance
of not projecting one’s own personal problems back onto the client. They also discussed
the dangers of doing this when the counselor sees problems they have struggled
with in the past in the counselee. Chapter three goes on to discuss countertransference
which happens when the counselee’s feelings concerning the past are redirected
on to the counselor. The text refers to “the emotional toll of caring” and the
importance of the counselor not causing harm to the counselee through
projection or countertransference. An open
world view will help a counselor not do this .the reading helped shed new light
as to why counseling students should seek therapy for themselves. This will
allow them to confront and evaluate their own internal problems. A counselor
evaluating their own feelings will make it less likely for the previous mentioned
helping hazards to occur. The author’s thoughts on this topic also stress the
importance of learning and executing ethical counseling theories and
techniques. Doing so will help the counselor when they are confronted with or struggling
to control their own emotions when helping a client.
Reference
Thomas, J. C., &
Sosin, L. (2011).Therapeutic expedition: Equipping the Christian counselor for
the journey. B&H Publishing.
It is definitely of great importance for every counselor to seek help first to resolve any unresolved issue in their life, so they would not affect their profession later on. A sick person cannot help another sick person to find cure for the illness they have not yet found for themselves. Great blog!
ReplyDeleteAlicia, caring for others in a true and deep way certainly takes a toll on the counselor. I like the manner in which you pointed out the importance of being aware of a counselor's unfinished business in order to minimize the hazards of this profession. It sounds like in the journey of becoming, it is important that the counselor becomes willing to own his own hurts and accept that if left unattented these may contaminate the process of counseling.
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