About counselling and how it can help

Counselling is the process by which a trained and suitably qualified Counsellor helps a client to communicate about issues of concern to the client with the aim of facilitating deeper understanding and insight.

At BCS clients can expect to be given the time and space they require to talk and disclose at their own pace. The counsellor will provide a safe, non-judgemental and confidential environment for this to work to take place. Listening carefully to the client, the counsellor will endeavour to convey acceptance and empathic understanding. The difficulties being experienced by the client may be confined to a limited area of their life, such as work related issues, or may be filtering into many aspects of their experience including how they have begun to feel about themself. During the early stages of counselling the counsellor will aim to assess with the client the extent to which and nature of how a clients’ presenting problems are inter-related.

The BCS counsellor may help the client to explore different approaches or perspectives which may be of value to the client when considering embarking on a process of development or change. However, she will not make decisions on behalf of a client or recommend a particular course of action. The counselling support provided will be impartial with the aim that this will help empower the client.

About CBT and how it can help

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a particular model of counselling that is recognised as being especially helpful in helping clients who have issues with a clear behavioural component, ie some eating disorders, OCD and depression.

A CBT therapist supports a client by a) helping the client identify links between their thoughts, feelings and behaviour and b) collaborating with the client to plan a process of behavioural change and rebalancing thoughts. This process of change has an experimental approach to the client trying out potentiallymore rewarding and helpful views and behaviours.

In this approach the therapist and client agree between session tasks which the client is responsible for putting into action.