Counselling Central

The idea of a private and public persona comes from social psychology, the word persona originating from the Latin meaning ‘mask’. Do we wear different masks depending on the situations we find ourselves in? What is our private and public self? Our private self consists of what we are and feel inside, while our public self is the identity [...]

Being able to forgive someone, or one’s self, is considered an essential part of our emotional wellbeing. But what is forgiveness? According to Christian thought it is an important part of justification, of pardoning sin, because God forgives the sinner through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Dictionary definitions include “the act of excusing a mistake or offense”, or [...]

Approval is sometimes defined as an official approbation, a sanction of behaviour and a favourable opinion or regard. In counselling terms the two other words we might use are acceptance and affirmation. Just how important is acceptance?  Approval by parents, peers or siblings is a crucial element in a child’s development, particularly with regard to their self esteem and self [...]

The Chalice Model This describes a model of support. The top half of the chalice represents the client and what they bring to each session. The bottom half of the chalice represents the counsellor, and the stem of the chalice represents the skills the counsellor uses to support the client. Presenting Problems This highlights the [...]

Things to consider Counselling isn’t just about learning a set of rules, ethics and procedures. It is a way of life. It is about choosing to take a very distinct and personal journey and freeing yourself from past memories, experiences and conditioning. When you free yourself from any past conditioning you begin to take responsibility for [...]

Genuineness When we are being genuine we are open and ourselves. If you are genuine with your clients you will encourage them to be more forthcoming, and build a relationship with them built on trust and respect. Unconditional Positive Regard In order for clients to feel respected and accepted it is important that counsellors do [...]