Why Seek Counselling?
Personal growth…problem solving…self-acceptance…
People seek counselling for a variety of reasons. For some, counselling is sought when they have experienced a traumatic event, an unexpected change in life, or a life transition, triggering distress and uncertainty. Even positive events can add stress and overwhelm current coping skills. Others seek counselling when they experience a sense of unbalance in their life while others are striving for personal growth through self-exploration and self-acceptance.
Perhaps you are experiencing one or more of the following:
Making an important decision that you’d like to process before taking action
Wanting to improve a struggling or healthy relationship
Stress or anxiety, performance anxiety and/or panic attacks
Loss of hope, depression, or thoughts of harming yourself
Unresolved childhood issues
Spiritual crisis
Ongoing struggles with an addiction (gambling, alcohol or drug use, shopping, sex)
Significant loss of a loved one, identity, health, culture, purpose, employment, income
Major life event or transition: buying or selling a home, graduation, choosing a career path, marriage, a new baby, starting university, changing careers, empty-nest, retirement, etc.
Social injustices based on your ethnicity, age, gender or disability that contributes to a sense of powerlessness, despair, and/or anger
Emotional, sexual, physical and/or spiritual abuse
Low self-esteem or feeling like you don’t ‘fit’
Struggles with body image
Unresolved anger that is creating problems at school, work or in relationships
Counselling can provide a place of support where you can be heard and your experiences validated. It can enhance coping and problem-solving skills thereby strengthening your resiliency for facing future problems in life.
Research has found that:
“The most important aspects of therapy typically are the ‘nonspecific’ factors—the personality of the therapist; having a time and place to talk; having someone care, listen, and understand; having someone provide encouragement and advice; and having someone help you understand your problems”
(Hubble, Duncan, & Miller, 1999, p. 106).
-Excerpt taken from: Hubble, M. A., Duncan, B. L., & Miller, S. D. (1999). The heart and soul of change: What works in therapy. Washington: American Psychological Association