Counselling in the Professions
Counselling for the Professions
Assignment 2
Monash University Clayton
Introduction
The purpose of this exercise was to implement learnt skills throughout the semester, and apply them into a real counseling situation with a client. By being able to record and watch our first counseling experience, it allows us to constructively criticize and analyze our counseling techniques. Additionally, this exercise also allows us to practice counseling ‘essentials’ such as SOLER, SOAP notes and treatment plans. At the conclusion of this assignment, students will be able to think about areas of counseling in which they may need to improve on and apply them to future situations. The client who took part in this assessment had numerous presenting issues in which she requested to cover during counseling. The client is a 22-year-old female, and also completing her postgraduate course at university. Along with her studies, she also works part time however has decreased the amount of hours she does per week due to assignments. The client explained that she has a history with depression, and is still currently on anti-depressants. Her depression causes her to have both good and bad days. She describes her ‘bad days’ as feeling ‘zombie-like’, unmotivated and overall moody. However, she does find that she has her good days too, in which she doesn’t feel very anxious or stressed, and rather feels energized and sometimes even ‘hyper’. A re-occurring theme presented throughout the sessions with the client was found to be relationships. The client describes her relationship with her father as ‘average’. She states that her father perceives her as ‘lazy’, as she is working less and focusing more on her studies. Her relationship with her mother had been better in the past, although the client feels that her mother is responsible with some of her life changes. For example, the client moved back home from living on campus, and therefore had to
Assignment 2
Monash University Clayton
Introduction
The purpose of this exercise was to implement learnt skills throughout the semester, and apply them into a real counseling situation with a client. By being able to record and watch our first counseling experience, it allows us to constructively criticize and analyze our counseling techniques. Additionally, this exercise also allows us to practice counseling ‘essentials’ such as SOLER, SOAP notes and treatment plans. At the conclusion of this assignment, students will be able to think about areas of counseling in which they may need to improve on and apply them to future situations. The client who took part in this assessment had numerous presenting issues in which she requested to cover during counseling. The client is a 22-year-old female, and also completing her postgraduate course at university. Along with her studies, she also works part time however has decreased the amount of hours she does per week due to assignments. The client explained that she has a history with depression, and is still currently on anti-depressants. Her depression causes her to have both good and bad days. She describes her ‘bad days’ as feeling ‘zombie-like’, unmotivated and overall moody. However, she does find that she has her good days too, in which she doesn’t feel very anxious or stressed, and rather feels energized and sometimes even ‘hyper’. A re-occurring theme presented throughout the sessions with the client was found to be relationships. The client describes her relationship with her father as ‘average’. She states that her father perceives her as ‘lazy’, as she is working less and focusing more on her studies. Her relationship with her mother had been better in the past, although the client feels that her mother is responsible with some of her life changes. For example, the client moved back home from living on campus, and therefore had to