Summary Of A Counselor Interview

The interview I conducted took place during the evening hours on a Thursday night. I was very grateful for the opportunity, as not only did I learn helpful information, but I also met with the counselor after a busy day for her. I asked her questions that included her experiences as a substance abuse counselor, what she believes are the most important qualities are as a substance abuse counselor are, what she enjoys the most about the group counseling she offers, and suggestions on how to become an effective substance abuse group counselor. The interview took about 45 minutes to conduct, and I made sure to thank her for the interview both before and after it took place. I believe I made an excellent connection with her and that she will be a great person to turn to when I am counseling individuals or groups on the issue of substance abuse.
Synopsis
Experiences One of the main
She stated that the hardest thing for her to do is to not become friends with many of the clients who come in, and to stay within the counselor role with them. She said that she has a deep level of empathy for her clients, and that many of the clients are truly good people who are just trying to break a habit. She said that she deals with this dilemma by following the person-centered approach and not taking over the sessions which allows her to stay within the facilitator role and not as a person who the clients solely rely on for their change. She has had moments where she has been at places such as the mall when she sees a client who tries to have a long friendly chit-chat with her, and she manages to escape the chit-chat by telling the person that she has a busy day and that she will see them in the next session. This keeps the client coming back to the session by feeling welcomed by her, while the counselor manages not to be pulled into friendly chit-chat, which would be a violation of