Counseling Psychotherapy Why Counseling?

Life can be shattering. Deception, lies, and tremendous heartache can derail the most prodigious, honest, and sincere individual. Devastation can acquiescent a beautiful and wonderful spirit into a horrendous downward spiral to where there appears to be no hope. When our 'bubble' of a world is popped, we often become disoriented, unable to ascertain the fact from fiction, and can then start having negative and harmful thoughts.

Given the circumstances to which I have had to overcome, a tremendous amount of resolve was required, which enabled me to persevere through my darkest moments. Betrayal and heartache can ruin one's perception of what life is about. Indeed, there are many who never enjoy the love or reach a pinnacle of happiness that I've enjoyed. To these individuals, I feel my empathy given my triumphs and set backs will undoubtedly enable a clear perspective, rich with insight to each and every client that comes to me seeking help.

Additionally, my thoughts of suicide were a subconscious release of the stresses and morose that I had felt during the moments that revolved around my boyfriend and the circumstances of what was a promising love life and a bright and happy future with a committed partner. Men and women often suffer from deceit and heartbreak. The manner to which one addresses these unfortunate circumstances and to how they respond to building their life back is the critical aspect.

The empathetic counselor I truly believe is the most effective. To understand the nature of a mental and physical breakdown is imperative to enabling a client in need to reassess their life and provide a new sense of self given the overwhelming circumstances that life can often bring our way.

My desire to help others in emotional distress is reflective of the help I needed during my time of tribulation. I did not have a support group or access to a trained or empathetic individual that was capable of understanding specifically how my life was drastically affected by the acts of my partner within the parameters of our committed relationship. Granted, the dishonesty that led to my partner's trouble is perhaps a blessing in disguise, as there was a chance this behavior would have indeed surfaced once we were married, with a legally binding contract to remain married.

Therefore, my motivation is to provide that opportunity, the ear and empathy that many whom seek to establish a rapport can confide and feel emotional support from an understanding yet trained professional. Tangential to my motivation of support is the desire to provide help to those who may not be able to afford assistance either out of pocket or via insurance. My goal as a counselor is to provide the requisite assistance to all parties regardless of race or ethnicity, and regardless of income.

Suicide is final. I would not wish for anyone to commit suicide when perhaps the resolution to one's problems can be resolved by listening and providing a reasonable action plan that will enable the development of a disenfranchised spirit and provide a warm and embracing welcome back to a life worth living. Nota Bene; the importance of understanding that life provides circumstances that are learning experiences to all is indeed a message I wish to convey to those who seek my counseling.

Cognitive-Behavioral Approaches

Indeed, there are many instances where Cognitive-Behavioral approaches are reflective of the individual lack of responsibility or understanding of their reality. However, there are at least an equal amount of instances when an individual is susceptible and whose circumstances are a function of the broader environment. This often labeled as an individual's psyche development as a function of their environment.

Indeed, the economic stability of a family is a function of the socio-economic class to which one belongs. Within the socio-economic class, often raw intelligence and ability is ignored and one must persevere through inherent tribulation in order to achieve a level of success and well-being. Given the environmental variables at play, the notion of attributing circumstantial problems solely as an individual's neglect or irresponsibility is often unwarranted.

Ethnomethodology is a branch of Sociology that defines humans as 'rule ridden animals'. Rule in society is a function of variables that are externalized to affect the behavior and actions of the population. Ethnomethodologists for instance, will enter into let's say a middle school to evaluate whether the issues inherent to the school are a function of the teachers/staff/faculty or the student's/parents. Sociological paradigms often are the framework to which the psychological parameters regarding social interaction are determined.

Therefore, the notion...

For instance, family can often inflict emotional and financial hardship on a trusting and caring individual. Many are born into families to where brothers, sisters, even parents become emotionally abusive and financial reliant on the younger family members.
Indeed this eventuality can lead to financial hardship which then can lead to an emotional response that ostensibly may be undesirable. An example is akin to a young man or woman whom has family members that are relatively inept and irresponsible. Granted, the younger sibling will attempt to assist the older sibling when asked appropriately. For instance, a younger sibling that has a low paying part-time job may be asked repeatedly to supply money to an older sibling for purposes that are unproductive.

Additionally, the older sibling may have taken on a large amount of debt and is now seeking a means to reduce the debt load by asking a younger sibling to put bills onto their credit card. Indeed, the sibling knows that is extremely risky and would not do it for anyone other than a family member. However, this begs the following. Does the spurious treatment and use of a younger sibling, who ultimately is left holding the 'bag' so to speak with regard to financial obligations that were erroneously put onto the plate, make this individual a function of the assessment rendered by the Cognitive-Behavioral approach?

Indeed, the circumstance of the young individual is a function of the familial environment to which an unnecessary burden was facilitated to the individual under the guise of assisting a family member. Often, the family member is unable to pay back the debt and had spurious intentions of doing so from the beginning. Therefore, the younger sibling is left with the ruined credit and has to then pay back not only their debt, but the accumulated debt that was transferred from the older sibling. This individual is better off when removed from the immediate environment.

Reality Therapy

A.) Reality Therapy rejects nearly all forms of mental illness and takes the stance that abnormal or pathogenic behavior is chosen by clients.

Reality Therapy is based on the notion of Choice Theory, which establishes the premise that humans are free to make their own choices. However, what reality therapy fails to address are the constraints to which humans are inherently facing given environmental variables to which the human is unable to address directly. Therefore, choice theory only addresses the situation from the reality of actuality and not on the underlying circumstances that created and facilitated the abnormal behavior.

Additionally, abnormal behavior is often misdiagnosed, by labeling one's actions as a deviation from what may be considered as normal societal responses. Acting outside of these parameters is likely to produce a psychological variance to which one's behavior may be declared as abnormal. However, one's behavior is not actually abnormal.

For instance, today's economic climate has forced many individuals, including those with families to live outside the relative norms of society. Indeed, there families with young children whom now live day-to-day rather than the once stable and wholesome lifestyle obtained prior to the dismantling of the global economy. Therefore, these individuals may choose to save money and not live a life that is reflective of societal norms.

Do individuals suffer from mental illness? Mental illnesses ostensibly resulting from chemical imbalances in the brain have been identified and, if true, do reside inside the realm of natural psychosis. Can an individual freely choose their behavior when a neurological affecting chemical imbalance exists? Based on personal experience, a romantic partner that is compassionate and without the neurological imbalance can help. Given the parameters of the neurological chemical imbalance, the overriding variable that determines whether one pursues abnormal activity is based on the level of responsibility and discipline inherent in the individual personality, often as a function of one's internal work ethic and natural resolve.

B.) In areas where change is desired, there are two general solutions: 1.) Change what you want, or 2.) Change your approach to getting what you want (Glasser, 1998).

Truly, to change what you want is often not possible as many do not have the ability to directly interact and affect the environment or other variables to the point of changing the outcome as desired. Therefore, if one wants to date a certain female/male, changing aspects about that person (change what you want) may not be feasible.…