We Should Not Be Prevented From Getting Psychological Counseling

I want to write on a very important topic. If you have had one or more of the inner voices listed below for a long time, it may be time to seek psychological counseling.

"I want to make a change in my life, but I don't know where to start."

"I want to be with people, but I don't know how to build close relationships."

"I remember my parents often saying that I couldn't do many things properly."

"I eat too much to feel good when I'm afraid, overwhelmed and lonely."

“I get very intense anxiety sometimes at night. I have the feeling that I am dying. "

“I often feel guilty for wasting my life, failing and hurting others. At times like this, I feel really depressed. "

“I want to feel that I am equal and valued with others. I don't want to be in an attitude like constantly apologizing for my existence. "

“I really want to change. I don't want to be an unsuccessful person. "

"I want to see my own positive qualities and feel better."

Psychological counseling / psychotherapy has become a rapidly developing and accepted profession in recent years. Of course, the series and movies we watched have a great impact on this. Psychological counseling, formal counseling and guidance is a service provided by psychological counselors who have completed their undergraduate education. In other words, graduating from another department and having a master's degree in psychological counseling or psychology does not make that person a psychological counselor or psychologist. The person applying to the psychological counseling process is not considered as a patient, but as a client.

When we look at the literature, we see many definitions of psychological counseling. Shertzer and Stone define counseling as a healing method used to solve personal problems individually and as a group. According to Mowrer, psychological counseling is an assistance provided by a specialist (psychological counselor) to an individual who complains about the normal concerns created by the contradictions in the field of consciousness. Psychological counseling process is an educational process aimed at disrupting learned wrong behaviors and retraining the individual.

This process is a process that is supportive by focusing on certain aspects of the individual and restoring the personality from the beginning, analytical in a way that goes down to the history and roots of the problem, digests the individual's feelings, emphasizes their excitement, and finds the roots of the problem by revealing the subconscious. In fact, the problem may have created a neurotic situation in the individual, as it is rooted and widespread by going down to the childhood years of the individual. (Neurotic; especially the accumulation of feelings such as insecurity, anxiety, hatred and restlessness, is a mood disorder in general.) Lewis argues that psychological counseling focuses on eliminating inadequacies and weaknesses, while psychological counseling focuses on developing positive powers. Psychological counseling considers the individual for the future by accepting them as they are in the present.

Psychology was dominated by medical doctors and physiologists from its official establishment in 1879 until the 1960's, and was pathology (disease) focused. The people giving psychological help were predominantly medical doctors, so psychotherapy and psychological counseling were seen as different concepts. However, with the spread of the humanist approach in the 1960s, this distinction disappeared. Psychological aid efforts based on human relations and mutual interaction are now intertwined in terms of purpose and approach. Today, the concepts of psychotherapy and psychological counseling are used in the same sense.

Carl Rogers, the founder of humanistic psychology, does not make a distinction by using psychological counseling and psychotherapy as a synonym, and defines it as follows: Psychological counseling is the process of softening the ego structure in the atmosphere of trust provided by the relationship established with the therapist, perception of previously denied experiences and participation in the changing ego structure. Shertzer and Stone also define psychological counseling as a process that basically helps a person reveal the potential that exists in order to ensure self-sufficiency.

In short, counseling is a sustained learning interaction between the counselor and the client. Counseling deals with normal individuals and aims to assist clients in understanding and accepting themselves, thus realizing themselves. In general, psychological counseling / psychotherapy makes use of the scientific knowledge, experiments and concepts that the science of psychology has revealed on subjects such as human behavior and its underlying causes, development and deterioration of personality structure.

-In which situations should psychological counseling be sought?

-If you feel an emotional exhaustion and depression for no apparent reason,

-If you have feelings of anxiety, pessimism and hopelessness about the future,

-If you have sleep disturbance lasting more than a month and body pain that does not go away,

-If you are unable to control the act of eating, if you cannot lose weight or have lost weight very quickly,

-If you have anger and panic attacks that you cannot control.

-If you have bad relationships with family members and other people,

-If you have low self-confidence and want to improve,

-You feel intense feelings of worthlessness and inadequacy.

-If negative thoughts keep spinning in your mind,

You should seek psychological counseling.

There is an important point for consultations. However, it should not be forgotten that in order to do psychological counseling other than diploma, courses, certificates, masters with thesis and non-thesis, etc. activities cannot provide psychological counseling / psychotherapy competence.