What is counseling?

Personal counseling involves talking over issues that are important to you with a professional trained in helping you work through current situations and learn about dealing with similar situations in the future.  

Common issues that approached in counseling include anxiety, relationship problems, sexuality concerns, depression, trauma, and issues from the past that negatively affect your daily functioning.  

What to expect when you begin counseling.  

You can expect your counselor to listen to your experiences and ask you pertinent questions about your life. Your counselor may ask you questions about your current concern, relationships, atypical experiences, and general background. You and your counselor will then discuss specific goals for engaging in therapy.

Most people go to counseling because they want help with specific problems.  

You may have already talked with family and friends about these issues but are unable to improve things on your own. Counseling provides a safe place in which to talk about issues and generate some useful solutions. 

Most people come to counseling once per week for several weeks to work on their concerns while others come in just once and others come in periodically. 

 During these meetings you can talk about your issues with the counselor. Sometimes the counselor may assign psychological “homework” as one method for you to make progress outside of the meetings. Sometimes your counselor may not be the best source of help for you and will help you in finding more appropriate assistance.