A Personal Approach to Counseling Using a Short Story
A PERSONAL APPROACH TO COUNSELING USING A SHORT STORY
A Personal Approach to Counseling Using a Short Story Being a counselor and working with people, things are not always as easy as they seem to be. People are not as simple as they seem. In one minute they are happy, then sad the next moment. This complexity of the human person made me realize that one form of solution will never be enough in achieving goals and self-actualization. And so, as a therapist, I created my personal style in counseling based on my personal theoretical orientation. Over the weekend, while working on the second half of this paper, I had a close childhood friend of mine commit suicide. Growing up, she dealt with many personal issues that, I believe ultimately lead to her lifelong depression. I write this paper as a tribute to her and although I won’t explore all of her personal issues or use her real name, it will be loosely based on her story. In first person, as a school counselor, I will work with a middle school aged child, in a fictional short story, exploring my personal counseling technique.
It was a bright afternoon and I was drinking coffee while reviewing student’s files at the guidance office. Suddenly, one of the teachers of the school came in and asked permission about conducting counseling on a student found smoking marijuana near the janitor’s quarters. After a few minutes, a girl stepped in. She was a short person with dark make-up and many piercings on her face. As I looked at her, I saw emptiness inside of her. I knew I had to find out the cause of her behavior. I asked her to sit down. She seemed cooperative and calm as she sat. She asked me if she was going to be expelled from school. I said that she would be. However, I also told her that such would not happen if she would cooperate with me and share what is going on with her life. With a calm voice, I assured her that everything she would say would be strictly confidential.
A counselor should not be
A Personal Approach to Counseling Using a Short Story Being a counselor and working with people, things are not always as easy as they seem to be. People are not as simple as they seem. In one minute they are happy, then sad the next moment. This complexity of the human person made me realize that one form of solution will never be enough in achieving goals and self-actualization. And so, as a therapist, I created my personal style in counseling based on my personal theoretical orientation. Over the weekend, while working on the second half of this paper, I had a close childhood friend of mine commit suicide. Growing up, she dealt with many personal issues that, I believe ultimately lead to her lifelong depression. I write this paper as a tribute to her and although I won’t explore all of her personal issues or use her real name, it will be loosely based on her story. In first person, as a school counselor, I will work with a middle school aged child, in a fictional short story, exploring my personal counseling technique.
It was a bright afternoon and I was drinking coffee while reviewing student’s files at the guidance office. Suddenly, one of the teachers of the school came in and asked permission about conducting counseling on a student found smoking marijuana near the janitor’s quarters. After a few minutes, a girl stepped in. She was a short person with dark make-up and many piercings on her face. As I looked at her, I saw emptiness inside of her. I knew I had to find out the cause of her behavior. I asked her to sit down. She seemed cooperative and calm as she sat. She asked me if she was going to be expelled from school. I said that she would be. However, I also told her that such would not happen if she would cooperate with me and share what is going on with her life. With a calm voice, I assured her that everything she would say would be strictly confidential.
A counselor should not be
References: Corey, G. (2009). Theory and Practice of Counseling and Psychotherapy (8th Edition). Wadsworth Publishing