Question 1

What is the difference between a Psychologist and a Counsellor?

Accepted Answer

Counsellors and psychologists are very similar in the theories and therapies they use; the major difference is that Psychology often focuses on a model of diagnosis whereas Counsellors focus on the felt impact in a person's life which may be due to multiple or varying causes and often without diagnosis.

Counsellors generally don't diagnose but do regularly deal with people who have been diagnosed or are experiencing signs, symptoms or behaviours related to a range wide of commonly diagnosed psychological disorders and conditions.

Counsellor's work from a model that seeks to increase what is going right in your life rather than focusing only on what is going wrong. I use many different modes and therapies to equip you with the means to tackle and process these issues. Counsellors also typically deal with a wide range of mental health issues and emotions and don't limit their service to a specific 'condition'. Typically, an accredited Counsellor will have tertiary qualifications and have completed supervised/placement hours just as Psychologists do.

Question 2

What qualifications do Counsellors have?

Accepted Answer

Counsellors can all be a little different in their qualifications and training, so it is worth investigating and understanding what qualifications and experience a Counsellor has before you decide to book with them.

My qualifications are listed on my website (https://www.counsellingwithdan.com.au/)under Qualifications, I am university trained through a Bachelor of Human Services with a major in Counselling of which included a year of supervised counselling sessions on top of completing the degree. I am an accredited Clinical Counsellor and Psychotherapist with the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia (PACFA) (https://pacfa.org.au/)(one of the two Australian Counselling accrediting bodies, the other being the Australian Counselling Association (ACA))(https://theaca.net.au/). To be registered with PACFA I'm required to prove I have provided a minimum of 750 hours of client contact counselling as well as supervision hours, provide proof of my academic qualifications and meet the character requirements.(https://pacfa.org.au/common/Uploaded%20files/PCFA/Documents/Policies%20and%20practice%20guidelines/Registration%20Standard%20Upgrade%20Clinical%202023.pdf)

Further to this I have over 6 years' experience working as a Counsellor with a range of clients such as running children's resilience groups, undertaking societal re-integration counselling, counselling individuals, children and families that are victims of domestic violence and sexual assault, counselling individuals for a range of mental health issues and working with children with behavioural issues such as ASD and ADHD on emotional regulation and resilience. I have a working with children 'blue card' issued by the Queensland Government and have held one since 2018.

Question 3

What does counselling do?

Accepted Answer

Counsellors are specialists in short and long-term therapies to assist people with processing traumas and an array of psychological problems. I work by talking through what you are going through (breaking this down to find the root cause of the issue) and applying evidence-based psychological theories to help you make sense of what is happening and how the problem can be worked with or resolved.

Generally, I begin by finding out a bit about you as a person then explore what you are seeking in your counselling journey. This is to ensure that I am applying therapies that match and suit who you are as a person as I want to give you the best chance of success. I will then help provide insight and tools to help you to break out of cycles and patterns you may be doing to help achieve your goals.

By goals I mean any behaviours, emotions, feelings, activities or level of well-being you are wanting to achieve. An example of this might be to re-enter the workforce after an incident, being able to overcome a certain emotion linked to a specific event or manage day-to-day symptoms of a chronic mental health condition to improve your quality of life.  Counselling is not diagnosis focused, and you do not need to have had a diagnosis to seek counselling. I can discuss diagnosis and the impacts of this with you if this is raised throughout your therapy however pre, post or no diagnosis my approach to counselling is first and foremost person-centered and to improve your quality of life by treating the root cause.

People see a therapist for a range of reasons, and these do not always have to fit the textbook definition of 'trauma' or 'mental health'. The main point is that there is something happening in your life or you are feeling a certain way that is impacting your quality of life that you want to change and improve.

You can read more on the definitions and explanations of counselling and psychotherapy here. (https://pacfa.org.au/Portal/Prac-Res/Resources/CPDefinitions.aspx)

Question 4

What should I expect?

Accepted Answer

At our first session you may feel a bit nervous (which is okay). We will often have some time to chat about hobbies and fun things then we will chat about what's happening in your life and what you are looking for in counselling. If you don't have the right words to describe it, that's okay, just come as you are and I can help you to define the situation.

There are further details on my 'Session Structure' page that explains the different stages and expectations throughout the sessions and what the process will be. It's important to note that I don't and will never pressure you into re-booking, booking more sessions or multiple sessions. I pride myself on respecting the pace that people want to engage with counselling and let you decide in your own time when you want to return, if you return for further counselling.

Question 5

How many counselling sessions will I need?

Accepted Answer

There is no right or wrong answer. How many sessions you book is entirely up to you.  Generally, three (3) is a good number to start with but everyone is different. Three sessions allows us time to get acquainted, dive into some of the detail and get some strategies in place. Complex and layered issues may require more sessions to work through and see progress however, there is no one size fits all.

What I do after each session is explain what I think a suitable number of sessions will be to work through what's happening and get to the progress point you're satisfied with then let you decide. There is no pressure to book sessions weekly or in bulk and if you go weeks or months without booking a session that is no problem either. Counselling is all about you and your pace so regular or ad hoc session bookings are welcome.

Question 6

Are my counselling sessions and information confidential?

Accepted Answer

As an accredited counsellor through PACFA I am bound by the PACFA Code of Ethics (https://www.pacfa.org.au/portal/Portal/Prac-Res/Code-of-Ethics.aspx?hkey=ed53740f-fe01-4bf6-9e10-c88fa20de8f1)as well as the practices outlined in my Privacy Policy.(https://www.counsellingwithdan.com.au/policies)  As a professional in the industry I ensure and protect my clients confidentiality and privacy with any information I am provided as part of the counselling service.  The only information I collect during the session is related to your psychological health and is to enable me to best provide the most appropriate and effective therapy I can.

I do not disclose information to third parties unless in the instance where confidentiality is limited by law (https://www.theaca.net.au/news/are-my-notes-confidential/)for example through the provisions of the Evidence Act 1977 (Qld) or where you have provided written consent for your information to be disclosed to a third party. If you are accessing counselling services through WorkCoverQLD you can find more information on their information disclosure policies here.(https://www.worksafe.qld.gov.au/about/right-to-information/right-to-information-and-ip)

Where there is an emergency, a risk to a child's safety, a risk to a persons' safety or a risk to life I have a duty of care to report this to the relevant authorities.

Question 7

Do Counsellors always ask about childhood experiences?

Accepted Answer

This answer may be different for each Counsellor however speaking of my own approach the answer is both yes and no. Firstly, there is no pressure or requirement for you tell your Counsellor any information that you don't want to. If you don't want to speak about your childhood during therapy, it's important to clearly communicate this to the Counsellor.

In my approach I will typically ask about a person's childhood experiences if I feel it is going to be relevant and constructive for that persons' counselling. Childhood experiences are not always attributable or relevant to a person's issue(s). Where I find that it is not relevant or constructive to explore childhood experiences, I generally don't revisit this again as my approach is to work on future focused improvements.

In my experience counselling those dealing with trauma, complex trauma or trauma-based impacts it is common for some of this to be caused in-part by childhood experiences which is worth working through. However, once we've visited this area, I don't revisit it again unless it's for a constructive purpose as it can be re-traumatising or unhelpful for progressing through therapy. My aim is always to be working on outcome focused improvements and not looking back where it's not necessary to.

Question 8

Is counselling only for people who have experienced trauma or are currently experiencing a problem?

Accepted Answer

No, counselling can be for everyone at any stage in our lives. Sometimes we will have the thought that 'others have it worse so I shouldn't complain', but the reality is that we do this so much that we tend to unintentionally build a culture of self-deprioritisation which becomes an action that we model to others. This happens so much that we can get to adulthood without really getting to know ourselves. This is important because knowing ourselves and being kind to ourselves allows for real growth and development in all areas of your life and importantly equips us to deal with events and changes in our lives with less disruption.

It is enough to seek counselling if you have recognised unwanted emotions, feelings or behaviours that are negatively impacting your day-to-day life that you want to change. Sometimes these things can be a result of trauma (sometimes very long after the event) or they can just be something that occurs as a normal part of living life in a hectic and chaotic world.

Question 9

I feel too much shame to come to counselling, won't counselling just make me feel more guilty?

Accepted Answer

Some  people have a fear of seeing a Counsellor as they may hold guilt or shame that the prospect of confronting it feels extremely dangerous. Again, this is quite common in Australian culture as we tend to 'sweep things under the rug' rather than deal with them. One of my old lecturers told me "counselling isn't meant to make you feel  better, it's to make you better at feeling" and that has stuck with me as I find the byproduct of being better at feeling is you then feel less inner conflict and then feel better as a result.

Question 10

Do only males see male counsellors?

Accepted Answer

Absolutely not! I have worked with men, women, people in the trans community as well as male and female children. I am always happy to work with anyone on whatever they need to process. Sometimes people will immediately think that people need to see a counsellor of their same gender and I let them know I have worked for several years in the domestic violence space exclusively with female survivors and much of the feedback I got was that they found it to be a positive experience to have a safe male they could trust.

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