Counselling is a process of conversation and practicing skills with a view to creating or improving a sense of vitality in your life. Through counselling you can gain insight into the subconscious factors that drive your behaviour. Subconscious factors such as avoidance of emotion or memories can have an undue influence on your behaviour affecting your ability to choose behaviours that are personally meaningful.
Skills learned in counselling can assist you in changing your relationship with unpleasant thoughts, memories, people and places, so your behaviour is no longer dictated by a compulsion to avoid what you don’t want, but rather is motivated by a healthy desire to pursue the things you do want and love.
Counselling is beneficial for most people who want an impartial person to meet with them to unpack issues and develop strategies for better dealing with life’s struggles.
What we talk about in sessions is not the subject of general conversation outside the sessions. There are, however, some occasions when your story may be made known to others. Primarily, this may occur when your counsellor attends Professional Supervision which is an industry practise whereby all persons who offer professional counselling also attend ‘supervision’ in order to promote on-going professional development which helps to ensure you receive the best possible service. If your story is raised during supervision sessions, only your first name is used.
Another occasion when your story may be made known to others is if you reveal any information that leads your counsellor to believe you or another person is in imminent danger of risk or harm. In this situation every effort will be made to include you in the decision to involve another party or parties before doing so.
Finally, we advise that on rare occasions a Counsellor’s notes may be subpoenaed by a court of law.
The first session is an opportunity get to know the therapist and discuss your needs and concerns. Positive outcomes in therapy are strongly associated with the client therapist relationship. For this reason the first session will focus on getting a broad overview of how you are travelling, and agreeing upon a plan for the future. Seeing a counsellor for the first time can be nerve-racking, however at Strength & Strategies Counselling Services we don’t pressure you to talk about things if you’re not ready.
This depends on a number of factors. Such as; whether you are seeking some quick strategies to improve coping, or more in depth therapy to learn more about yourself. A good idea is to identify some goals early on in session and review progress regularly. So rather than setting a time period, you can set some prioritised goals to achieve.
Counselling consultations are available six days a week by appointment. Please contact us to discuss an available time that is best suited to you.
Standard rates are set at $140 per one hour consultation. There are no additional fees for couple’s therapy.
Members of Medibank Private, the Police Health Fund or Bupa may be eligible for a private health insurance rebate.