It takes tremendous courage to reach out and ask for help, and is more a sign of strength in oneself, and of hope in a life that can be of peace, joy, and fulfillment.  There is no weakness in taking the steps to work on oneself and towards a life that aligns with what matters most to us.  When we are brave enough to show up and do the work in this space we allow for the possibility of calm and stability in our lives.

So…what are some signs that could be signalling you to seek help for yourself or someone you care about?

• You’re experiencing a sense of feeling stuck and don’t know which step to take next

This list is by no means conclusive nor necessarily in any order*.  I think it does however,  show that there are a wide variety of signs that can give us very valid reasons for seeking the assistance of a professional counsellor.  

If you think that counselling support may be beneficial for yourself or someone you care about, I encourage you to take the next step of exploring the professional counsellors within your area to see who might be a good fit for you and your needs.  

A great place to start is by personal and professional referral, or the professional association bodies such as the Australian Counselling Association (ACA - https://www.theaca.net.au/find-registered-counsellor.php) or the Professional Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (PACFA - https://pacfa.org.au/FindATherapist).  My next post will take a look at some steps to help you find the right counsellor for you.

*There are circumstances that do require immediate attention.  If you are experiencing thoughts of harming yourself or suicide and your life is in danger, please contact 000 for emergency services, or Lifeline on 13 11 14  for immediate support.

**If you are experiencing an abusive or violent relationship and your life is in danger, please contact 000 for emergency services, or 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or https://www.1800respect.org.au/, which operates 24/7.

If you would like to explore what working together could look like, please feel free to contact me for a conversation.

There are many different perceptions out there about who counsellors are, what counselling is, and why people would go to see a counsellor.  I’ve explored this in another post titled “What Actually Is Professional Counselling”, which you might find helpful, you will find it in the blog posts.  What we’re exploring here though, is why seeing a professional counsellor could be helpful for you. 

Professional counselling can be beneficial for you in so many ways.  It doesn’t have to be only for when you are navigating a personal or professional crisis, or managing mental illness.  Have you considered that  learning skills and strategies to help you with managing and maintaining your mental and emotional health can be great reasons alone?

Counselling can be extremely helpful when we hit a crossroads or time of transition in our life, and we just need someone to talk it out with to help us make sure that we are making choices that align with our values and integrity.  It can be very difficult to work out what we really want or need to do when our circumstances are overwhelming or when everyone else is trying to be ‘helpful’  with their advice and telling us what to do.  Of course they mean well, they care about us….but….it’s not always helpful when it’s coming from a place that can be more about their values then ours.

There can be times when we are under the pressure to make a decision within or by a certain period of time - a professional counsellor can provide you with tools to help you to make choices that align with your core values.  We might find that there are times in our life when we feel ‘stuck’ and counselling can assist us with remembering, or even discovering, what and who matters most to us so that we can move forward.  A professional counsellor will not normally tell you what to do, but they will hold confidential space for you to safely talk through your thoughts and feelings, and to weigh up the possible outcomes of your decision making so that you can feel empowered to make choices that will align with your core values and help you to move forward towards your hoped for outcomes.

 Sometimes it may not even be an issue that we are are navigating personally, but we would like to know how to support someone we care about, for example, this could be a friend or family member who’s partner or child is very unwell or has passed away. 

Unfortunately, there is often a stigma attached to reaching out for help and it can be seen as a sign of weakness.  This can be dependent on factors which could include the family that we have grown up in, our society, or our culture for example.  This is something that I hope with time we will overcome in Australia, especially in light of our most recent statistics from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (https://www.aihw.gov.au/mental-health/overview/mental-illness retrieved 29/3/2023) , stating that:

“Courage starts with showing up and letting ourselves be seen” 

- Brene’ Brown

By Nikole Egan 

JUNE 16, 2023

Could Professional Counselling Be Helpful for You?

So What Actually is Professional Counselling?

I think a good place for us to start is by taking a brief look at what professional counselling is, what is a professional counsellor in Australia, and what kinds of issues professional counselling can help with.

So What Actually is Professional Counselling?

I think a good place for us to start is by taking a brief look at what professional counselling is, what is a professional counsellor in Australia, and what kinds of issues professional counselling can help with.

Things to Read

So What Actually is Professional Counselling?

I think a good place for us to start is by taking a brief look at what professional counselling is, what is a professional counsellor in Australia, and what kinds of issues professional counselling can help with.

IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ

The information presented on this website by Nikole Egan is for the purpose of general information and should not be considered as a substitute for professional or medical advice.  It is important that you discuss specific symptoms and medical conditions with your health professional.

This website is not a crisis service.  If you are in Australia and in danger or someone you know is in danger, please call emergency immediately on 000.  

Please contact Lifeline 24/7 for crisis counselling on 13 11 14.

If you are experiencing an abusive or violent relationship, please contact 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or https://www.1800respect.org.au/, which operates 24/7.

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