Counselling
The primary aim of a Specialist Wellness Counsellor is not to treat, but to improve, not to diagnose, but to screen (identify), and not to cure, but rather to care.
I offer counselling services to any individual that is 13 years old and older. For clients under the age of 18 to receive counselling, both their parents need to sign a consent form.
I counsel individuals, couples, families, and other groups.
What Is Counselling?
Counselling is a contract that creates a professional relationship between the counsellor and the client to facilitate a process that aids the client in understanding their feelings while equipping them with the knowledge, insight, tools, and strategies necessary to face present and future challenges. Often, counselling involves supporting the client to be intentional and proactive in managing their thoughts, feelings, and behaviour to promote mental health and wellness. When successful, counselling can change how a client thinks, feels, and behaves concerning a disturbing experience or distressing situation.
Counselling falls under the umbrella term of “talking therapies”. It is a process that enables individuals, couples, and groups to discuss their issues and any difficult feelings they are experiencing in a safe, confidential space with a counsellor. The client learns about their specific issues and how their behaviours, emotions, and thoughts impact their moods. Counselling assists the client in gaining healthy coping skills for responding to challenging situations, thereby enabling them to take back control of their life.
Counselling Versus Psychotherapy
The terms “counselling” and“psychotherapy” are often used interchangeably and can overlap, but there are subtle differences. Counselling is usually a short-term intervention, while psychotherapy consists of a longer-term treatment. Counselling deals with present issues and emphasises the client’s emotional and intellectual experience, whereas psychotherapy aids the client in processing significant difficulties arising from their psychological history that requires them to return to earlier experiences. Not every client who benefits from counselling is diagnosed with a mental health condition. Counselling can aid in dealing with the stresses and conflicts of everyday life that can influence anyone.
In South Africa, Registered Counsellors and Specialist Wellness Counsellors are required to have a minimum of an honours or a BPsych equivalent degree in Psychology. In contrast, therapists generally have a master’s degree in Psychology.
What Counselling Is NOT
Counselling is NOT about giving and receiving advice, but the setting and achievement of short- and long-term goals.
Counselling is NOT about fixing the client or their situation but about the facilitation of the next step in learning, growth, adjustment, and healing.
Counselling is NOT about making the client feel better, but about helping them be better through fostering their strengths – which will eventually result in them feeling better.
Counselling is NOT about being judgemental, but rather meeting the client where they are at with unconditional positive regard.
Counselling is NOT about pushing the counsellor’s values and encouraging the client to behave as the counsellor would in their own life, but instead it is working from within the client’s frame of reference to find a solution that honours the client’s being.
Counselling is NOT about an emotional attachment between the counsellor and client, but fostering a professional relationship with healthy boundaries that promote objectivity.
Ask for help. Not because you are weak.
Les Brown
But because you want to remain strong.
Individual Counselling
Individual counselling creates a space in which the client can explore their emotions, thoughts, beliefs, and behaviours. It also enables the client to process difficult or salient memories. It supports the client in recognising areas of their life that they would like to change and setting personal goals. Additionally, individual counselling helps clients to better understand themselves and others. Ultimately, it facilitates the process through which the client changes their habits to achieve the necessary change to their lives. The client and counsellor collaborate to teach the client tools and activate the client’s inner resources to promote positive choices.
Couples Counselling
Everyone needs a little extra help every now and then, and couples are no exception. Couples counselling works to support couples in identifying and addressing problems that strain the relationship. It aims to strengthen romantic relationships, heal communication difficulties, and resolve interpersonal conflicts through identifying negative patterns of behaviour. Couples counselling can address a variety of relationship issues, including challenges from external stressors, infidelity, feelings of disconnection, poor communication, recurring conflicts, relationship roles, and issues related to sex. Couples counselling facilitates a space for romantic partners to recognise their own needs, successfully communicate them to each other, and negotiate ways to meet those needs. It takes “my truth” and “your truth” to reconcile it to “our truth”.
I create a safe, empathic, neutral space wherein couples can work together to build healthier bonds and achieve a deeper understanding of each other’s experiences and feelings through open, honest communication.
Please note that with couples counselling, the couple as a unit is the client, rather than the individual romantic partners.
Group Counselling
Group counselling involves a small group of individuals meeting with a counsellor to discuss and work through personal issues, providing support and different perspectives to each member while benefiting from the shared experiences within the group. Members share their experiences, listen to each other, and provide feedback, thereby facilitating personal growth and insight.
Group counselling can assist in managing mental health concerns, such as trauma and conflict, by offering peer support, validation, and different coping mechanisms. Groups are usually focused on specific issues, such as grief, relationship problems, communication issues, psycho-education, or stress management.
It can be used as a primary form of counselling or alongside individual sessions.
Every flower is a soul blossoming in nature.
Gerhard de Nerval
Counselling Services
My counselling services include, but are not limited to:
- Coping skills
- Trauma debriefing
- Trauma counselling
- Crisis management
- Loss and grief counselling
- Substance abuse and addiction counselling
- Psycho-education
Coping Skills
Make an active commitment to learn and implement coping techniques to heal personal and interpersonal difficulties, in order to alleviate symptoms of distress and conflict. Examples of coping skills include grounding exercises, breathing techniques, journalling, etc.
Trauma Debriefing
Trauma debriefing usually takes place soon after someone has experienced a traumatic event, typically 24-72 hours thereafter. It is a specific form of counselling that helps and supports clients in dealing with the physical and/or psychological symptoms that result from trauma exposure. This includes containment, emotional support, psycho-education, symptom management, and just generally sorting out the details and feelings surrounding the traumatic event.
Trauma Counselling
Trauma counselling facilitates healing, recovery, adjustment, and growth after experiencing a traumatic event to alleviate the symptoms of trauma. It helps the client process intense and overwhelming emotions through facilitating a space that allows the client to bring their feelings and thoughts to the fore. The ultimate aim is to help the client resume their normal life, unburdened by the lingering, persistent, negative effects of the trauma with their sense of self restored.
Crisis Management
Crisis management attempts to address the client’s distress, impairment, and instability when facing an urgent, immediate crisis or disaster event. In addition to helping the client work through feeling emotionally overwhelmed, crisis management also helps the client solve practical problems. Coping skills may also be offered to the client. Crisis management lasts anywhere from 15 minutes to two hours and is provided throughout 1-3 sessions. While it is not a substitute for long-term therapy/counselling or psychiatric care, crisis counselling can provide a safe outlet for immediate relief.
Loss and Grief Counselling
Loss and grief counselling works to help clients process the physical, emotional, social, spiritual, and mental responses to loss. This includes the death of a loved one, but also extends to the significant life-changing loss of a relationship, role, or belief. It aims to help the client acknowledge that grief is a deeply personal, painful process with no correct time or way to grieve, but that ultimately acceptance, adjustment, and healing is possible.
Substance Abuse and Addiction Counselling
Substance abuse and addiction counselling seeks to support, educate, and guide clients through the psychosocial factors involved as they make the decision to quit an addiction and try to follow through on that resolution. While attaining and maintaining sobriety is a life-long journey, I can help provide useful information and the tools needed to help with successfully living substance-free or recovering from a relapse.
Psycho-Education
Psycho-education consists of client education. It teaches clients and/or their loved ones evidence-based interventions that provide information and support to better understand, adjust, and manage their mental health. Psycho-education includes providing knowledge on attachment styles, coping skills, mental health struggles, burnout, breaking stigmatisation, etc. I offer psycho-education to individuals, couples, and groups.
Even the tiniest of flowers can have the toughest roots.
Shannon Mullen
Fees and Rates
To find out about my fees and rates, visit the individual counselling, couples counselling, and group counselling pages.
I reserve the right to offer discounts on fees and rates to clients at my discretion.
Note that individual and group counselling to adolescents (13 to 17 years old), students (18 to 24 years old), and pensioners (65 years and older) are offered at a 20% discount per individual/group counselling session. To claim the special discount of 20%, proof of age is required (for example, a photo of the client’s birth certificate or ID).
To find out more about the financial terms and conditions, check out the Policy page.
Deep in their roots, all flowers keep the light.
Theodore Roethke
Interested in Receiving Counselling?
Send an email to thebloomingpractice@gmail.com or a WhatsApp message to +27 71 342 9810 to make an appointment with me or ask any questions.
I will respond in between seeing clients during the following South African business hours (GMT +2):
- Monday: 08h30 – 19h00 (excluding 10h30 to 13h00)
- Tuesday: 08h30 – 19h00 (excluding 10h30 to 13h00)
- Wednesday: 08h30 – 19h00 (excluding 10h30 to 13h00)
- Thursday: 08h30 – 19h00 (excluding 10h30 to 13h00)
- Friday: Closed
- Saturday: Closed
- Sunday: 09h00 – 13h30
In case of an emergency, go to your nearest police station or to the emergency room of your nearest hospital.
Excited to hear from you!
A helping hand can be a ray of sunshine in a cloudy world.
The Blooming Practice 