Practice of Therapy Essay -- Counseling

Practice of Therapy The actual practicing of therapy is a scary step for beginning therapists, although the education has been received and after practicum there will some experience in practicing with clients, doing therapy on your own seems intimidating. However, I am sure like most other experiences in life, the more you do something, the better you get at it and the more comfortable you feel in knowing what you are doing as well as doing it the proper way. With therapy, an individual can learn all about theories, models and assessments but the rapport and confidence from clients can only come after practicing therapy. Protocol For Initial Telephone Contact I will begin by introducing myself and then explaining my qualifications, I want the client to feel at ease in knowing I am not only capable but educated and trained specifically in marriage and family therapy. The next step would be asking the client to specify the issue that has caused the couple or family to seek therapy and then to determine all family members as well as any other individuals or public agencies that are connected to the couple or family. Next would be determining if the situation is a crisis situation and then deciding if I am able to help with the family or couple’s issues. Then I would talk about fees, payments and ensure the family has adequate transportation to attend sessions. After that, I would set up an appointment date and time, preferably within the next 24 hours. Who Comes To First Meeting? If the clients are a couple, I would prefer both individuals attend the first interview, although I realize this will not always be agreeable. In a family interview I would also prefer all members of the family present, this way each member can expre... ...ions. It has often been said there is no substitute for experience and it appears to me that practicing therapy is one of those situations. Works Cited Grewal, Daisy. (2012). In Atheists We Distrust. Scientific American. Retrieved from http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=in-atheists-we-distrust Hayslip, Bert., and Schneider, Lawrence. (1985). Effects of Counselor-Client Age Similarity and Presenting Problem Intimacy on Client Satisfaction. Retrieved from http://eric.ed.gov/PDFS/ED259254.pdf Locke, H.J., and Wallace, K.M. (1959). Short-term marital adjustments and prediction tests; Their reliability and validity. Journal of Marriage and Family Living. Nichols. (2010). Family Therapy; Concepts and Methods. Patterson, J., Williams, l., Edwards, T. M., Chamow, L., & Grauf- Grounds, C. (2009). Family Therapy; Concepts and Methods.