An extract from a counsellor:
I have been in this profession (Counselling, mentoring, life coaching) since 18 yrs. After starting work with several NGOs as a freelancer; basically, I joined as a documentation guide doing all details including studying, field-work of Outreach people, mixing with students, beneficiaries and others about adolescents and family issues; during my work several people encouraged me to talk to them and jotted down the conversation as documents, as they found me close to them and could reveal themselves happily without being embarrassed and defiant.
This way I set my unofficial journey to become a counsellor. Later in my life I had several issues in learning Counselling, in managing my son specially. When I was going through my personal issues, I found myself strong, stronger day by day only because I could promote me as a counsellor by gaining knowledge and information without being biased.
Now it has become my profession and every day I counsel at least seven to eight people officially and almost ten unofficially. I find it “a great need of human society” to have counselling when people direly need it from their close ones but fail in achieving it.
When I started my counselling work I found people coming with hesitation; but when they were counselled they felt it as a great help and encouraged others to take the help of it as it is a ‘life changing process”.
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Living in a nuclear family set up, most of the time, there is no one to share anything. Heart breaking, because family has now become a unit of hardly 3- or 4- members, no cousins, no grandparents around. So for sharing, a person needs someone and then to know possible routes to come out from the painful situation.
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But, very recently it is found that adolescents studying in schools, are suffering from some or other kind of stress but living under denial to meet counsellor in school as they fear if their friends get to know it, they will make fun. Adolescents are not aware of counselling unless and until they get an appropriate information from their peers (parents, teachers and seniors who they feel close) about it.
Meeting a Doctor and meeting a Counsellor is all the same. Though, we find slogans like, ‘Well-being of Body & Mind” everywhere on Wall Posters, Hanging Ad-Board and newspapers, but when someone needs it intensely and approaches in reality, trouble starts. Sceptical mind sets up thinking in wrong direction of demeaning position of themselves among neighbours, friends and relatives. There is always an unenthusiastic tone in talks among the relatives about it.
If school teachers tell parents to find a counsellor for the wellbeing of their child, pessimism begins then & there among the parents and the children. Thoughts like, being psycho, mental illness and many more appear, which bring a general depression in the family members and also whole family lives under stress and threat. The reason of trouble is very simple, it is the thought that everyone can overcome by him/herself only by listening and practising the suggested course of action consistently with the help their parents and seniors.
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Educating self and encouraging others to do so is the very important to lead a prosperous life of hopes and success. A strong encouragement is necessary in support of well-being of mental health in all possible ways. In present context, each and every student needs counselling to know the life, his/her potential and also the way of nurturing self in regularizing his/her present moment effortlessly. Parents need to educate themselves with the new approach of life, being enthusiast as if a soul has extreme urge to make life comfortable by restructured knowledge. Then only road to towards goal will become smooth.
Schools, colleges, offices, has responsibility to keep each inmate in full prospects during their term at the set up. Nowadays, lifestyle has been change a lot; people prefer a life of independence after attainment of certain age. So, they need more counselling than before as leading a life of independence needs a better knowledge of life, as it is not a bed of roses, ups and downs are there in every turn of life. While we enjoy our success we need to be ready to combat with failure, being courageous and open at the same time, competencies to face failure skillfully is the way to path of success.
Each one of us need to have clear concept of “counselling and the basic need of it”. So, School is the first socialization unit of a toddler and learning will become blessings, if each of them can equally has the access to utilize their age approved potential. If a new and young parent needs a doubt clearing session for nurturing his/her toddler, school counsellor will be the best person to make the appropriate knowledge available to the parents. So, everywhere we need counsellor to lead a healthy life, as they provide good knowledge of mental health, they learn it, they are certified and designated professionals. One can believe them as they form the group of well-read people helping a person who require assistance in developing life skill.
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School may make counselling available for general mental growth of each pupil, they may direct each student to sit for counselling, for asking their general doubts with belief and without being embarrassed. Clear mind-set always bring transparency in all aspects. This will ensure reduced discrimination against the student who need several sessions of counselling.
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In schools, we find some special students: gifted or back benchers. Nowadays perhaps there is no word like “back-benchers”, as schools prefers seating arrangement by rotation method; but teachers may spot the students who are somehow not attentive to their regular studies. Instead of giving punishment, schools may organize special class for their holistic development. Students who are not regular in school work may have several causes for their irregularities as, family upbringing, inattention, motor restlessness, creative fluidity, etc. Punishing a child may not be a supportive stand point unless we give our attention to shortcomings and also the probable solutions of it.
We need to make counselling available to each citizen like the physicians and health professional’s availability for everyone. The popularity of Counselling depends on the mind-set of people like us who should realize it as the need of complete wellbeing of Human being.
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School is the stepping stone in popularizing it, in planting it in the human mind-set as it effects the whole family and can help them in realizing counselling as a requirement of appropriate development.
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