30.5.

21
Paper I Fundamentals Dr. Vinod.

Assignment

What are the apprehension of a beginning counsellor, purely from a personal point of view. Two
to three pages

Not confident of today’s notes. I feel I have missed stuff. Sorry.

Setting Goals.

Is a goal needed ? if yes, how do we set a goal? When a counselling session is scheduled do you need
to set a goal, if so who should set the goal?
The counsellor should help the client set the goal. If there is no goal, then there won’t be an aim.
Goal is always positive. When you are facing a challenge or difficulty we are only trying to help them
to handle it not give a solution. We only facilitate the decision making. As a part of the facilitation,
we can set a goal so that the client is aware of the facts etc.
There can be a goal even in just one session. There should not be a session without a goal. To have a
goal, we must have crystal clear clarity on the problem of the client.
Without goals the session is useless.
When it comes to counselling when you set a goal, it should be reachable or achievable. We can set
different types of goals, a major goal or minor goal.

A word about Goals

 Goals within counselling help to set the tone and direction one travels with their client.
 Without goals, the sessions will wander aimlessly.

Eg when there are children we set timetable for them to study.

When they go by the time table. This can be treated as a goal. How do you evaluate this.
Time table is a short term goal. The student should set the time table. If they say like 9-1 study time.
We help them to divide that into segments. Or help them to divide into segments. Setting the time
for each subject etc. The student should be helped to decide the time needed for each subject etc
and then set the schedule accordingly. It may not be easy for the child to make the time table by
himself, but then help is given . and when it is done for a week, then changes can be made,
When the parents or teahers make the schedule, it will not be attractive for the students, so they
will follow just the schedule but won’t be much use for academic growth. This becomes a goal that
is not achievable.
When we give the students or parents are encouraged to make a schedule. It must be student
friendly, the student should feel it is practically feasible. In most cases the timetables set are not
achieved as it is not student friendly. It should be a schedule that is useful for the age appropriate.
When a counsellor sets the goal, the counsellor and the child together make the frame work. There
should be some flexitime, freedom and other activities must be included.
This schedule is a goal. Preparing it is another goal.

Guidelines for setting a goal

Goals are mutually agreed upon by the counsellor and the client. There is a definite clarity in the
matter to be achieved. By having an interaction with the counsellor and client or using the
behaviour patterns etc. Clinical cases or physical cases, they will need therapeutic approach as well.
Social skill being imparted is a goal that is set there. What ever the shortages are, the goals must be
set according to that.

 Goals are mutually agreed on by the client and counsellor

 Goals are specific
 Goals are relavnt to behaviour
 Goals are achievement and success oriented.
 Goals are quanifiable and measurable.
 Goals are behavioural and observable.
For example instead of saying reducing anxiety, if we can say, reducing the rate of heart beat, it will
be a more specific goal.

When they are studying in school or college, they are not happy to enter the class after the teacher
comes in, they are willing to cut the class instead of going in to the class late.
So the goal can be to reduce cutting the class .
Goals are achievement and sucess oriented.
In the above example if I can go into class without the thought about others looking at me.
We can use differnt mechanisms to measure the success. For example heart beat rate.
May be something like the ECG or some such instrument to measure the intensity of the anxiety.
The client should be able to identify what the changes are and how they are reduced.

Through collecting information about the client, we should be able to have a crystal clear idea about
the goals to be set.

If we see that the person has anxiety issues, then we must decipher, the minute details of how and
when it is experienced, what the influence of others, the time and why it is experienced etc.
Is it possible to set goals considering all these factors including the concensus of the client.
What is the method to reach these goals.
May be giving short term goals and then move on to the long term goal.
If we take more than one session to set the goals, the drop out rate may be higher.
The parents are usually the ones who bring the students. They keep breaking the sessions . the
duration of the sessions, how long it will take to make the changes etc should be informed to the
parents before we start the sessions. What ever the result is the counsellor it will be blamed on the
counsellor.. when they move on from one counsellor, to another, we are putting the child through
more difficulty.
The first session can be as long as it needs to be.
It is best to set the goals in the first session itself. The apprehension of the counsellor whether he
will be able to make the diagnosis at the first session. We need to give the client a free
atmosphere to speak his mind. If we can start in the first session itself, it will be better for the child
and the family. We should tell the client itself that so many sessions will be needed. Be completely
involved in the issue.
If we are trying to focus on the goal then the session will become more mechanical. But focus on the
client. Judging the client with the information given.

 There are several important skills which we will cover briefly. Each is considered a “ micro-skill”
which you will need to develop during the clinical sequence of the counsellor training program.

The children were interested in a particular group. The mother is more interested in that.
Do not set goals that will be hurtful to the child. Do not set targets or goals that will hurt the child. It
will not bring productive goals.
When we set schedules for children, time for entertainment or things that the children enjoy.

I come to you to share a concern which I have. I will bring out all that I see and observe in the first
session., there the counsellor can effectively set goals. One hour is more than sufficient to set a
reasonable goal.
Then I might have certain apprehension,, then go deeper into that aspect. Make the client explain
those aspects.
No judgement on our part should influence the session.

In connection with lock down, what is the family situation.

On the part of the teachers, they keep saying they are not being cared for by the parents.
The counsellor cannot make the students interested in a particular subject. It is mostly teachers who
are inculcating interest in the subject.
When there is a problem, focus only on the issue.
In our system we learn all subjects till tenth grade. If a teacher may be make fun of the student. That
can make the student have an aversion for the subject.
Enviromental conditions in the home or in the school or relationships etc can all lead to lower
academic achievements. Each one must be dealt with differently understanding the problem.

A child is ten years in fifth, fifteen in tenth, plus two in late teens. Most of them are not able to
assess the situation or interest in a subject, with maturity.
The child may be able to complete a novel of thousand pages in a couple of days, but may find it
difficult to complete a chapter, of three pages in a week.
Maturational growth is something that comes with age. When you evaluate the component, when we
make the assessment.
There may be different types of competition. We must not use a fault finding mechanism.
Orientation given by the student or the teachers. Check whether it has selfish interests.
All subjects are learned till tenth. Can we move towards what is more interesting.

Weight management-
some have an image of a skinny person.
Some have gained weight as part of their sickness.

Psychology, exists because of diversity of human behaviour.

Obeisity, the orientation etc are different for different people., it cannot be in one shot changed.
The concept introduced is absorbed by the forty students in forty different manner.
We are different in not just looks, our mental make up, the way we perceive things etc.
If five clients come with the same problem,, we cannot deal with all of it in the same manner.
The individual difference is on the existence of psychological difference.
Obeisity as an example.
Media hype
Everyone wants to reduce weight. But some don’t want to restrict diet, some don’t want to do
exercise, but we need to give correct counseling giving the matter correct setting and setting goals
according to the person.
Only through setting the objectives or goals can we proceed.

How do we correct a goal set and is wrong.

Go into a discussion with the client and then make the shift. The client should be fully aware of the
goal and changes.
Every session has experience playing a factor.
Try to answer the question.

Assignment
1. What are the apprehension of a beginning counsellor, purely from a personal point of view.
Two to three pages.
What ever you are reading go into the application level. We must not see a client with an
apprehension not with

Important skills of a cousellor??????

Self disclosure.
Empathy- you want to build the realtionship with the client threouh all the previously mentioned
sklls . yet all those skills will be hindered without the use of empathy. How do you evaluate just
taking what is said at face value wihtout considering who is saying and what is being said. all the skills
will be not useful if there is no empathy. If we just consider, who is speaking and what is being said,
empathy Is created.
don’t expect them to say anything in particular. Don’t make a judgement. Itwill lead to reflecting in
your attitude in the case.
One must try only to listen to what is being said. We don’t need to think what may be being said,
which is giving importance to my thoughts. See the client through what is being said. That will give
you more clarity .
Who he is is veryimportant. The five year old is dealt with in different manner from a fifty year old.
Rogers- thisis the ability to enter the client’s world and to experience his world without actually
entereing into his world. I must stay in my own identity. It isa difficult task but possible to build up
with skills. Perception or understanding of what is taking place with the client. We must take the
clients situation and explain the same in depth. If I put in my thoughts, then it will change the
scenario. If we are able to understand the client correctly, relationship building is very easy,
otherwise, it will be very difficult.
When we say our friends are very understanding. Then it means, they accept what we say as such.
When we involve emotion
Martin1983-
empathy is communicated understanding of the other person’s intended emotional message. Every
word counts in this definition. It is not enough to understand what the person said, you must also
hear what they meant to say, the intended message.
It is not enough to understand, even deeply, you must communicate your understadning somehow.
It is absolutely essential the other person feel understood that your understading is perceived.

This definition is important. Sometimes the emotions are expressed in their words or the sharpness of
thewords. Where as others use other methods. We should be able to understand their silence or
pause even.
Counsellor’s response to the client should be accurate.
Suppose when you are managing a case, and you feel that there should be a change in the goal set .
you can have a seond thought. If we have not reached the empathic understanding, there will be gap
in the information gathered and will lead to problems in the subsequent sessions.
My own views and understanding, if infused, there will be problems later in the sessions. Within the
socially determined roles are given importance, then empathy becomes difficult.
When we give the client to make changes in what I understand, then there is a gap in the
reationship.
Respond just listening not judging or
We can be an efficient counsellor only by making changes intheir way of handling things. We are
only to help them make those changes.
It is important to see why an incident happened not whethere it should have not not have happened.
The adolscent boy may say that he doesn’t have enough freedom, but the same incident, described
by a parent will be shown in a differnt way.

Don’t generalise any situation.

Levels of empathy

 The coursell’or’s respone add significatntly to the feeling and meaning of the expressions of the
client in a way that accuraely expresss feeling levels below what the client is able to express.

Leading
Responding
Immediacy
Humour - should not be used in a negative conotation. Laughter therapy. Is used as a mode for
therapy facial feed back hypothesis. Laughter can be used as a medicine. To enhance wellness etc.
Certain biochemicals are increased. Can be used to avoid the client f rom going into depression.
Confrontation