A day in the life of a Counsellor

Summary

Lisa Menzel, a counselor at Well Within Counseling, discusses her approach to sessions, which includes helping clients open up about their issues. She emphasizes the importance of being authentic and building rapport quickly. Lisa highlights her work in community services, education, and private practice, focusing on substance use and family conflict. She stresses the need for counselors to debrief with supervisors to avoid burnout and aims to empower clients, ensuring they feel they've achieved something by the end of each session.

Takeaways

• 🌟 Lisa Menzel is a counselor who operates her own practice named 'Well Within Counseling'.
• 🗣️ A typical one-hour counseling session involves key stages, starting with allowing the client to express their concerns.
• 🃏 To engage reserved clients, Lisa uses 'strengths cards' as a conversation starter.
• 🤝 A good counselor, according to Lisa, is authentic, genuine, and capable of quickly building rapport with clients.
• 📚 Lisa Menzel emphasizes the importance of continuous learning and skill updating to stay current with research.
• 🏢 She enjoys working in various sectors such as community services, education, and privately, addressing issues like substance use and family conflict.
• 😔 Listening to sad stories daily can be emotionally taxing; hence, debriefing with supervisors or colleagues is crucial.
• 💪 Empowering clients and ensuring they feel a sense of achievement by the end of the session is a core aspect of Lisa's approach.
• 💡 Lisa's personal strength is her inclination to help others, which aligns with her role as a counselor.

Q & A

What is Lisa Menzel's profession?

Lisa Menzel is a counselor.

What is the name of Lisa Menzel's practice?

Lisa Menzel's practice is called 'Well Within Counseling'.

How does Lisa Menzel approach clients who are reserved during sessions?

Lisa Menzel uses techniques like getting out her 'strengths cards' to help reserved clients open up during sessions.

What does Lisa Menzel consider as key traits of a good counselor?

Lisa Menzel believes that a good counselor should be authentic, genuine, and able to build a relationship quickly.

How does Lisa Menzel stay updated in her field?

Lisa Menzel updates her skills every year to stay in touch with new and emerging research.

In which sectors does Lisa Menzel work?

Lisa Menzel works in the community services field, the education sector, and privately.

What types of issues does Lisa Menzel specialize in counseling?

Lisa Menzel specializes in counseling for issues such as substance use and family conflict or breakdown.

How does Lisa Menzel handle the emotional impact of hearing sad stories daily?

Lisa Menzel debriefs with her supervisor or a colleague to avoid taking the emotional toll of her work home.

What is Lisa Menzel's goal for her clients at the end of a session?

Lisa Menzel aims to empower her clients, ensuring they leave the session feeling like they've achieved something.

What personal strength does Lisa Menzel believe contributes to her success as a counselor?

Lisa Menzel believes her personal strength of liking to help people contributes to her success as a counselor.

How does Lisa Menzel ensure clients feel heard and understood during sessions?

The script does not provide specific details on how Lisa Menzel ensures clients feel heard and understood, but it implies that her authentic and genuine approach, along with her ability to build relationships quickly, likely plays a role in this aspect of her counseling.

Outlines

00:00

🌟 Introduction to Counseling Practice

Lisa Menzel, a counselor, introduces herself and her practice called 'Well Within Counseling.' She explains the structure of a one-hour counseling session, emphasizing the importance of allowing clients to open up about their issues. Some clients are eager to share, while others may be more reserved. To facilitate engagement, Lisa may use 'strengths cards' to help clients feel more comfortable. She believes that an effective counselor is authentic, genuine, and capable of quickly building a strong relationship with clients. Lisa also highlights the importance of staying updated with new research and her work in various sectors such as community services, education, and private practice, focusing on issues like substance use and family conflict. She acknowledges the emotional toll of hearing sad stories and the necessity of debriefing with supervisors or colleagues to avoid taking work-related stress home. Lisa's goal is to empower clients, ensuring they leave each session feeling accomplished. She concludes by expressing her personal strength and passion for helping people.

Keywords

💡Counselor

A counselor is a professional who provides guidance and support to individuals facing personal, social, or psychological challenges. In the context of the video, Lisa Menzel identifies herself as a counselor, emphasizing the importance of opening up communication with clients and building authentic relationships. This role is central to the video's theme of mental health and personal well-being.

💡Well Within Counseling

This is the name of Lisa Menzel's own practice, suggesting a focus on holistic well-being and personal growth. The term 'well within' implies an internal journey towards health and self-discovery, which is a key concept in counseling and the video's narrative.

💡Strengths Cards

Strengths cards are a tool used by counselors to help clients identify and discuss their strengths. In the script, Lisa mentions using these cards to 'break up the session' and engage clients who might be more reserved. This illustrates a practical application of tools in counseling to facilitate self-reflection and conversation.

💡Authenticity

Authenticity refers to the quality of being genuine and true to one's own personality, spirit, or character. Lisa describes a good counselor as someone who is authentic, which is crucial for establishing trust and rapport with clients. Authenticity in counseling is highlighted as a means to create a safe and supportive environment.

💡Skill Update

Skill update implies the continuous learning and development of professional skills. Lisa mentions updating her skills annually to stay current with research, which underscores the importance of ongoing professional development in the field of counseling and the commitment to providing the best possible care to clients.

💡Community Services

Community services refer to the programs and support systems available to individuals within a community. Lisa mentions working in the community services field, indicating a broader application of counseling beyond private practice and highlighting the importance of community engagement in mental health support.

💡Education Sector

The education sector encompasses schools, colleges, and other institutions involved in teaching and learning. Lisa's work in this sector suggests the application of counseling skills within educational settings to support students, which is a critical aspect of promoting mental health and well-being among young people.

💡Substance Use

Substance use refers to the consumption of drugs or alcohol, often in contexts where it can lead to addiction or other negative consequences. Lisa mentions working with clients dealing with substance use, indicating that her practice addresses a range of issues, including addiction, which is a significant public health concern.

💡Family Conflict

Family conflict refers to disagreements or tensions within a family unit. Lisa's mention of working with family conflict and breakdown shows that her practice addresses the complex dynamics of family relationships, which can significantly impact an individual's mental health and well-being.

💡Debriefing

Debriefing is a process of reviewing and discussing experiences or events, often used in professional settings to process emotions and learn from experiences. Lisa emphasizes the importance of debriefing with a supervisor or colleague to prevent taking work-related issues home, which is a critical aspect of self-care for counselors.

💡Empowerment

Empowerment is the process of enabling individuals to gain control over their own lives and make decisions. Lisa's goal to empower clients and have them leave the session feeling they've achieved something reflects a core principle of counseling: to support clients in building their own capacity and confidence.

Highlights

Lisa Menzel introduces herself as a counselor.

She operates her own practice called 'Well Within Counseling'.

Sessions involve key stages for client interaction.

Clients are encouraged to open up about their issues.

Some clients are more reserved and may need additional encouragement.

Strengths cards are used to engage more reserved clients.

Authenticity and genuineness are key traits of a good counselor.

Counselors should be able to build a quick rapport with clients.

Lisa Menzel updates her skills annually to stay current with research.

She works in various sectors including community services and education.

Substance use and family conflict are among the issues Lisa addresses.

Counseling can be emotionally taxing due to hearing sad stories.

Debriefing with a supervisor or colleague is crucial for counselors' well-being.

Empowering clients is a significant part of Lisa's approach.

Clients should feel a sense of achievement after each session.

Lisa's personal strength is her inclination to help others.

Transcripts

so my name is Lisa Menzel and I'm a

counselor and I work in my own practice

called well within counseling so within

a one-hour session there's a few key

stages that we need to work through and

the first one is to allow for the client

to open up and talk about what they're

presenting with some clients are really

happy to open up and sometimes other

clients are a little bit more reserved I

might change things up a little bit by

getting out my strengths cards and that

really breaks up the session I think

good counsellor is someone who is

authentic and genuine and able to build

a relationship really quickly every year

I update my skills to just stay in touch

with new and emerging research some of

the areas that accounts love my work in

is in the community services field or

the education sector or working

privately and working with issues such

as substance use or family conflict

family breakdown hearing some sad

stories day-in day-out can take its toll

on a person it's important as a

counselor to debrief with my supervisor

or a colleague so that we then don't

take those issues home it's important

for me to really empower the client and

for them to leave the session feeling

like that they've achieved something

it's one of my own strengths as a person

I like to help people

you