Individual Counselling

Many people come and see us for individual therapy at the Sydney Couples Counselling Centre. It may be for struggles with anxiety, depression, anger, relationship problems, family issues, life dissatisfaction, stress, bipolar disorder, addictions, past trauma, or any other way that our situation or patterns of behaviour can cause us problems. At the practice, you’ll have the option of either seeing a clinical psychologist or a counsellor. They each have slightly different strengths and weaknesses, which will means that each type will be better for different problems. Here is a brief overview of how they work and what this is good for address.

Clinical psychologists

Clinical psychologists have 6 years of university training. A lot of this is focused on mechanisms that cause and maintain behaviour in people, diagnosing mental health disorders using the DSM (see here for more information on the DSM), and using evidence-based therapies such as Cognitive Behaviour Therapy. Some some issues such as an anxiety disorder, a clinical psychologist is usually very effective. They are also good for identifying when a disorder may help explain a person’s problems. For example, if someone has struggled with depression for many years, they are better trained than counsellors to also consider if the depression is part of bipolar disorder, which requires a different approach than depression. Clinical psychologists are also better trained to understand the role that medication can have in managing mental health problems. Where clinical psychologists have little training is on the humanistic approach to therapy (see the counsellors section below for what this is and it’s benefits).

counsellors

Counsellors usually have 1 to 2 years of training in either a university or a private education college. While clinical psychologists have a lot of emphasis on disorders and evidence-based treatments for them, counselling courses often only have limited training in that area. Instead, their focus tends to be on the humanistic therapies (also referred to as Rogerian therapy or person-centred therapy). This style of therapy empahasis the importance of the relationship between the counsellor and the client and the providing of certain conditions which will allow the client to resolve their own problems and dilemmas. This includes an exploration of the emotions underlying the problem, reflective listening, and unconditional positive regard. For some issues, such as relationship-related problems, this approach is likely to be far more effective than the clinical psychologist approach with it’s emphasis on disorders.

In addition to the type of training that clinical psychologists and counsellors have, a big difference in approach can also come from their personalities and general competencies. You can have great psychologists and counsellors and terrible ones. Some are easier to talk to than others, for both types. If you have a chat to our receptionist, they will be able to help guide you to the right fit or you can look at each therapist’s profile and see the one that connects with you.