Psychotherapy, Counselling and Psychological therapies are terms which describe the  professional practice of exploring a client’s issues or problems.

I work according to the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy’s (BACP) Ethical framework for good practice which include:

VALUES:

• Respecting human rights and dignity
• Ensuring the integrity of practitioner-client relationship
• Enhancing the quality of professional knowledge and its application
• Alleviating personal distress and suffering
• Fostering a sense of self that is meaningful to the person(s) concerned
• Increasing personal effectiveness
• Enhancing the quality of relationships between people
• Appreciating the variety of human experience and culture
• Striving for the fair and adequate provision of counselling and psychotherapy service

PRINCIPLES:

• Fidelity: honouring the trust placed in the practitioner
• Autonomy: respect for the client right to be self governing
• Beneficence: a commitment to promoting the clients’ well-being
• Non-maleficence: a commitment to avoiding harm to the client
• Justice: the fair and impartial treatment of all clients and the provision of adequate services
• Self-respect: fostering the practitioner’s self-knowledge and care for self

PERSONAL MORAL QUALITIES:

• Empathy
  
• Sincerity
  
• Integrity
  
• Resiliance
  
• Respect
  
• Humility
  
• Competence
  
• Fairness
  
• Wisdom
  
• Courage
  

BACP Research has suggested that, although there are several hundred different theoretical approaches to psychotherapy and counselling, it is the therapeutic relationship which is paramount in enabling clients to feel safe enough to explore, in depth, their personal issues. Carl Rogers (Person-Centred Approach) suggested, all that is necessary and sufficient, when a client is feeling vulnerable or anxious and is able to be in psychological contact with the therapist and the therapist offers understanding (empathy), warmth and unconditional acceptance (unconditional positive regard) in a genuine authentic manner (congruence) and if the client is able to accept these ‘core conditions’ from the therapist, therapeutic change is able will take place. This ‘Person-Centred Approach’ is generally ‘non-directive’ and the therapist follows the client at their own pace and time.

However, in these ever-changing times, sometimes clients require help, advice and techniques in order to resolve their issues more quickly.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) can offer such techniques and its large evidence-based studies suggest that it is possible to change and recondition our thoughts and behaviours to overcome specific problems. By understanding our thought processes and perceptions and the way these affect our feelings, thoughts and behaviours, CBT can be useful in dealing with many personal issues especially with regard to anxiety, depression and phobias.

In my own work, I integrate these two models; firstly I aim to build a safe therapeutic relationship and (tentatively) offer techniques such as looking at ‘negative automatic thoughts’, ‘safety and avoidance behaviours’, ‘personal rules and valuing/belief systems’ in order to facilitate any changes you, as a person, may like to change.