Archives

CBT Techniques: Cognitive and Behavioural

In CBT, verbal techniques are used to bring forth the client’s automatic thoughts, analyse the logic behind the thoughts, identify unhelpful assumptions, and examine the validity of the assumptions. Assumptions, once identified, are open to modification, which can occur by asking the client if the assumption seems reasonable, by having the client generate reasons for […]

Emotion in Motion

If you look at the Oxford Dictionary entry for the word ‘emotion’, you will find it is a noun, a thing, described as follows: A strong feeling deriving from one’s circumstances, mood, or relationships with others: she was attempting to control her emotions: his voice was shaky with emotion. Instinctive or intuitive feeling as distinguished […]

Book Review: Introduction to Counseling

Kottler, Jeffrey, A., and Shepard, David, S. (2015). Introduction to Counseling: Voices from the Field. (8th ed). Stamford, USA: Cengage Learning. Introduction to Counseling — Voices from the field (8th edition) by Jeffrey Kottler and David Shepard is an introductory textbook for students beginning the journey to becoming a professional counsellor. Now in its eight […]

Graduate Story: Angelie Miaco

AIPC Graduate Angelie Miaco shares her story… “Studying at AIPC was definitely a choice in life that I will never forget or regret. The lecturers and teachers modelled exceptional care, excessive knowledge, as well as being so supportive in all areas of learning. It was excellent to see that they were not only there to […]

Role Play Demonstration of a Supervision Session

In this video, Philip Armstrong (Clinical Director of the Clinical Counselling Centre and CEO of the Australian Counselling Association) and Catherine Dodemont (Registered Supervisor and Level 4 Member of the Australian Counselling Association) demonstrate (through a role-play) a counselling supervision session. Topics explored include counsellor self-care, professional development, confidentiality issues, practice management and marketing, and […]

Book Review: Spirituality in Counseling and Psychotherapy

Johnson, Rick. (2013). Spirituality in counseling and psychotherapy: An integrative approach that empowers clients. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons Inc. Spirituality in counselling and psychotherapy offers a practical exploration of the understanding and integration of spirituality in contemporary counselling. It is a practical text guiding the reader through an awareness of self and the role […]

Counselling Dilemma: An Issue of Sexuality and Boundaries

A counsellor has been working with a client over a period of 9 months assisting with inner child therapy work. During the period, the client also talks about her relationship issues, sexuality as well as a relationship with another person. The counsellor, who also happens to be in a same sex relationship and going through […]

From Evidence-Based Medicine to Marketing-Based Medicine

Dr Peter Parry is an Australian child & adolescent psychiatrist who has researched the “Paediatric Bipolar Disorder” diagnosis emanating from the USA, a diagnosis completely at odds with his training and clinical experience in Australian child and adolescent mental health. As part of his research into the PBD phenomenon, he noticed hundreds of internal pharmaceutical […]

Mindfulness Practice: Problems and Solutions

Although only recently embraced by Western psychology, mindfulness practices and techniques have been part of many Eastern philosophies, such as Buddhism, Taoism, Tai Chi, Hinduism, and most martial arts, for thousands of years. The various definitions of it revolve around bringing non-judgmental consciousness to the present experience, so it can be considered the art of […]

Dealing with Transference in Counselling

Transference is a phenomenon in psychology characterised by “unconscious redirection of feelings of one person to another” (Wiki Answers, n.d.). It can occur both in everyday life and also in the therapy room. One example of how it can happen is when a person mistrusts another because the other resembles, say, an ex-spouse, in manners, […]