# First counselling sessiom



## KyraRose (Dec 26, 2013)

I went to my first counselling session at school on Thursday and was extremely nervous,shaking,blushing and when she asked me even the simplest questions such as 'What did I get for Christmas' my mind totally went blank and most of my answers were either yes or no or just generally very short. I did tell her I was very nervous talking to her but she has said to my head of year that unless I can talk a lot more next session then she won't see me anymore which really makes me feel like I am totally wasting their time and she actually said to me that a lot of other people were waiting for counselling which also makes me feel terrible so i'm not sure whether I really want to go again.


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## LoungeFly (Jun 25, 2011)

I'm so sorry you had a bad experience. She really should of been more compassionate that your nervous. Maybe try and have some things written down for your next session so that even if you can't open up, you can then hand her your paper. 

Is there any other therapists or counselors there? 

Sometimes I think people really don't know how much courage it really takes to take these first steps, and that even if you get into the office, it can be paralyzing. 

Hang in there.


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## sad vlad (Nov 9, 2013)

I dont know exactly how things are working there so someone from your country could make things a bit more clear.

I imagine a school counselor is not properly trained for handling this. I dont know if it is required to have a Psychology college finished to be one or just some course to have some very basic ideas about that subject. Even if they do have a Psychology college finished, if they would have been good at it, I am pretty sure they would have become therapists or psychiatrists. It pays a lot better and they would be working in their field. 

Moreover, a therapist would have realised from the very beginning you have high anxiety and probably SAD or GAD and would have known how to handle the situation better. That counselor was obviously completely clueless not to mention insensitive.

Try a professional next time(a real one) and if you fear you will not be able to talk, just write your ''story'' down: your symptoms, how you are feeling in certain situations, when did it begin, any suicidal thoughts, if you have any support for this, if you have friends and so on. Just dont make it very long.
He should know what to ask next.

I hope you will have better luck next time. Dont let this disappointment let you down. It's too early to give up.


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## Ocwhale (Mar 21, 2013)

i think you should change a counsellor. Obviously she/he does not understand or empathize with you well enough to know that you have problems speaking because of SA. counselling takes time and patience and she does not seem to have both of that.


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## KyraRose (Dec 26, 2013)

LoungeFly said:


> I'm so sorry you had a bad experience. She really should of been more compassionate that your nervous. Maybe try and have some things written down for your next session so that even if you can't open up, you can then hand her your paper.
> 
> Is there any other therapists or counselors there?
> 
> ...


Thank you for your advice on writing stuff down, I think I will try that if I do go again. As far as I know she is the only counselor/therapist at my school, I might try going to my doctor to see if there are any therapists near me but after this experience I don't really want to go again :/


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## binarybigfoot (Aug 18, 2013)

That is a lousy councilor for SA. She has no concept of how hard it is for someone to reach out... I know it's hard honey, reaching out for help is the hardest part, but you will need to find someone else. I was lucky me and my first councilor clicked, but my second didn't and I'm seeing someone new tomorrow.


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## elle3 (Apr 1, 2013)

Did you see your school counselor (as in the one who helps students with class schedules, scholarships and graduation) or a school psychologist? If you saw the school counselor, that may be why you had such a bad experience because psychological therapy is not a focus for most. Either way, she does not sound qualified for the position she is in. 
If you do see her again, perhaps you could ask her if she could direct you to a local therapist or information on how to locate one who specializes in anxiety or adolescents for more in depth therapy. Writing stuff down has helped me in the past so I too think that is good advice. Don't let this experience get you down, she was the problem, not you. Good luck.


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## MobiusX (Nov 14, 2008)

you should audio record your sessions, a lot of times I forget what I said so it's like I didn't get anything out of it, but by recording you can relax and don't have to worry about remembering everything she said, most places don't let you audio record, I was allowed by 3 therapists, but not for my latest one, the truth is that if you really want to record, don't even ask, just do it, small mp3 player in your sock


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## KyraRose (Dec 26, 2013)

elle3 said:


> Did you see your school counselor (as in the one who helps students with class schedules, scholarships and graduation) or a school psychologist? If you saw the school counselor, that may be why you had such a bad experience because psychological therapy is not a focus for most. Either way, she does not sound qualified for the position she is in.
> If you do see her again, perhaps you could ask her if she could direct you to a local therapist or information on how to locate one who specializes in anxiety or adolescents for more in depth therapy. Writing stuff down has helped me in the past so I too think that is good advice. Don't let this experience get you down, she was the problem, not you. Good luck.


She is a school counsellor but she only works in school one day a week and does other counselling the rest of the days of the week.
That's what she has on her website, she seems to look quite good but I don't think she knows what to do with people who are very quiet like me.
What I can help with
Anger Management, Anxiety, Asperger Syndrome, Bereavement, Child related issues, Cultural issues, Depression, Eating disorders, General counselling, Loss, Obsessions, OCD, Personal Development, Post-traumatic stress, Self Esteem, Self Harm, Stress, Trauma, Work related issues

Qualifications
Cert Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), 2010; Cert Counselling Young people 11-18 years of age, 2009; Adv Diploma Therapeutic Counselling, 2005; Cert counselling Skills, 2003; Cert counselling Theory, 2002

Types of therapy
CBT (Cognitive Behavioural), Creative Therapy, Humanistic, Person Centred, Solution Focused Brief Therapy, TA


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