4 Ideas for Making the Most out of Counseling (Even if You’re Nervous)

Contributed by Jacqueline Larraga

I’ve sat on both sides of the counseling room, and it’s easy to remember the jumble of emotions and thoughts that run through your head that first counseling session. Whether you are walking into the room or tapping on a Zoom link, everyone enters counseling with his or her own set of concerns, expectations, hopes, and questions. Some of the more familiar ones are…

Will I be understood?

Will this work?

And perhaps, scariest of all…What if it doesn’t?

While I can’t answer all those questions, as a counselor, I can do my best to address some of the underlying fears.

One of the initial ways I seek to do this is by inviting my counselees to fill out a personal background questionnaire before we meet. I used to say that having this document in hand before the first appointment helps us to “hit the ground running.” I’ve adjusted how I describe that because what it really means is that both counselor and counselee can take a deep breath at the start of a conversation and know that we aren’t beginning from the beginning. For many, putting some of their story on paper before an appointment helps bring clarity. And on my end, every time I receive this document from someone I will be meeting with for the first time, I read it prayerfully beforehand, asking God to help me understand well and be ready to listen compassionately….