Guides to Counseling Careers & Other Resources
Within the counseling profession, there is a need for comprehensive and authoritative resources. These guides help current and prospective counselors find scholarships, loan forgiveness programs, and other types of support in these growing careers.
How Can Virtual Reality (VR) Be Used in Therapy?
A variation of VRT is known as virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET), which is especially useful in cases of phobia, unrealistic fears (e.g., fear of heights), or in cases of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
What is an Ambiguous Loss?
What can be traumatizing for some clients who experience an ambiguous loss is the uncertainty or lack of information about the lost loved one. It is this not knowing or ambiguity, which prolongs the grieving process.
AroAce Identity and Mental Health
Since Kinsey, there have been many studies exploring the spectrum of heterosexuality and homosexuality, yet there has been little to no research measuring the spectrum of aromanticism to alloromanticism, and asexuality to allosexuality.
Understanding Transgender and Non-binary Transition Goals, Experience, and Narratives
Transition is the self-actualizing process of aligning one’s external being with their internal sense of gender. This includes social transition like gender expression, legal transition like changing one’s name or pronouns on documentation, and physical transition like hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and Gender Confirmation Surgery (GCS).
What is the Mental Health Access Improvement Act (MHAIA)?
Licensed professional counselors (LPCs) and their clients notched an important advocacy win with the passage of the Mental Health Access Improvement Act (MHAIA), which goes into effect on January 1, 2024.
What Counselors Need to Know About Continuing Education
The field of psychology is dynamic, it is one in which you can never stop learning from. As theories and therapies continue to evolve, it is essential for counselors to stay abreast of the latest research, continuing practices and learn new ways of thinking.
Counseling Court-Mandated Clients
Rather than being motivated by self-referral, mandated clients do not choose to go into counseling and often must report their progress to a third party. Mandatory or court-ordered treatment areas can range from alcohol or substance use disorders, protective services cases, sex offenses, or anger management.
What Is a Nudge in Counseling?
Nudges can be distinguished from more formal demands, such as travel bans or vaccine mandates because the latter do not involve choices. Instead, warnings about dangerous behavior can be nudges such as a sign that says no lifeguard is present and you’re swimming at your own risk. This sign provides information that “nudges” the person not to swim there but does not take away the ability to do so.
Kink, BDSM, and Sex-Positive Counseling
Affirmative counselors recognize how vital it is to validate a client’s sexual orientation, yet some mental health practitioners are reticent to talk about sex-positive identities and alternative sexual lifestyles like kink and BDSM. This can be very stifling for clients whose sexual journey is a foundational part of their lived experience.
Counseling Supervision: Types & What to Know
Supervision is required to complete master’s or doctoral degrees, practicums, internships, and state licensure. Many companies require their counselors to meet with a supervisor regularly. Supervision is necessary for each counselor’s growth and support.