2022/12/07

6 Must Read Books Every Counselling Student Should Read

Nicole Mclean

Nov 11, 2018

6 Must Read Books Every Counselling Student Should Read

Nicole, a Counselling Student and self confessed bookworm shares her 'must read' book list with us.

I always have either a book in my hand or playing through audible, I just love to read. Over the months, my goodreads account has grown massively, full of all genres from novels to fantasy and even more so since I started my Level 2 counselling course.

The Compassionate Mind by Paul Gilbert

This is a monster of a book and admittingly I have not completed all 592 pages however, I have made a solid dent and absolutely love it. The compassionate mind explains the evolutionary and social reasons why our brains react so readily to threat - and reveals how our brains are also hardwired to respond to kindness and compassion. It may well be the most insightful book you will ever read as it helps to develop and understand feelings of compassion and increase your sense of well-being. As a trainee counsellor (beginning level 2) where we explore our values and beliefs, compassion is right up there with congruence. It is a quality we all need.

Learning To Counsel 4th edition by William Stewart & Jan Sutton

This was a recommended read in my student guide (I received on my first day) so I can't take credit in discovering this staple. This book however, has been a life saver for my course so far, as it draws from the authors own personal experiences as counsellor, writers and tutors. From the very first pages (which are now covered in scribbles in highlighter and sticky notes; a sign of a good book) it is full of information, teaching you how to be an empathetic counsellor, adhere to ethics, avoid burnout and the key counselling skills needed to transform yourself into a successful psychotherapist. Even if you are not training to become a counsellor this book would be helpful for all helping relationships.

Reflective Writing in Counselling & Psychotherapy 2nd edition by Jeannie Wright

One of my requirements for my counselling course is to keep a reflective journal and if you have never done this before it is a little alien. A reflective journal is different to a diary as you focus more on your emotions and personal development, rather than specific events. The first edition was so popular 10+ years later the author revamped the book to be up to date with BACP ethical framework and of course the development in counselling over the years. Jeannie guides you through everything from how to start writing, various approaches, dealing with obstacles and how to maintain reflective energy as a professional. Including exercises, case studies and ideas for self-directed learning.

4 Essentials Keys To Effective Communication by Bento C. Leal iii

This is an essential book for anybody not just people studying counselling as it covers all aspects where communication is vital, not just in a therapy room. It is laid out as a how to guide, teaching practical communication skills to help you achieve relationship success. Awareness and listening skills including how to pause, reflect, adjust and act.

The Book Of Human Emotions by Tiffany Watt Smith

If you were asked or you were to ask somebody; How do you feel? would the response be a quick response or a true human emotion? This book, in my opinion, is essential for counselling students from Level 2 up. One thing we learned within our first few weeks was paraphrasing, where you repeat back what your client has told you, in this instance an emotion. "I am so furious", to which the counsellor replies "that made you feel furious?" Hearing you say the emotion back can sometimes make a person re evaluate that emotion. They might well be furious but they might not be truly. There might well be more going on. So this is a great book of knowledge to have on hand.

First Steps In Counselling 4th edition by Pete Sanders

This book has been my go-to for assignment help! The layout is like nothing I have seen before as the author has written notes in the margin. These encourage you to explore what you have just read from your own point of view, activities to help define your learning style and references to more information. It truly is a students companion for counselling all the way up to diploma Level 4. Topics covered include; What is counselling and where do ideas come from, the importance of self-development, ethics and what comes next when you qualify. Highly, highly recommend this one!

Author's Bio

Nicole is a trainee holistic Psychotherapist, passionate well-being and women’s empowerment advocate. She writes about emotional well-being and has said that she is "determined to create a platform built on cultivating and uplifting, empowering a community; A online space to breathe easy."

Read more from Nichole at her blog or connect via Instagram or Twitter here

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What is Counselling | Explanation and Definition of Counselling

What is counselling?

Counselling is a form of ‘talk therapy’.

It is a process where an individual, couple or family meet with a trained professional counsellor to talk about issues and problems that they are facing in their lives.

Professional counselling is confidential and non-judgmental.What is counselling

Counselling can provide people with the opportunity to share their views, be heard and gain new perspectives on their situation and experiences.

Counselling can help people to gain clarity surrounding issues.

Together with their counsellor people identify and work towards achieving the desired outcomes and goals for counselling.

What is Professional Counselling?

Professional counselling can provide guidance to help people navigate life’s challenges.

According to 20/20: A Vision for the Future of Counseling, the delegates comprised of 31 counseling organizations agreed upon a unified definition of counselling:

Professional counseling is a professional relationship that empowers diverse individuals, families, and groups to accomplish mental health, wellness, education, and career goals.

Counselors work with clients on strategies to overcome obstacles and personal challenges that they are facing.

The Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia define professional counselling as:

Professional counselling is a safe and confidential collaboration between qualified counsellors and clients to promote mental health and wellbeing, enhance self-understanding, and resolve identified concerns. Clients are active participants in the counselling process at every stage.

A Professional Counsellor may also be referred to as a Registered Counsellor or Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) depending on the country or region in which they practice.

How Counselling Helps

Counselling is used to deal with a broad range of issues and problems that you may be facing.

It can help you to deal with stress, provide treatment for anxiety and treatment for depression.

Counselling can provide you with the opportunity to reassess or set new goals in your life and help you to gain clarity and direction.

Counselling can be used to address issues and problems within your relationship or provide mediation between you and your partner.

Counselling can help by allowing a very safe and private space for you to talk about issues and problems that are you having. These are problems that you may find difficult to talk to other people about because they feel very private. It may feel unsafe or uncomfortable to talk to your normal support network, friends or loved ones.

A professional counselor is trained and registered, and will provide you with a genuine, caring and empathic response to your problems. A trained counsellor will have tools and techniques that are evidence based. They can use these tools to support you or help you to move through the difficult, problem, feelings, behaviours, thoughts or situation that are you experiencing.

What is the Counselling Process?

The process of counselling is where individuals, couples or family members meet with a professional counselor to confidentially discuss problems in their lives.

The counsellor will draw on tools and techniques from their training and should provide understanding and empathy to their client, while their client works out how to move through the issues that they have brought to counselling.

During the process of counselling, goals will be identified, and this is the purpose of the counselling process. The goals can change if that is what the counselor and client see as beneficial.

Counselling is often client-centred, the goal is for the client to make the decision on the best course of action with the support of their therapist. The counsellor can provide tools, techniques, suggestions and homework.

Ultimately it is the client who needs to make the decision on what is best for themselves as a key part of the process.

Types of Counselling

Counsellors can specialize and train in different areas to help certain groups of people.

Types of counselling include –

Relationship and Marriage

Vocational and Career

Family Therapy

Trauma

Drug and Alcohol

Rehabilitation

Student

Grief and Loss

Depression

Anxiety

Sex Therapy

Types of counseling may also come from the method or approach that the counsellor uses such as; Behavioural, Cognitive, Systemic, Constructionist, Humanistic or Psychoanalytic.

Faith Based Denominational Counselling

Faith Based Denominational Counselling can be provided through a religious group such a Church or Mosque. It can include Christian Counselling, Muslim Counselling, Buddhist Counselling for example. It can centre around or support a person’s spirituality, faith, belief system and religion.

The benefit of using a denominational counsellor and a counsellor of the same cultural background, is that it may help with rapport and a genuine understanding of your spiritual beliefs and your religious practices and principles. If the therapist shares the same faith with you, they may have understanding of how your faith influences your options and decisions for your life.

Skills Required for Counseling

There are many skills that are required to be an effective counsellor. First and foremost the counsellor must be genuine and can establish rapport with their client. For therapy to be effective the client/counsellor relationship must be healthy, genuine, safe, nonjudgmental and professional.

What are the 3 traits of counselling?

That counsellors are caring, genuine and empathic to towards their clients.

Counsellors should use evidence based treatments from their formal training. Counsellors need to have a very large set of skills in their ‘tool box’ as every human and their situation is so different. Counsellors need to undergo professional development to keep their skill set current and up to date, utilizing best practice methods.

Not every counsellor can help every client. Counselors will need to have a strong community network and resources as part of their skill set. They will need to be able to recognize when they can not help someone and refer clients to alternative mental health supports for counseling.

Finding a Counsellor

Often people will engage in counselling when a crisis has occurred in their lives.

When searching for an appropriate counselling service, don’t be afraid to ask the counsellor questions.

Counsellors will specialise in different areas. You may like to ask the counsellor –

if they have a particular area of expertise (such as marriage counselling or grief and loss)

what each session will cost

the amount of sessions that may be required to achieve your goals for counselling

To ensure that you will receive a professional counselling service, ask your counsellor or psychologist if they are member of one of the peak professional bodies in Australia, such as the Australian Counselling Association and if they adhere to a Professional Code of Ethics.

If you would like assistance to find a therapist near you, to find a psychologist or information on local counselling services, contact us today.

CategoriesCounselling

TagsCounselling, Psychologist

Do I need counselling?

What will happen in my first counselling session?

Outline of counseling - Wikipedia

Outline of counseling

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

(Redirected from Counselling)

Jump to navigation Jump to search

Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes.^[1]

This is a list of counseling topics.

Therapeutic modalities[edit]

Common areas[edit]

References[edit]

^ "Definition of COUNSELING". www.merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 28 June 2020.

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The Sacred Art of Dying: How the World Religions Understand Death : Kramer, Kenneth: Amazon.com.au: Books

The Sacred Art of Dying: How the World Religions Understand Death : Kramer, Kenneth: Amazon.com.au: Books
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The Sacred Art of Dying: How the World Religions Understand Death Paperback – 1 January 1988

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Examines how each of the major religions looks at death by including stories, teachings, and rituals that present a comparative religious meaning of death and afterlife. Written in textbook style with journal exercises at the end of each chapter. +

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Top reviews from other countries

Priscilla Stilwell
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent overview of the matter

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on 21 September 2013
Verified Purchase

Kramer gives us an excellent and well-researched view of how some of the world's main religions view death. I was impressed with the integrity and fair evaluation of each faith. There is no apparent leaning to one belief system or another. And Kramer effectively hits the main areas of the belief systems concerning prayer as well.

It might be good to see more indigenous representations (i.e., African). Kramer talks about Hindi, Buddhist, Zen, Tibetan, Chinese, Mesopotamian and Egyptian, Greek, Hebraic, Christian, Islamic, and American Indian views. A very useful reference for beginning studies of religion, death, anthropology, and other such disciplines.

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Ed
4.0 out of 5 stars A good start, but...Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on 22 October 2009
Verified Purchase

I'm really quite torn when it comes to making a judgment about this book because I feel that anything critical I have to say about it needs to be highly qualified in reference to this book's strengths. I had better start with the strengths then.

This is the premier, affordable, death and dying textbook. To the best of my knowledge you will not be able to find a survey of world religion's views of death and dying for under $15. This is really an accomplishment that deserves no small amount of credit and one that you have to acknowledge. If you are looking for a good place to start on this topic, here it is.

However, I have some concerns with this book that need to be mentioned. The first issue is that at times it is exceedingly evident that the author is no, by far, an expert in every religious sub-discipline. Honestly, it would be a monumental accomplishment to pull off that degree of authenticity in a single-author survey of any sort, especially when covering a field as diverse as "religion." Nonetheless, the author doesn't deliver in a few chapters, such as the Judaism and Greek chapters. To further explain, such chapters do not appear to be very well organized. This is both in the sense of organization and assembling material. For example, the organization leaves much to be desired in the Hinduism chapter. In my opinion, some core philosophy, which is brought up later on, needs to be moved to the front to better frame the elucidation of death. I feel that more immediate personal and social issues are addressed with the philosophy pushed to the periphery, but due to Hinduism's nature, I do not think this is a very good approach. Concerning the assembly of material, some chapters seem loosely tacked together, such as the Judaism chapter. It is as if the author found four or five references to death and dying and made them the key points of the chapter. But, seemingly little care is spent explaining how the ideas link up with each other. At times, the cracks between the pieces are glaring. But again, in this case, I must give the author credit as Judaism has a VERY ill-defined view on death, so any attempt at breadth will ultimately appear eclectic. In both cases, it is made quite evident that the author is far from an expert in all fields of religion, which tends to make this book appear a little superficial and may frustrate the reader.

The only other book I would consider on this topic is Bregman's anthology, "Death and Dying in World Religions," but its weaknesses are Kramer's strength. For example, as the Bregman book is an anthology, its tones, perspectives and writing styles vary quite a bit whereas Kramer is very consistent. Also, some authors in the Bregman book make assumptions about the reader's degree of exposure to the religion at hand, whereas Kramer is rather thorough with filling in of background information.

One last complaint of mine is the use of pictures in Kramer. They seem quite out of place and oftentimes either garish or childish. Two that stick out for me are full page smiling Buddha and Abraham with Isaac. Why these were chosen or found appropriate for a textbook is beyond me.

I hope that I have presented my concerns clearly enough and also demonstrated my respect for Kramer to a sufficient degree. This book, without question, is a good (if not the best) place to start if you are curious about how various religions address death, but you may want to look at an additional source (Bregman?) for more balance and continuity.
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Shenphen
4.0 out of 5 stars easy to find faith traditions on death ritualsReviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on 16 January 2013
Verified Purchase

This is a simple to the point book on various faith traditions means of buriel and the process for those concerned. Yes there is an art to dying and Kenneth recognises this and explores with great sensitivity how we can reconnect with life's greatest journey.
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Maggie Morgan
5.0 out of 5 stars Five StarsReviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on 26 June 2015
Verified Purchase

Wonderful book. Stories about death from other religions and spiritual views.
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BiggQ

알라딘: 죽음의 성스러운 기술 케네스 폴 크레이머

알라딘: 죽음의 성스러운 기술

죽음의 성스러운 기술 - 세계 종교는 어떻게 죽음을 이해하는가

| 생사학 총서 3
케네스 폴 크레이머 (지은이),양정연 (옮긴이)청년사2015-05-29원제 : The Sacred Art of dying: How World Religions Understand Death

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품절 출판사/제작사 유통이 중단되어 구할 수 없습니다.
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- 품절 확인일 : 2020-04-22

새상품 eBook 중고상품 (1)
판매알림 신청

출간알림 신청

45,000원
396쪽

책소개

생사학 총서 3권. 그리스, 이집트, 중국, 기독교, 불교, 힌두교 등 각 종교 전통을 중심으로 죽음에 대한 관점과 태도를 어느 한쪽으로 치우침 없이 독자로 하여금 객관적으로 바라볼 수 있게 소개한다. 그럼으로써 궁극적으로는 이 세상 여행 동안 생의 에너지를 얻을 수 있도록 도와준다. 그리고 책의 각 장 끝에 노트 형식의 ‘일지’를 달아 이 책을 읽는 독자마다 자기 현실 속에서 ‘정신적인 죽음’을 체험하며 ‘위대한 죽음’을 성찰하는 실질적 실천의 한 방법을 제시한다.

저자는 우리가 삶을 위해서 다양한 기술을 배우듯이, ‘어떻게 죽을 것인가’라는 성찰을 통해 죽음을 바라볼 수 있어야 하고 그 기술을 배워야 한다고말한다. 저자는 에리히 프롬이 “사랑은 기술인가? 그렇다면 사랑에는 지식과 노력이 요구된다.”고 말한 내용에 따라, “죽음은 기술인가”를 묻고, 그렇다면 죽음을 위한 지식과 노력이 이뤄져야 한다고 말한다.

목차

저자 서문
여는 말- 죽음과의 대화
제1장 죽음의 세 가지 측면
제2장 힌두교의 죽음관-윤회와 해탈
제3장 불교의 죽음관-불사의 경계
제4장 선종의 죽음관-큰 죽음
제5장 티벳인의 죽음관-광명
제6장 중국인의 죽음관 - 조상 숭배
제7장 메소포타미아인과 이집트인의 죽음관 - 영혼의 무게 재기
제8장 그리스인의 죽음관 - 영혼 불멸
제9장 히브리인의 죽음관 - 메시아 희망
제10장 기독교인의 죽음관 - 부활
제11장 이슬람의 죽음관 - 심판의 날
제12장 미국 인디언의 죽음관 - 영혼 지키기
제13장 다양한 죽음
제14장 죽음 이전의 죽음: 재탄생의 경험
맺는 말- 임종 유언
참고문헌
부록 - 정선된 일지
옮긴이 후기

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저자 및 역자소개
케네스 폴 크레이머 (Kenneth Paul Kramer) (지은이)
저자파일
신간알리미 신청

산호세 주립대학 명예교수이다. 템플대학(Temple University)에서 철학박사 학위를 받았으며, 산호세 주립대학(San Jose State University)에서 비교종교학을 가르쳤다.
저서로 《Learning Through Dialogue: The Relevance of Martin Buber's Classroom》(R&L Education, 2013), 《Martin Buber’s Spirituality: Hasidic Wisdom for Everyday Life》(Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2011), 《Redeeming Time: T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets》(Cowley Publications, 2007), 《Martin Buber's I and Thou: Practicing Living Dialogue》(Paulist Press, 2004) 등이 있다.
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최근작 : <죽음의 성스러운 기술> … 총 12종 (모두보기)

양정연 (옮긴이)
저자파일
신간알리미 신청

서울대 종교학과를 졸업하고 동국대 불교학과에서 박사학위를 취득했다. 일본 오타니대학, 중국 중앙민족대학, 시짱대학, 시짱사회과학원 등에서 티벳 언어와 문화 과정을 연수했다. 중국과 티벳 불교를 전공했으며, 불교적 관점에서 생사학을 연구하고 있다.
논문 및 저서 :「 근대 시기‘종교’인식과 한국불교의 정체성 논의」,「 람림(Lam rim)에서의 죽음 억념과 수행」,「 환자의 자기결정권에 대한 불교생사관적 검토」,『 대만불교의 5가지 성공코드』(공저),『 한 권으로 보는 세계불교사』(공저),『 인간불교의 경영과 실천』(역서) 등이 있다.

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최근작 : <대승 보살계의 사상과 실천> … 총 7종 (모두보기)

출판사 제공 책소개
생사학 총서 03

나는 이미 모든 죽음을 죽었다.
그리고 나는 다시 모든 죽음을 죽을 것이다.
숲 속에서는 나무의 죽음을
산 속에서는 돌의 죽음을
모래땅 속에서는 흙의 죽음을
삭삭거리는 여름풀 속에서는 잎의 죽음을
그리고 가련한 피투성이인 인간의 죽음을
- H. 헤세, 《시집》〈모든 죽음>

이 책은 고대그리스, 이집트, 중국, 기독교, 불교, 힌두교 등 각 종교 전통을 중심으로 죽음에 대한 관점과 태도를 어느 한쪽으로 치우침 없이 독자로 하여금 객관적으로 바라볼 수 있게 소개한다. 그럼으로써 궁극적으로는 이 세상 여행 동안 생의 에너지를 얻을 수 있도록 도와준다. 그리고 책의 각 장 끝에 노트 형식의 ‘일지’를 달아 이 책을 읽는 독자마다 자기 현실 속에서 ‘정신적인 죽음’을 체험하며 ‘위대한 죽음’을 성찰하는 실질적 실천의 한 방법을 제시한다.

저자는 우리가 삶을 위해서 다양한 기술을 배우듯이, ‘어떻게 죽을 것인가’라는 성찰을 통해 죽음을 바라볼 수 있어야 하고 그 기술을 배워야 한다고말한다. 저자는 에리히 프롬이 “사랑은 기술인가? 그렇다면 사랑에는 지식과 노력이 요구된다.”고 말한 내용에 따라, “죽음은 기술인가”를 묻고, 그렇다면 죽음을 위한 지식과 노력이 이뤄져야 한다고 말한다.
저자는 ‘성스러운’ 죽음의 의미를 종교 전통의 죽음, 종교적인 죽음에 대한 표현의 하나로 사용한다. 그런데 그 내용을 살펴보면, 일상 속에서 의미를 잃어버린 죽음에 대한 태도를 전환시킨다는 점에서 ‘성스럽다’는 표현을쓰고 있음을 알 수 있다. 여기에는 죽음을 대하는 우리의 태도와 관점이 직접 나타난다.

죽음은 동서양을 막론하고 그리 환영받지 못하는 주제이다. 근대시기 이후, 인간은 이성을 통해 모든 문제를 해결하고자 했고 인간을 둘러싼 환경을 욕망 충족 대상으로 합리화시켜 왔다. 그리고 “신은 죽었다”는 대담한 선언을 함으로써 생명의 영역으로까지 주저 없이 그 영향을 강화시켜왔다.
그 결과 죽음은 삶과 마찬가지로 생명의 자연스러운 하나의 과정임에도 불구하고 우리의 인식 속에서 부정적인 것으로 자리 잡게 되었다. 의료현장에서 죽음은 실패로 간주되고 발생해서는 안 되는 결과가 되어버렸다.(…)
이제 죽음은 병원 뒤쪽 건물에 마련된 장례식장에서, 우리의 일상적인 삶의 공간과 분리된 곳에서 이뤄지는 형식적인 일의 하나로 되어버렸다. 우리 삶의 기억 속에 어느 한 순간 그 사람과 연결되었던 관계가 끊어졌다가 장례식이라는 하얀색의 덧칠로 이내 그의 죽음은 지워져버리는 것이 되었다.
이 책은 삶의 과정에서 그 의미를 상실해버린 죽음에 대해 다시 그 의미를 부여하려고 한다. 그것은 단순히 숨이 멈추고 피의 흐름이 중단되며 모든 생리적 기능이 상실되는 육체적인 죽음이 아니라, 정신적인 면까지 포함한 죽음을 말한다. 죽음의 의미를 통하여 일상화되고 형식화되어 버린 삶에 새로운 의미를 부여하는 것이 이 책의 목적이기도 하다. 따라서 이 책에서는 세계의 종교와 신앙 체계에서 죽음을 어떻게 이해하는지, 죽음이 어떤 의미가 있는지 소개하고 이를 통해 삶을 어떻게 살아야 하는지 궁극적으로 묻고자 한다. (…)
종교에서 말하는 진리가 현실 세계를 떠나 다른 세계를 설정하는 것으로 생각하는 사람들이 많다. 그러나 종교의 진정한 가르침은 결코 현실을 떠난 형이상학적 물음에 있지 않다. 붓다와 말룬키야풋타의 대화는 종교의 핵심이 어디에 있는지 잘 설명해준다. 세상에 대한 끝없는 여러 의문에 대한 말룬키야풋타의 물음에 붓다는 ‘독화살의 비유’로 답을 대신한다.

어떤 사람이 독화살을 맞았다. 그런데 활을 쏜 사람의 이름이 무엇인지, 어느 쪽에 사는 사람인지, 그리고 화살은 어떤 재질로 되어 있는지, 활의 줄은 어떤 것을 썼는지, 그 화살촉을 만든 사람은 어떤 사람인지 등을 알아야 몸에서 독화살을 뽑겠다고 한다면 그 사람은 어떻게 되겠는가?

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