Advice In Counseling Analysis

One aspect I found striking was the role of advice giving in counseling. Prior to this class, I knew that counselors did not typically give opinions or advice to lead a client in a certain direction. What I did not know was the entire reasoning behind this. A counselor might avoid giving advice so that a client learns to make his/her own decisions, does not become dependent on the counselor, and to ensure that a client will not later blame the counselor if that direction the counselor pointed the client in did not turn out well. In this context, I have a better appreciation and understanding of why therapists refrain from telling the client what to do. This stood out to me for a variety of reasons. First, because I am a naturally indecisive …show more content…
I can appreciate that giving advice would put the counselor in a compromising situation if it would not turn out well for the client. Personally, there have been times in my life where I will seek my parents advice and will blame them, even if only internally, if I act in accordance with their advice and it does not unfold as I had hoped it would. For example, last summer I was hesitant to have commit both a full-time job and a part-time internship because I was not sure if I could juggle both along with taking two classes. I asked what my parents thought I should do, took their advice, and committed to both positions. Midway through the summer, I became very overwhelmed, exhausted, and began to resent my parents for this I made. I failed to take responsibility for my decision and own them entirely. I know that this is not healthy and that I need to learn to make my own decisions independent of what others may think. After further reflection, I was able to see the value in having the client own his/her own decisions and …show more content…
This rationale immediately stuck out to me because I had never considered it before. Not only is it this necessary in order for the client to become bettered skilled in making and owning their decisions, it is important to protect the counselor from any blame that a client might try to place on them if their recommendation does not turn out perfectly. Perviously, I had always viewed the laws and ethical guidelines surrounding counseling as serving to primarily protect the client. Although I knew that some boundaries and rules were to guard the counselor, I tended to place all the significance on the client because I believed that ultimately the counselor’s role was serve and assist the client in attaining their goals and that they should, within reason, put their clients’ needs before their own. Therefore, in the case of advice giving, I only viewed it as a frustrating way to get the client to make their own decisions. I believed that a counselor should give their opinion if the client asked them, especially since the client was paying the counselor to help them. I had never viewed it as having the potential to harm the counselor. It seemed that, in some cases, it would be appropriate to give advice to the client and the counselor’s resistance to do so would just be because they are being difficult. But this is not the case and I understand that it is actually important to protect