The Novice Counselor

The journey of being a new helping professional can be overwhelming. The situations that new therapists may be placed into can be very stressful and filled with ambiguity. Often, as they enter practice, new professionals realize that there is a gap between coursework and what actually happens in the real world. This gap can leave new professionals feeling unprepared, further increasing stress. Common issues faced by the novice counselor include 

• dealing with anxiety,
• dealing with the desire to be perfect,
• coming to terms with personal limitations,
• dealing with ambiguity,
• balancing client and agency demands,
• learning to create appropriate boundaries,
• sharing responsibilities,
• developing an identity as a professional, and
• developing a personal counseling style.

As a novice helping professional, you have to remember that you, yourself, are the most important tool you have. You have to be able to take care of you. Novice helping professionals who are unable to balance stress, develop healthy boundaries, and understand who they are as counselors will quickly experience burnout.

Read the Skovholt and Ronnstad article “Struggles of the Novice Counselor and Therapist.” After reading the article, answer the discussion questions in the associated discussion forum. Once you have posted your response, respond to two other students and then respond to one student who responded to you.

Congratulations! You’ve now completed Module 1!