Welcome to the AIPC Counselling Articles Page

Trauma and Counselling - 16-09-2009
The word 'trauma' originates from the Greek 'wound', and it refers to both psychological and physiological aspects. Trauma occurs as a result of a serious event and it has deep roots in various levels of the human mind and behaviour...

Ego States: Concepts - 16-09-2009
Eric Berne, the pioneer of transactional analysis, made complex interpersonal transactions understandable when he recognised that the human personality is made up of three "ego states". Each ego state is an entire system of thoughts, feelings, and behaviours from which we interact with one another.

Multicultural Counselling - 16-09-2009
Australia is a land of enormous cultural diversity. Almost one quarter of our population were born in another country, yet most mainstream services mirror only broad Australian values and attitudes. Many of our multicultural clients may prefer to talk with a counsellor from their own cultural background, but often this may not be possible. It is therefore important that as counsellors we are able to offer a consistent and competent service to all our clients regardless of their language and cultural diversity.

A Case Using Behaviour Therapy - 16-09-2009
Rose has come to counselling to help relieve her fears about driving. About 15 years ago, she had an accident while driving and has not driven a car since. She has recently applied for a job, and she will need to use a car to get there. She feels motivated to learn to drive again, however every time she even thinks about driving she experiences mild anxiety attacks. The Counsellor has decided to use Behaviour Techniques with Rose to help her overcome her fears.

A Case for Gestalt Therapy - 16-09-2009
Komiko is from a second-generation Asian family. She has lived in Australia all her life, yet her Asian roots are deep. She has been raised according to traditional Asian culture and in addition, she and her family are devout Catholics. Komiko has never questioned her upbringing before, yet now at the age of 26 she is struggling with value conflicts relating to her religion, culture and sex-role expectations and has come to counselling in order to allay some of her confusion.A Case for Gestalt Therapy

A Case of using Logical Consequences to help a Client to make difficult decisions - 16-09-2009
Richard is a 41-year-old plant operator in a heavy machinery company. He works long hours and must start very early each day. Twelve months ago he accepted a transfer from a country location to a capital city 250 kilometres away from his family. Due to financial obligations this was seen as a necessity. He travelled back to see his family on weekends. He has a wife and 4 children to support...

A Case of Acceptance and Letting Go - 16-09-2009
Elizabeth came to counselling because she was experiencing intense anger, and was not coping with her life. She complained of failed relationships with her ex-husband, and with another man whom she left her husband to be with.

Narrative Therapy: Principles and Objectives - 16-09-2009
Your life is a narrative, counted and recounted from many different perspectives, and by diverse people. There are settings, themes, characters and plots – just like in any movie, book, historical account or legendary fable. In this article we review the approach of Narrative Therapy and how it can be effectively used by counsellors to assist individuals improve their lives. Narrative Therapy: Principles and Objectives

A Case Using Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT) - 16-09-2009
Thomas is a 33 year old married man, who has recently become a father. He explains that he feels his self-esteem has been gradually deteriorating ever since he was married. He says that he can’t find reasons to enjoy life with his wife due to feelings of inadequacy as a husband. In his new role as a father, Thomas had hoped to find the happiness that he was looking for; however this has not been the case. He mentions that his relationship with his wife’s family is strained and thinks that this is the root of his problem. In this scenario, the Professional Counsellor will be using a Rational Emotive Behavioural approach with Thomas.

The Therapeutic Approach in Counselling - 16-09-2009
In the context of mental health, therapy has vastly changed over time. Long before the scientific approach to the treatment of mental health prevailed, attempts to discover the underpinnings of the human mind...