This book covers a comprehensive 18 week course in counseling and offers a step by step guide for clinicians and aspiring counselors who wish to learn the intricate and essential skills to become an effective professional counselor.
Effective training and competent
postgraduate and ongoing supervision for counselors is paramount in ensuring the provision
of high-quality mental health care, both for the counselor and their prospective
clients. As individuals, couples and families grapple with an array of challenges in their lives,
from personal crises to mental health issues, the role of counselors becomes
increasingly vital.
Professor David Sarikaya MAPA ACS, who is the pioneer of Self Empowerment Theory and its clinical application, Self Empowerment Therapy, is a
prominent figure in the field of counseling psychology with over three decades of clinical experience in assessing and managing the broad spectrum of psychological disorders and emphasizes the
significance of ongoing education and training for professionals to adapt to
the dynamic nature of psychological therapy. Additionally, the incorporation of
innovative therapeutic approaches, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Solution Focused Therapy (SFT) and Self Empowerment Therapy (SET), further underscores the
importance of staying abreast of evolving practices in the field.
It is important to highlight the
necessity of ongoing education and training for counselors. The dynamic nature
of psychological therapy demands a commitment to lifelong learning. Continuous
training not only helps counselors refine their existing skills but also
enables them to stay informed about the latest developments in the field. As
mental health understanding evolves, staying current ensures that counselors
can provide clients with the most effective and evidence-based interventions.
Review by Dr. Bob Rich Senior Psychologist (Retired)
The Allure of Workaholism: Unraveling the Hidden Mental Health
Consequences
In today's fast-paced world, the notion of success often
revolves around relentless dedication to work. The relentless pursuit of professional
achievement and the desire to excel have given birth to a new breed of
individuals known as workaholics. Workaholism, though seemingly virtuous, comes
at a cost, taking a heavy toll on both physical and mental well-being. This book will explore the consequences of workaholism on mental health.
Workaholism initially appears as a positive attribute, as it
signifies an individual's dedication and commitment to their career. Being
regarded as an exemplary worker and constantly striving for perfection can
bestow a sense of accomplishment and respect. However, this façade of success
often conceals the detrimental consequences that accompany excessive work
devotion.
Certain professionals are more vulnerable to workaholism due to various factors associated with their often conflictual career demands, work culture, and personal characteristics such as tenacity, resilience and functional integrity of their personality domains or lack thereof. This book explores the pitfalls and the solutions to create a workable work-life balance.
A Compelling Hypothesis: Does Mental
Illness Exist?
The Compelling Hypothesis advocates
a novel and comprehensive, yet practical approach to mental health and
proposes that there is no such thing as mental illness and that the “mental
illness” shroud is indeed a protective mechanism that individuals use to
protect themselves and society ascribes to protect itself from the so
labeled.
The hypothesis instead advances the
notion that “mental illness” exists as a construct for the benefit of doctors,
psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, lawyers, the judiciary, the
various governments and interest groups and a vast industry of “professionals”
via a special language communicated and controlled by such devices as the DSM
and ICD etc in symbiosis with vulnerable members of society by labeling them as
mentally ill.
Clearly this does not make the case
for the contra arguments or the Fix. Bernard Shaw in The Doctor’s Dilemma shed
some light on the issue of professional privilege but views expressed are based
on cumulative data after 35 years of clinical practice and research which
culminated in the development of a novel strategic mode of intervention for mental
wealth, Self Empowerment Therapy, at the epicentre of which is the “Self”, it’s
differentiation and evolution as it relates to intra and interpersonal
dynamics.
Self Empowerment Theory which is based on research
into ”Self Discrepancies” was pioneered by Professor David Kaye to address the
shortcomings of behavioral and cognitive therapies and to empower disadvantaged
people unable to access therapy due to cost and the time it usually takes to
attend and benefit from life changing therapy.
The therapy is simple, evidence based, user friendly and anchored on
four core assumptions:
1. We know ourselves better than anybody else.
2.
3. We don’t have a multitude of
problems in our lives but a problem pattern that permeates our life domains in
counterproductive, pathological and predictable ways.
4. The unique problem pattern
that permeates our life domains has exponential and cumulative features and
emerges as our personality evolves, especially in the formative and
developmentally sensitive transition periods from
childhood to adolescence and adolescence to adulthood and is the biproduct of
skills deficits and our inability to reconcile discrepancies within the
self.
Therefore, Self Empowerment Theory dictates
that as well as uncovering the problem pattern permeating our life domains, we
need to adopt cognitive and lifestyle restructuring micro- strategies to
regulate the discrepancies between various components of our self to create an
integrated, functioning, resilient, desirable and productive self.
Blame Gabriel: Acute Grief Following Death of a Loved One
Some losses once borne can never be undone. Death of a
loved one is one such loss. In fact, death of a spouse is one of the most
distressing and disruptive challenges of ordinary life. It forces us to
confront our own mortality and the transience of life. It renders us so
powerless that there is nothing anyone can do to bring back the loved one.
Spirituality is an anchor of life, a fountain of
comfort and inner wealth and important for mental health.
Faith is about surrendering yourself. Christians,
Muslims, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists and even atheists surrender themselves, albeit
in different ways. There is a profoundly anchoring belief in Islam which is
usually recited after a death and a version of it exists in other Faiths:
“Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un”; “We belong to
God and to God do we return”.
“Inna lillahi wa Inna ilayhi raji’un” is not just said
at the death of a person. Nabi sallalahu alaihe wa sallam used to say this
whenever he suffered any hardship. Perhaps a similar reminder of “the cycle of
life” after every adverse event may take the energy out of despair,
hopelessness and self destructive tendencies.
Self Empowerment Therapy provides an innovative
research based approach in managing acute grief following the death of a
loved one in circumstances of significant and life changing emotional distress
and turmoil.
The Five Minute Therapist
How
many times have you reached the point of no return, in the face of seemingly
increasing difficulties, frustration, confusion, things getting out of control,
and asked the question: “What do I do? The Five Minute Therapist’s response to
this question is consistently: Think about, plan or do something each day to
improve your life domains by investing an equal amount of time and energy in all
the life domains. These are: your Health (physical, psychological spiritual and sexual health), Family, Relationships, Profession, Education, Finances and Self.
Your support would mean a lot to us. Thank you so much!
Professional Development & Training Program in Leadership Self
& Integrity Management
Professional Development & Training Program in Anger & Vicarious Trauma Management
