CARERS WEEK 2020: WHY CARER COUNSELLING IS VITAL
Carers Week 2020 occurs from Sunday 11th October to Saturday 17th October 2020. Carers Week is Australia’s annual celebration of carers and aims to raise awareness of carers, the caring role and relationships, carer supports and services and why carer counselling is vital.
In this blog post, we are highlighting our carer counselling service and discussing why it’s so vital for carers to reach out. Check out our other blog post “What is carer counselling” to find out more about this service.
Things you can learn in counselling
- Self-care – How to prioritise looking after yourself so that you can best look after others.
- Setting healthy boundaries – deciding what works for you and appropriate ways of setting boundaries according to your individual needs
- Learn how to respond – learn about your reactions and responses and how these can be adapted to help during stressful times
- Learn more about mental illness – What are the causes, symptoms, triggers and treatments
- How best to support your person – Helpful ways to respond to what your loved one says or does, and what strategies can you put in place to support them
Misconceptions about counselling
Myth: My counsellor will judge me.
Fact: Your counsellor is a trained professional, who has a passion for supporting people like you. Their role is to listen to you, hear you out and talk through your experience. Counselling is a judgement-free zone.
Myth: You have to be mentally ill to get counselling.
Fact: This isn’t true. In fact, counselling is available for anyone who feels the need to talk about what is going on in their life and how they are feeling about it.
Myth: My counsellor will tell someone about my problems.
Fact: Our counselling services are private and confidential. What you tell your counsellor will remain confidential unless they are concerned about your or someone else’s safety. All notes and documents are kept in confidential files.
Myth: Counselling can be expensive.
Fact: All of our services are free! We are funded by the government to provide this service, so you don’t have to worry about cost.
Myth: I don’t need a counsellor, I have friends who listen.
Fact: Whilst friends are a great sounding board, they hold their own bias. Sometimes, talking to a professional who can see the situation with new eyes and offer a different way of looking at things is really helpful. Their unbiased opinion and professional training may help you look at your situation differently and learn strategies that may benefit you.
Things my counsellor told me that stuck…
“It’s not your fault.”
“Your feelings are valid.”
“You are not alone”
“Be proud of everything you have overcome.”
“Treat yourself with the same kindness you treat others.”
This week is Carers Week 2020. If you are supporting a loved one with mental health challenges, even if they have not been diagnosed, we can support you. Call HelpingMinds® on (08) 9427 7100 or visit www.helpingminds.org.au.
