Developing Resiliency and Coping Skills in the Counseling Process The building of resiliency skills is one of the most i

Developing Resiliency and Coping Skills in the Counseling Process

The building of resiliency skills is one of the most important things a client could achieve in the process of counseling and it is not always the actual curing of their presenting problems. The skills also help people to maneuver their adversities in future better, as well as have the ability to work within the environment without the counseling those skills equip them with. Among the key skills and resources that I would want the clients to gain during counseling, one can consider emotional regulation.

One of the most important things that a client might need is emotional regulation that can assist them in dealing with strong emotions without feeling overwhelmed and turning to maladaptive coping. I would adopt this practice by introducing mindfulness practices in sessions, e. g. deep breathing or grounding practice. As an example, once a client gets into an irrational state during the session, I can utter, “let us stop and breathe deeply three times together and feel my cool calm and emotional control.”

One of the secrets behind the cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is cognitive reframing which involves assisting the patients to change the negative thoughts and beliefs that they have through creating more realistic and balanced thinking. I would replicate this incident by refraining to impose threats on the irrational convictions stated by the client and will provide a soft challenge. An example is, when I ask the client, I always fail, I will ask the client, can you think of something in the past couple of weeks that you have succeeded with, even a little bit? I will ask the client questions that can help find evidence against his or her distorted thinking.

Problem-solving skills are associated with finding a problem, creating potential solutions, assessing results, and giving a strategy. I would delve in this in a systematic manner in the sessions and apply real life situations, which the client is going through, to practice the steps together.

According to the definition by Neff (2003), self-compassion is treating yourself with kindness when you are in a state of suffering or failures. This would be implemented by adopting non critical words and training clients to address themselves the way they would when conversing with a friend. As an example, I can ask a client such a question as, what would you say to a friend who told you the same? after the client has already confessed a mistake.

As Southwick and Charney (2012) claim, resilience is something that can be developed with the help of deliberate intervention, and there are such factors as optimism, cognitive flexibility, and active coping skills that affect it. By educating and demonstrating these skills during the counseling sessions, the clients will leave knowing not only the solutions but also having the tools that would help them handle the challenges in the future confidently.

References

Neff, K. D. (2003). Self-compassion: An alternative conceptualization of a healthy attitude toward oneself. Self and Identity, 2(2), 85–101. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298860309032

Southwick, S. M., & Charney, D. S. (2012). Resilience: The Science of Mastering Life's Greatest Challenges (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press.