Your first counselling consultation

Attending your first counselling consultation or even meeting with a new counsellor can be a daunting experience for some. You may be anxious or apprehensive and be concerned about opening up and sharing personal details with someone new. These thoughts and feelings are completely normal.

You will be allowed to discuss your concerns at your own pace in a safe, confidential and judgement-free environment. It’s also important to know that you are not obligated to tell your entire story or open up and relive distressing experiences in your first consultation, or ever. You can choose what you do and don’t share and if you feel uncomfortable for any reason, you are under no obligation to continue with counselling.

It is important to keep in mind that by attending an initial consultation you are on your way towards making a change in your life – so overcoming any initial personal barriers and attending your first session is an important achievement!

What should you expect?

So, what do counsellors do? What is counselling like? MindKnit Counselling’s approach is generally tailoring your needs to the process.

• Initial consultation: Your first session provides time for you to establish your concerns and reasons for attending counselling. The counsellor will discuss your expectations of counselling, personal history, Service Agreement and Privacy Policy with you to ensure mutual understanding.
  
  We will also establish your desired counselling outcomes and measures of therapeutic success. Finally, this time also allows us to begin establishing a sound counsellor-client working relationship. It is also an opportunity for you to see whether MindKnit Counselling is the ‘right fit’ for you.

• Consultations 2 to 4: These consultations establish a plan to address your concerns and monitor your progress. Repeat visits allow the counsellor-client relationship to develop.
  
  Generally, for counselling to be most effective it calls for an active effort from the client. This means the counsellor might suggest you work on things during the sessions and at home. This approach improves the likelihood that you will experience lasting changes as a result of counselling. 

• Consultation 5+: At this stage, we will review your progress. The ultimate goal of counselling is to support your journey towards feeling confident to end counselling and enjoy your life having overcome your initial concerns.
  
  Everyone is different, so you may require ongoing counselling or fewer sessions to address your concerns. Either way, your experience will be based on your needs. This means you are the one who decides on continuing or ending the sessions.

Note: MindKnit Counselling does not offer psychology services, including assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of mental disorders. However, we do use various therapeutic modalities and evidence-based approaches to address a person’s issues through different therapeutic modalities.