RESOURCES
A little about counselling in B.C.
In British Columbia counselling is not a regulated profession, but many professionally trained counsellors join the B.C. Association of Clinical Counsellors, a self-regulating association. Members are vetted for a combination of academic credentials (from accredited post-secondary schools) and personal references. Registered clinical counsellors (RCC) adhere to a code of ethics designed to protect the public.
You can learn more about registered clinical counsellors here.
Articles from my desk
Attachment, Parenting and the Importance of Client Therapist Fit, by Marion Gargiulo, M. Counselling, RCC
What is resilience?
Resilience is often described as an individual's ability to bounce back from a crisis. It could be called the inner toughness necessary to survive adversity.
Some people seem to be born with more of that grit than others, but that is an illusion. It's more likely that some people learn more coping skills based on their own unique personal circumstances.
Just as therapy can make your muscles stronger and improve your physical abilities, counselling can build the resilience necessary to cope with psychological challenges.
If you're feeling overwhelmed by life, you might want to begin the process of rebuilding your inner toughness with some reading:
Man's Search for Meaning (1946)
Viktor E. Frankl, M.D.
Viktor Frankl was an Austrian psychiatrist who survived the Holocaust. He wrote 39 books but Man's Search for Meaning, about his own experiences in a Nazi concentration camp, is still a bestseller. It is one of the most thoughtful books ever written about how an individual can cope with horrifying circumstances.
Love's Executioner and Other Tales of Psychotherapy (1989)
Irvin D. Yalom, M.D.
Psychiatrist Irvin Yalom's book is a classic that has earned rave reviews from critics who called it "utterly absorbing" and "fascinating, inspiring, and moving." The 10 short stories are fiction, but they were inspired by the people he counselled. The stories illustrate how the characters, who are challenged by grief, love, and life's other ordinary struggles, are helped by psychotherapy.
It's a rewarding read, even if you're not contemplating counselling.
Brainstorm: The Power and Purpose of the Teenage Brain (2014)
Daniel J. Siegel, M.D.
As a parent of teenagers do you wonder why your children are suddenly doing such risky things? Psychiatrist Daniel Siegel explains: it's just a stage in their developing brains.
Between the ages of 12 and 24, adolescents display four major traits: novelty seeking, social engagement, increased emotional intensity, and creative exploration. Those qualities can be either good or bad, depending on how they're directed. Siegel's theory is that by understanding teenagers better, a parent can encourage them to express those traits in safer, smarter ways.