Becoming a counsellor or psychotherapist is a transformative and life-changing experience. Some trainees manage this process well, while others struggle to come to terms with the personal impact of their training. In What You Really Need to Know about Counselling and Psychotherapy Training, Cathy McQuaid provides an in-depth but accessible guide to the processes of understanding individual motivations for wanting to undertake training and choosing the most appropriate course. Backed by extensive research, the book explains the training process from beginning to end, covering topics including: entry requirements, course curriculum and terms and conditions of training; the training relationship and group process; the challenges of training; the outcomes of counselling and psychotherapy training. McQuaid leads the reader through the process of choosing a course, working with the course leader and with a group of peers and considering potential employment prospects upon completion. Prompting the reader to consider their own personal, professional and educational needs within the framework of training, this is essential reading for anyone thinking of training as a counsellor or psychotherapist and for trainers and training course providers.

Case-based knowledge forms an essential element of the evidence base for counselling and psychotherapy practice. This book provides the reader with a unique introduction to the conceptual and practical tools required to conduct high quality case study research that is grounded in their own therapy practice or training. Drawing on real-life cases at the heart of counselling and psychotherapy practice, John McLeod makes complex debates and concepts engaging and accessible for the trainees and practitioners at all levels, and from all theoretical orientations. Key topics covered in the book include: - the role of case studies in the development of theory, practice and policy in counselling and psychotherapy - strategies for responding to moral and ethical issues in therapy case study research - practical tools for collecting case data - ′how-to-do-it′ guides for carrying out different types of case study - team-based case study research for practitioners and students - questions, issues and challenges that may have been raised for readers through their study. Concrete examples, points for reflection and discussion, and recommendations for further reading will enable readers to use the book as a basis for carrying out their own case investigation. All trainees in counselling, psychotherapy and clinical psychology are required to complete case reports, and this is the only textbook to cover the topic in real depth. The book will also be valuable to people who intend to use existing case studies to inform their practice, and it will help experienced practitioners to generate publishable case reports.

Becoming a counsellor or psychotherapist is a transformative and life-changing experience. Some trainees manage this process well, while others struggle to come to terms with the personal impact of their training. In What You Really Need to Know about Counselling and Psychotherapy Training, Cathy McQuaid provides an in-depth but accessible guide to the processes of understanding individual motivations for wanting to undertake training and choosing the most appropriate course. Backed by extensive research, the book explains the training process from beginning to end, covering topics including: entry requirements, course curriculum and terms and conditions of training; the training relationship and group process; the challenges of training; the outcomes of counselling and psychotherapy training. McQuaid leads the reader through the process of choosing a course, working with the course leader and with a group of peers and considering potential employment prospects upon completion. Prompting the reader to consider their own personal, professional and educational needs within the framework of training, this is essential reading for anyone thinking of training as a counsellor or psychotherapist and for trainers and training course providers.

`This chunky little book is packed with interesting approaches to the currently fashionable area of client assessment.... This is a book for any counsellor or counsellor trainee′s shelf, a necessary reference for the sound professional′ - Counselling News `The comprehensive series of essays... is a timely contribution.... This book is about being professional and effective... a valuable multimodal life inventory for use with clients is provided′ - Counselling, The Journal of The British Association for Counselling What information will help you assess the therapeutic needs of a client? Could you identify a suicidal client? How can you tell whether or not you are working with appropriate clients? Answering these and other questions, this book sheds light on a crucial, but often neglected, area of counselling. The authors provide clear guidelines, backed up by practice points, which clarify the assessment, monitoring and evaluation of clients. The book adopts a broad approach, transcending specific counselling theories and covering the main issues involved at key stages in the client/counsellor relationship - from the initial contact, through monitoring of the therapeutic programme, to ending the counselling process. Areas examined include: assessing the best type of therapy for each client; identifying the client′s therapeutic goals; history taking; referral; and evaluating goal achievement. Gladeanna McMahon is presenter of the ITV programme Dial A Mum.

How can therapists integrate theories and practices from across the psychological therapies? This book presents a framework for understanding distress and change that can unite different orientations, along with sociopolitical perspectives. Its starting point is that therapy aims to help clients move towards the things they most deeply want. It shows how the actualisation of these ‘directions’ leads to greater well-being, and how this can be brought about through the development of internal and external synergies. Using in-depth cases, the book provides detailed guidance on how this framework can be applied. After reading this book, you’ll feel better equipped to understand, and work with, your clients’ directions—tailoring the therapy to their unique wants.

Understanding Bereaved Parents and Siblings is based on lived experiences and provides insight, ideas, and inspiration on how to support the bereaved, how to talk to them about their experience, and how to help people manage their own shock or grief. Part I of the book contains ten stories from parents and six from siblings sharing their experiences. Each narrator discusses their relationship with the person who died; what led up to the death; the impact of the loss on the speaker; as well as what helped and what hindered them in their grief. Part II is aimed at professionals and draws on various topics such as grief and bereavement models, transgenerational loss, resilience, protection, and creative ways of working with grief. The book will be an essential read for the bereaved and the professionals, family, and friends who are supporting them.

Mick Cooper and John McLeod pioneer a major new framework for counselling theory, practice and research - the ′pluralistic′ approach. This model breaks away from the orientation-specific way in which counselling has traditionally been taught, reflecting and responding to shifts in counselling and psychotherapy training. As accessible and engaging as ever, Cooper and McLeod argue that there is no one right way of doing therapy and that different clients need different things at different times. By identifying and demonstrating the application of a range of therapeutic methods, the book outlines a flexible framework for practice within which appropriate methods can be selected depending on the client′s individual needs and the therapist′s knowledge and experience. This is a must-read for anybody training or practising in the counselling or helping professions - it should not be missed!

This book is an authoritative introduction to everything you need to know to become a professional therapist. It takes you through the entire therapeutic process, introducing the theory and applying it to real-life practice. Drawing on years of experience as a counselling practitioner and researcher, Andrew Reeves links counselling and psychotherapy theory to the development of appropriate skills, and locates it within the context of therapeutic practice today. Engagingly and accessibly written, the book is packed with learning features including Chapter Overviews, Summaries and a Glossary -helping you navigate the book and get the most out of it. Discussion Points, 'Skills Practice' and 'Pause for Reflection' sections, helping you critically engage with and reflect on what you have learned. Case Studies and scenarios, helping you apply key ideas in practice across settings and modalities. Indicated Further Reading and Important Websites - supporting your continued learning. This groundbreaking textbook represents a benchmark in understanding - and applying - the principles and practice of counselling and psychotherapy. It's accompanied by a companion website featuring a wealth of chapter-by-chapter resources for both students and lecturers to use alongside the book. From extended case studies through to web resources, links and PowerPoint presentations, these extra resources will help aid and enhance your learning and understanding. Andrew Reeves is a counsellor at the University of Liverpool and Editor of Counselling and Psychotherapy Research journal.

Eagerly awaited by many counsellors and psychotherapists, this new edition includes an updated preface, new content on recent research and new developments and debates around relational depth, and new case studies. This groundbreaking text goes to the very heart of the therapeutic meeting between therapist and client. Focusing on the concept of ′relational depth′, the authors describe a form of encounter in which therapist and client experience profound feelings of contact and engagement with each other, and in which the client has an opportunity to explore whatever is experienced as most fundamental to her or his existence. The book has helped thousands of trainees and practitioners understand how to facilitate a relationally-deep encounter, identify the personal ‘blocks’ that may be encountered along the way, and consider new therapeutic concepts – such as ′holistic listening′ – that help them to meet their clients at this level. This classic text remains a source of fresh thinking and stimulating ideas about the therapeutic encounter which is relevant to trainees and practitioners of all orientations.

Are you interested in the field of counselling and psychotherapy or just starting out in your training? Trying to get to grips with the many different approaches and decide which are right for you? This book can help! An ideal introductory text that assumes no prior knowledge, leading authors in the field provide overviews of 26 counselling and psychotherapy approaches in accessible, jargon-free terms. Each approach is discussed using the same framework to enable easy comparison and evaluation, covering: · Development of the Therapy · Theory and Basic Concepts · Practice · Which Clients Benefit Most? · Case study Four further chapters offer an insight into the therapeutic relationship, working with diversity, professional issues, and research, while resources such as suggested reading, discussion issues, appendices of further information and a comprehensive glossary help you consolidate your learning. So look no further if you want to know the differences between counselling and psychotherapy, compare psychodynamic and psychoanalytic theories, discover how constructivist approaches can be applied in practice, learn about third wave CBT therapies, or just get an general overview of the field; this second edition of a bestseller gives you a whirlwind tour of the breadth, complexity, fascination and problems of the field of counselling and psychotherapy.