Talking therapies? Psychotherapy? Counselling? What does it all mean!?
People tend to use counselling, therapy and other words quite interchangeably so it can be quite confusing.
In the UK the word 'counsellor' isn't a protected term like 'doctor' so when someone suggests "try getting counselling, it helped me" they could be referring to a lot of different things! It also means you might want to do a bit of research when deciding what kind of counsellor to see (check out my post on questions to ask yourself when looking for a counsellor).
Jargon buster
These are some common words you might see popping up when looking at counselling.
Let's start with the different flavours/genres of therapy (we often call them modalities or schools)
CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy)
This is a favourite of the NHS as it focuses on what is happening right now and how to change your thoughts and behaviours. It takes a practical and educational approach so you can learn why something is bothering you and how to change your patterns of behaviour in reaction to it.
If that sounds intriguing the BACP has an article on what to expect from CBT.
Existential
This is one essentially an overlap between psychology and philosophy. It is focuses on coping with the big questions like purpose and meaning, which can feel very scary because there isn't a clear answer to most of them.
If that sounds intriguing the BACP has an article on what to expect from a psychodynamic therapist.
Humanistic
This can be a bit of an umbrella one as Person Centred, Existential, Transactional Analysis and others all fit under this term. It means seeing a person as a whole, focussing on their potential not just as their problems.
Integrative
This means that the counsellor uses multiple schools of psychology sometimes blended together or varying depending on the person they are working with. It doesn't mean they use everything at once, usually they will have a 'core modality' (the base or the one they like best) and use elements of others that work well with that core.
That's exactly what I do at Unravelling Counselling! I start from a humanistic core where we are two people in a room talking, you are the expert on your life and I am here to help you as you unravel those threads and make sense of it. Depending on what we find tangled up in there I might use elements from various other schools of psychology to help you untie some knots. That might mean you learn some CBT skills, look at the characters involved in your story or do some art work - we will work in a way that feels comfortable for you!
If integrative counselling sounds intriguing the BACP has an article about what to expect.
Person Centred
This is quite a popular modern approach, based off the work of Carl Rogers and those who followed him. It sees the therapy as two people in a room talking rather than one person being an expert.
If that sounds intriguing the BACP has an article on what to expect from a person centred therapist.
Psychodynamic
This is a classic, based off the work of famous psychologist Sigmund Freud and those who came after him. It often looks at how childhood or past experiences have shaped our thinking.
If that sounds intriguing the BACP has an article on what to expect from a psychodynamic therapist.
Transactional Analysis and Systemic Therapy
These are two different schools, but I am putting them together as explaining them separately could get much more into the weeds than you need! Both these approaches come from a belief that people don't exist in isolation, the people around us and how we interact with them help define us.
If that sounds intriguing the BACP has an article on what to expect from a systemic therapist and Counselling Directory have an article on what Transactional Analysis means in detail.
There are a lot more I could list, but these were the common terms I saw being used by counsellors advertising around Basingstoke and wider in Hampshire. If you are feeling curious and wanted to have a deeper dive, the BACP have a list of the notable types of therapy with either brief definitions or full articles about them.
Counsellor vs Psychotherapist
Some people call themselves counsellors but others call themselves psychotherapists - which is right for you?
As I said at the start these aren't terms that the UK government keep guarded (unlike psychologist which requires specific qualifications!) so what someone calls themselves usually comes down to how they trained and the types of therapy they offer.
Several professional standard bodies who represent people working in the field (we choose to sign up to one of these bodies and be held accountable to them) have been working on agreeing a framework that makes these kinds of terms more standardised. They plan for psychotherapist to mean the highest level of experience and qualification within the profession.
So in summary, no guarantees, but a psychotherapist would work with more complex mental health concerns or higher risk people, where as a counsellor would work more on everyday life or common issues.
You are unique, so is everyone else
The main thing you need to know is that counselling is getting to talk to someone about how you are feeling. What exactly that looks like for you will depend on you, your counsellor and the topics you choose to tackle. Find a counsellor who feels right for you and what you need, if it isn't working you can discuss it with them or change to a different counsellor.
Personally I am an integrative counsellor who likes to treat each person I see as an individual, working together to decide on what they want to get from counselling and going on that journey together. That's the long professional description of what I am anyway - I don't mind if you call me your counsellor, your therapist, professional best friend or even if you decide not to call me. I just want you to get the help that is right for you.
So if you think maybe I'm right for you then book an introduction call with me to have a chat about what counselling might look like for you!
