Aca's Code Of Ethics In Personal Counseling

one may not have all aspects of his or her life “together,” but within the counseling relationship, the counselor is real and seen by the client as being in a state of congruence. Authenticity may also be related to emotional intelligence, which is the ability to monitor one’s emotions, a quality that counselors and counseling students seem to have more than others (Martin, Easton, Wilson, Takemoto, & Sullivan, 2004).

What I Have Learned About Counseling That Concerns Me

Although I have what I would imagine are common Centris about diligently following the ACA’s code of ethics as well as federal and state laws, what concerns me the most is self care and burnout. As noted by Shallcross (2011), “Although most counselors are familiar with self

Spurgeon (2017) notes that “Competence can be conceptualized as a continuum; it is both an ethical and legal concept.” To avoid any impairment I plan to remain in personal counseling. I think it is important for a counselor to be in therapy for the benefit of both themselves and their clients. Wellness is a critical factor in being a healthy counselor. We are asked as professionals to provide a tremendous amount of empathy to our clients. We often listen to very tragic and emotionally difficult stories. We are offering this empathy to the client yet the profession is not meant to be a two-way street, the client is not there to provide empathy to the

Authenticity being a quality that I believe is vital to being an effective counselor. In our Ethics class we were encouraged to identify a theory we most resonated with. I had a hard time doing so as I find parts of every theory valid and useful. However, I kept going back to existentialism. At first I thought maybe that was a “bad” choice. An outdated and unfashionable choice. But ultimately I could not deny that of all the theories, existential theory sits most naturally with my way of seeing and being in the world. For as long as I can remember, I have been obsessed with the meaning of life. It was important for me to find my own answer and I finally decided that for me, the meaning of life is to serve. I am comforted about this insight and this past semester has confirmed for me my intentions. I want to be that adult who was not there for me in my youth. Someone who provides empathy, authenticity, unconditional regard, does not talk down to my clients and is a conduit for change and self