If you are just starting out on your search for a counsellor, I have provided you with some information here about psychotherapeutic counselling. The first one is ‘support’ which tends to be short-term (but not always) and tends towards a solution focused approach. The second is ‘therapeutic’ or ‘psychotherapeutic’ which are usually more medium to long-term. Psychotherapeutic is akin to depth psyc
hotherapy; a journey of the soul. The whole person (body, feelings, mind, sexuality and spirituality) are explored in depth, as the foundation for life-long understanding and expression of one’s true self. The United Kingdom Council of Psychotherapy writes,
“What distinguishes psychotherapeutic counselling from traditional counselling is the emphasis it places on the in-depth therapeutic relationship jointly created by the therapist and the client. This relationship is a central factor.”
Because psychotherapeutic counselling entails working with underlying attachment and relational issues, sessions are at least weekly. As with depth psychotherapy, some people prefer to come more than once a week; this is always a joint decision between the client and the therapist.