The adjective “schizophrenic” needs to be removed from counselors’ vocabulary, says Elizabeth Prosek, a counselor and assistant professor at the University of North Texas (UNT). Schizophrenia has a great deal of stigma and negative connotations associated with it, and referring to clients in the first person can lessen these, she
Tag: Mental Health
When I first met Ally, 17, she surveyed the seating arrangement in my office and chose the chair closest to my door. Obviously guarded, she sat with both arms and legs crossed looking at me with green eyes slightly camouflaged by blond wispy bangs. Ally’s mother had been trying to
Less than 3 percent of U.S. adults identified themselves as gay, lesbian or bisexual in a recent government survey, the first large-scale collection of statistics on sexual orientation. When asked about the findings, members of the Association for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues in Counseling, a division of the
Given that I thought I’d cultivated my listening skills, it was uncharacteristic of me to so abruptly interrupt a patient who felt compelled to plead his court case of a criminal charge in group therapy. We in group, of course, were experiencing the very common occurrence of denial. As part
Mental health treatment has greatly improved over the past century. It has moved away from exiling patients to mental “hospitals” and instead offers inpatient, outpatient, partial hospitalization, individual therapy, group therapy and several other options. There is, however, one specific mental health population that is underserved and underrepresented time and
Despite the seemingly widespread understanding that mental illness is a disease that can be effectively treated, prejudice toward individuals with mental health issues still pervades our society. People with such conditions are often depicted as undesirable and incapable of maintaining meaningful personal relationships or holding positions of authority. Organizations such
For centuries, poets and playwrights have ascribed a kind of magic to sleep: “We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep,” says Prospero in Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Poet e.e. cummings wrote, “over my sleeping self float flaming symbols of hope,
“One-stop shopping” is viewed as a good thing when it comes to buying groceries, picking up a prescription, grabbing a cup of coffee and filling your gas tank. Why not do the same when it comes to physical and mental health care? This concept is the focus of the American
Once a month, volunteers take to the streets of Orlando, Fla., to hand out oranges and a kind word to downtown shoppers, businesspeople and other passersby. The program, dubbed “Orange You Happy,” is part of the Mental Health Association of Central Florida’s (MHACF) focus on suicide prevention. The roughly 30
Counseling is a preventive profession, typically working with issues and challenges that our clients face daily. However, client concerns often exist at deeper levels, and counseling process often shades into therapy. As counselors, you regularly encounter children and youth who may be at risk. Whether with a medicated child who