The Therapeutic Frame
The “therapeutic frame” refers to the fixed elements of the therapeutic relationship that provide the context for the therapeutic work. This is inclusive of the date and time of meetings, the duration of sessions, the physical environment and the manner in which client and counsellor engage. I see it as my role to co-create this “frame” with clients and to hold or maintain it once our relationship is established. Several key elements of this process are described below in order to aid you in envisioning how we might work together in this semi-structured way.
Getting Acquainted
We start off with a 20 minute telephone consult (at no charge) before working together, in order to determine if I am the right fit. This is an opportunity to feel each other out a little and for prospective clients to begin to tell me their story.
Building the Relationship
The first session is all about building our relationship and also serves as an opportunity for you to tell me what brings you into counselling, what some of their hopes and expectations are for the process and even what hasn’t worked with past attempts at counselling. Everyone’s needs are different. As such, I like to have a conversation at the end of the first session in which we discuss what the you might envision going forward. If you are wanting to proceed with therapy, I seek to establish a set time, typically weekly or bi-weekly, for counselling as I feel this adds stability to the work that cannot be achieved in the context of a “drop-in” type relationship.*
*While this schedule is optimal for client outcomes, I understand that this is not possible for all clients and am willing to meet clients where they are at from a scheduling perspective.
Getting To Work
Clients arrive at counselling in different places and with different needs and I understand that the approach to working together needs to be tailored to reflect that. This is in stark contrast to a “one size fits all” or manualized approach to counselling.
For clients whom are struggling to function on a day-to-day basis, a supportive approach, which emphasizes skill development and emotional regulation, might be appropriate. The overarching goal of supportive counselling is to help you expand your ‘toolkits’ so that you can function more effectively in the face of challenges.
For clients whom are feeling more stable, an expressive approach which focusses on exploration of the client’s “ways of being”, predominant interactive patterns and behavioral protocols can be helpful. The goal of expressive counselling is to generate insight and awareness that can be harnessed.
