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Counselling Tutor podcast

003 Transference - Countertransference - UPR - Paraphrasing

Broadcast on:
19 Feb 2016

In this weeks episode on the Counselling Tutor Podcast we explore Transference, countertransference, the skill of paraphrasing, self care as a counsellor and we speak about unconditional positive regard in relation to being non judgmental.

 

Turning down our Way of Being

Carl Rogers identified that the Person Centred approach to counselling is not about the way you do things but rather it is a way of being. This is all and well however it can pose challenges outside of the therapy room. How do we separate our counselling skills from our everyday life and how do we maintain boundaries between family and friends when they are tempted to bring their problems to us? 

 

Empathy is a way of being we are encouraged to develop as a counsellor but how do we turn that empathic side of us down when we are with family and friends? Do you find yourself slipping into counsellor mode in everyday conversations? 

 

These questions and more are debated in this episode as Ken and Rory explore the volume control that we can use to turn down the conditions we have developed as counsellors.

 

Transference and Countertransference

In “Theory With Rory”, Rory looks at the dangers of unchecked transference leading to countertransference within our counselling relationships.

 

Transference, it may be argued, is a necessary part of the therapeutic relationship as it aids empathic understanding. The term transference originates from psychoanalysis and the original definition of transference can be summed up as “a redirection of, mostly unconscious, feelings and desires rooted in childhood that are directed towards a new object or person”.

 

Sigmund Freud was the first to describe transference and recognise its importance in understanding the client’s feelings and the idea was embraced by the psychoanalytical practitioners of the time including Carl Jung. Transference is encouraged in psychoanalysis and the therapists non disclosure, or distance in the therapeutic relationship, is theorised to promote transference as the client is likely to make assumptions as to the therapists likes and dislikes about them based on relationships that have experienced with others.

 

Rory explores what transference is and how this may effect our clients journey, and indeed our own perceptions, in the counselling relationship.

 

Countertransference 

If transference is the redirection of the clients feelings, posable towards the the therapist, countertransference is the redirection of the counsellors feelings towards the client. This muddies the relationship as the therapist is unconsciously treating the client as if they were someone else. 

 

Rory looks at ways to identify countertransference by monitoring self and taking relevant material to supervision. 

 

The Skill of Paraphrasing

Of all the counselling skills the paraphrase is arguably the most widely used. No matter what orientation your counselling practice reflects you are likely to use paraphrasing numerous times during a session with a client.

 

A Paraphrase is repeating your understanding of the client material back to them in your own words. The counsellor is looking to paraphrase the essence of the material by cutting through the story and focusing on the underlying emotions that the client is bringing. 

 

Paraphrasing in counselling is perhaps often understood and seen as an easy counselling skill requiring little practice to master. Nothing could be further from the truth. A well honed paraphrase is be a powerful skill and can have significant meaning to a client. In todays” Counselling Skills With Ken”, Ken explores this topic in depth with simulated skills session examples that you can listen to.

 

When a client hears their material back they feel they have been heard and this helps deepen the empathic bond between counsellor and client. 

 

Paraphrasing can be used to invite the client to focus down on a specific part of their material.

 

We can use paraphrasing as the counsellor to check our understanding of what the client is bringing.

 

Ken looks at how we can look through the narrative of the clients story and paraphrase not only the material but also the feelings and emotions that underpin what is being spoken about.

 

Unconditional positive regard and judgement

The topic of UPR comes up often with questions like “how do I practice try UPR and surprise my own natural judgments?”.

 

Ken and Rory debate this fascinating topic in the professional care section of the Counselling Tutor Podcast.