Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Hello my name is Allie

And I have a serious love affair with these:
Along with this love affair comes a love affair with:
And I think I would just die without prime shipping (which I got for free a bit ago because I am a student!). Other than to say that I just ordered more books:

On becoming a person by Carl Rogers and The gift of therapy by Irvin. Yalom

I don't have anything else to say this evening. I am now going to bed to read of course!

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Acting Ethically


Part of the counseling profession is adhering to a code of ethics most often the American Counseling Associations code of ethics. As part of my ethics course our instructor invited us to post our view and reaction to the case of Julea Ward Vs. Eastern Michigan University (find info about case here). Mrs. Ward was a counseling student at EMU that was dismissed from the counseling program because of her refusal to counsel homosexual clients. Mrs. Ward also stated that she would not counsel a host of other clients including those who took part in fornication.It was interesting to see the stance and thoughts of my classmates on this issue. Most took the same stance that Mrs. Ward should not be allowed to be a counselor but there where a few that thought that Mrs. Ward was wrongly dismissed. I have to say this pushed my buttons.

My personal stance is this: refusing to counsel ANY clients in my opinion is a disservice to this profession. This is not to say that all counseling students/counselors have to counsel everyone but it is to say that we must be OPEN to counseling anyone. It would be unrealistic to state that counselors must work with anyone who comes to them for help however in the same stance we should be willing and able to try. As counselors people come to us for help and expect us to be accepting and non judgmental because of their life choices be it homosexually, adultery, leaving behind their children, or severing ties with their parents.

Our job is to provide guidance to them on how to make the best choice for them and my personal values and beliefs should never come into play in our counseling relationship and clearly Mrs. Ward is not able to place her own values and beliefs aside and serve her clients. So yes EMU made a good choice in my opinion when they dismissed her from the program because I don't personally believe she deserves to represent my soon to be profession.

Monday, February 27, 2012

A date night that went bad....

Last weekend I went out to a great dinner with my husband which is rare actually since moving up here as we left our baby sitter back in Missouri (we currently live in Washington). So we went out and were having a decent time eating this food:
Doesn't my husband have nice manly hands? He thinks I am totally weird but I like my husbands hands :) and he will probably be grossed out by me writing about this on my blog....lol

We were having a nice time eating until we got a phone call from someone asking if we have a dog named Sebastian..apparently the new sitter didn't understand that the bright orange tie out cable that ran up to our back door was meant for the dog...so she just opened the door and let him out and he was found walking along here:

At night at about 10:30pm....this beach is about a 5-10minute walk from our house on the main roads which I can't think our dog would take... so what was a nice date night turned in a date night wondering if the person was actually going to bring our dog home...he did thankfully and this post reminded me that I need to get his thank you card mailed out!

Dog is back home safe and sound however we are going to have to have a redo on the date night as it was pretty much ruined after that and next time I will ask that they keep the dog in the house ;)



Sunday, February 26, 2012

Only Children

A few days ago Greyson and I went on a play date with a few friends from his school. This was the first time we had been anywhere with these moms so naturally it was a recap of everything. Husbands, work, life, kids, cooking etc. The one topic that came up and stuck for a bit was kids and if we were going to have another. These moms had 2 and 3 children each and so apparently the concept of only having one was foreign. When I stated that we most likely won't be having another I felt like I should have stapled this to Greyson's back:


I honestly get tired of people making comments about how only children are lonely, not social, need someone to play with and insert whatever else crap excuse that people come up with as to why we should have another. I know plenty of people who have multiple children who frankly don't pay attention to one (or more) of them, siblings that don't play together, moms who never have enough time for each of them etc. No I am not saying having more than one child is bad, if that is your choice that is great for you but for me and my husband more than one is not what we want. I would be lying if I said at times I didn't think of having another but it is just not in our plans.

We have very personal reasons for not choosing to another child and I wish people would honestly stop asking. So for those of you who are one of those people who constantly ask someone when/if they are having another, can you please stop and think that there are some (myself included) that have medical reasons that they are choosing not have another child and please stop saying that my child is going to have (insert issue here) because he doesn't have a sibling because siblings don't protect you from (insert issue here) because I have 4 and I still have issues.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

The Sea Inside

For my ethics class we had to watch the movie The Sea Inside which recaps the story of a man Ramon Sampedro and his campaign for his right to die. Ramon was a quadriplegic who for almost 30 years has wanted to exercise his right to die after becoming paralyzed because of an accident. I was honestly surprised that I enjoyed the movie as much as I did considering it was subtitled and I seriously hate subtitled movies. My husband watched it with me and I think he enjoyed it as well. It covers a seriously touchy subject in such a beautiful way. Sounds corny I know but it really does. I am trying to not give away many details about the film just in case you want to watch it yourself ;)


My assignment was to write a reaction paper and touch on the ethical dilemmas that were present in the movie for a counselor. I am not going to go through all of those but I am going to talk a little bit about assisted suicide and a person's right to choose. Is there ever a right situation in which it should be okay to assisst someone in committing suicide and in doing this should safeguards be in place to keep these people from legal ramifications? Is there ever a right situation to where a counselor (or other professional) should not assist with suicide but not really do anything to prevent a person from exercising their right to chose if they live or die? Is it our right to chose when we die?

As you can tell this movie left me with some questions that I honestly don't intend to answer right now. I am going to process for a little while so look for another post in the future.

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Oh happy mail day :)

I can't always be serious on this blog because I think the very few of you who do read my blog would stop reading it right? Or would you prefer that I stick to school and counseling only ?

So a few posts back I reported on my wax addiction. Today I received a few packages in the mail full of wax...like this:



That picture above is the majority of 30 bars I ordered from Scentsationals. I have been a long user/ lover/seller of Scentsy but even I will admit the cost is up there and so I decided to try out some of their competitors. I have to say that so far I am impressed with Scentsationals and the quality of their wax and you can't beat the price tag of 2/3.00 (2.00 if you get them from Walmart). So if you haven't given Scentsationals a try I say run to you nearest Walmart and pick up a bar.

I am not in any way affiliated with Scentsationals nor am I being paid to write this or any of the other reviews in the weeks to come on my blog (however if they wanted to pay me I would gladly take it...he he).

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Adlerian Therapy


Part of my counseling program is figuring out what theoretical orientation you feel you most aline with that will either serve as your only or will become your base while you intermingle other theories but remain true to your base. Over the last few weeks I have read about a few different theories and I can honestly say that at this very moment I am really loving the approach that Adlerian therapist take when they are working with their clients.

Adlerian counseling is built upon encouragement and holds the belief that encouragement opens the doors for great change. I like that Adlerian counselors meet and see the person where they are and don't focus to much on the past other than to understand how their past has shaped their views in today. Adlerians describe encouragement as : showing faith in people, expecting them to assume responsibility for their lives, and valuing them for who they are. In essence they are saying:

I am sure this all sounds simplistic right? That simply offering encouragement can change someones life...well I am here to tell you I believe that it can. Think back to the last time you got an atta boy from your boss for example? How did the rest of your day go? Did you work harder? Did you continue to work harder even after that day? I would be willing to bet that the majority of you would say why yes yes I did! Of course I am not saying that encouragment is all there is to helping and using the Adlerian method but it is a major part of it and I honestly appreciate it!

I could go on and on but alas this is a blog and I don't think you would keep reading my crap would cha? For more information about Adler and his methods go to the North American Society of Adlerian Psychology.

Monday, February 20, 2012

At least I am not totally late right?

So I said I was going to post this on Sundays but once again I forgot! So I am a day late...maybe I will be on time next week because.......


So this week homework is as follows:

Theories-
Discussion Post due
2 responses to discussion post due
Case conceptualization


Lifespan-
Discussion post due
2 discussion responses due
Exam 1

Ethics-
Sea Inside paper due
Discussion post due (case study)
2 discussion responses due

I am a but nervous about the exam. I am a better writer than I am exam taker---aka I would much rather write a 15 page paper than that an exam..so wish me luck!

Things that make me happy

So instead of my more serious post I am going to give you a list of a product that makes me happy instead :) . Many of you who know me know that I am a wax tart/warmer junkie. At any given time if you come to my house I will always have a couple of warmers going and some yummy scent filling the room.

I have many Scentsy warmers ( um shameless self promotion I sell it so if interested contact me !) like the one shown below (at my hubby's office) and this one in particular uses a low watt light bulb to slowly heat the wax and release the scent. There are other warmers that have a "bowl" type dish that sit on a ceramic warmer base that can serve double duty as a tart warmer and a candle warmer. If your interested in these type of warmers click here to be taken to scented baskets website to view a variety of warmers.

Image courtesy of Scentsy.com

And what goes along with these warmers??? Well wax tarts/clam shells/shapes of course. I have been a long user of Scentsy but have recently started branching back out to try other tarts/wax. Check out this cute little sheep wax tart by Mason Jar Primitives :


In the next few weeks I will be doing a few reviews of wax tarts because I just placed orders today with the following:

Front Porch Candle Company---she offers free shipping

Haleys Heavenly Scents
--Again free shipping

Crabby Candle Co.---Had a great FB special going (search for them on Fb).

Scentsationals--I have used many of their wax tarts and they are really good for the price!

Mason Jar Primitives- Again great FB special on samplers and allows you to name your own price for a sampler so look them up on Fb.

I am wanting to order from these as well:

Candle Scents from heaven-

Ye old candle cuppbard-

Kims Tart candles- GREAT deal on her tarts you get 3 for 1.50!

Candles from the keeping room---

Ill just stop now because I could give you a ton more linkeys but I shall stop...... Let me know if you order and find anything you like!!!!! I would love to hear your reviews of anything you order.

Friday, February 17, 2012

Self Care

image from google.com

Last night as I was reading my theories textbook and as I was reading about Adlerian therapy and Adlers beliefs about counseling and the helping relationship it got me thinking about self care. Adlers view of the person got me thinking of how important it really is for anyone but extremely important for counselors to make sure we have balance between work and home/life. As counselors we are constantly sharing the burdens of our clients, so not only do we have our own issues but we have those of our clients. In a perfect world as counselors we would be able to leave our clients at the office but we don't live in a perfect world so naturally we take some of our clients home with us and into our personal lives most often at a cost to our well being and the balance of our professional and personal lives.

Image from google.com

So what is the cost of not taking care of ourselves? What price as counselors do we pay if we neglect our own self care? Of course we stand to hit the all important "burnout" that many helping professionals hit but what else? What damage does not having the right balance cause to us as people? What does it do to our loved ones? All of these questions are reminders that as helping professionals we have to put our self care on the top of our to do list and partake in activities that nurture not only us but those around us as well because in the long run if we are healthy and have a good balance between work/home our clients will be the ones who get the ultimate payoff...So add the image below to your desktop for a week or two until you get used to doing your self care :)


Thursday, February 16, 2012

Wait what week am I in???

I always forget to post what I am doing for school so I am going to try and make it a regular Sunday post from here on out. So on Sunday's I will post my upcoming week's assignments for my courses. Currently I am in week 4! I can't believe it has been a month already. Time really is flying by and I am enjoying every minute of it.

This was me this evening:

For my Lifespan course weekly we have to respond to case studies located within our textbook. So this is what I do while I am reading/re-reading the case study. I make notes to help me remember the places and roles of people within the "case". I find writing things down helps me get the big picture and allows my brain to start working :)

So this week here is whats due:

Theories:
Discussion post
2 discussion responses
Case conception

Ethics:
Discussion post
2 discussion responses
Article reading/discussion post (about serotonin and suicide)
Ethics law case extra credit reading/discussion post (Ward vs EMU)

Lifespan:
Discussion post
2 discussion responses
Personal Narrative paper

Loving it so far!

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Addiction counseling


Quite some time ago after attending a few weekend courses related to addiction I became interested in working with this population of people. I realized that I honestly have a heart and the ability to be empathetic towards those struggling from addiction and unlike most I realize the addiction for what it is. So I became interested in counseling those who suffer from addiction and their families and in fact I still am. There are many addictions for example alcohol, drugs (various kinds), gambling, sex and pornography just to name a few of the most common.

ANYONE can become an addict, even those of you reading that sentence and thinking silently to yourself not me....yes you can. No one sets out to become an addict. No one sets out to allow a substance be it alcohol or drugs to control their lives and damage those around them. If you were brave enough to ask someone who is addicted and had an open heart I bet they would tell you the same thing. I am also willing to bet that most of you know someone who suffers from an addiction and I am also willing to bet that most of you believe that if they REALLY wanted to quit/stop they could. Addiction is not quite that simple, if it were NO ONE would be addicted. Take a look at the cycle of addiction below.

Addiction normally starts out in a harmless way...drinking on the weekends with your friends suddenly starts to happen every other night and before long you're drinking daily, you tell yourself it is normal and you could stop if you really wanted to, for some that is true but for the majority it is not quite that simple. Many use their addictions to self medicate to treat other untreated and/or undiagnosed mental health disorders. Again addiction is not as simple.



The point of this post is to make you stop and give a thought to those who suffer from addiction and try to understand that addiction is very complicated and not easy to treat. If you would like more information about addiction head on over to Google and type in treatment of addictions and you will find a vast amount of information. If you would like some specific recommendation feel free to contact me.

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

My husband & Valentines Day :)



Well it is that time of year again. The day that people from all over the world celebrate their love for each other and get or give cheesy cards, roses and boxes of chocolate to their lover. I honestly have never really bought into the whole valentines day thing and would much prefer that my husband do these types of things all year long unexpectedly instead of being told to do it one day a year. Thankfully I married a man who agrees with me ;) and even though lately I am not surprised enough with these cheesy items he does other little things instead hint doing the dishes because I loathe doing them!

So I feel like I need to give a shout out to my husband Mr. S. We have had some pretty rocky times in the last 10 (almost 11!) years and I just want you to know how much I love and appreciate you. I know at times I probably am not the best at showing you this but I want you to know that I really do appreciate you and everything you do for our family. I can't imagine what my life would be like without you. And moving on from this sappy stuff......


Has anyone ever wondered how the heart became the symbol of love and valentines day? I have! Our emotions obviously do not come from our heart but instead our brains but I guess a brain is really that romantic is it? So I looked this up and apparently we have been using the heart as the symbol of love since the beginning of man according to some. Instead of spelling it all out for you here if you are curious as to why go read this article here.

Have a happy Valentines day and remember to show the one you love that you love them all day everyday instead of saving it for this one day!

Monday, February 13, 2012

Counseling Programs Part 2


If you missed part one of this post you can find it here or just scroll down on my blog page. So we already covered that you should choose a Cacrep accredited program and I briefly explained why in post one so if you interested in that read post one. On this post I thought I would link you guys to a few schools that have both traditional on campus program and a few schools that have online programs.

Just in case some of you do not know me I am currently doing my Masters through an online program. My choice for online was pretty much dictated by my husbands work as we travel around the United States for his job. So online was my only option at this time and I did not want to wait to complete my program.

Again you can search the Cacrep board and find programs fairly easily by state. For this purpose I am going to use a few colleges that I either looked into or have heard about and in this post I am going to stick to Cacrep accredited programs. Let's do the online programs first since I know the most about these.


There are only 3 online programs in Mental Health Counseling that are Cacrep approved that I know anything about there are a few others but I do not personally know anything about them. It looks like according to the CACREP website there are a total of 5 schools that offer online counseling degrees that are approved by CACREP.

1. Walden University- Offers a Masters in Mental health Counseling. No personal experience with this college but I have heard both good and bad things about it. My main problem with Walden is that it is for profit and very costly. The Mental health Program will run you about $38,000 not including books and other supplies or the required residencies that they have which run about $1,500.00 each plus travel, lodging and meals so most likely closer to about $2500.00 for a grand total of about $43,000.00.

2. Adams State College- Offers a Masters in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. This is my program so naturally I have nothing but good things to say about it. I choose this program mainly for 2 reasons....not for profit and the least costly option. This program will cost about $23,000 in tuition plus the cost of 2 required intensives (one in each summer of your program). They offer you the option to stay in the dorms for the intensives so it is safe to say you can do the intensive for about $800-1000.00. The grand total of this program would be about $25,000. If you want to know more about this program you can contact me or contact Adams State!

3. Capella University- Masters in Mental Health Counseling. Again no personal experience with Capella and same as Walden I have heard of people who really like their programs and some that hate it. My problem with Capella is the same as with Walden..for profit and very costly. The cost for Capella is going to run you about the same as Walden.

If you are curious as to all the online CACREP schools please go to the CACREP online school search here.
So there you have it. There are a few other Cacrep programs in counseling and you can view them here as a few colleges offering various specialties in counseling such as marriage and family.

There will be a part three to discuss traditional programs!

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Counseling Programs Part 1

It just dawned on me that I have yet to make a post specifically about counseling programs. This will most likely be a 2-3 part post because no way can I fit it all into one post! So I thought I would give you guys an overview of counseling programs. There are many programs and it kinda looks like this:


If you are trying to find a counseling program I suggest you start at the Cacrep website. Cacrep stands for Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related educational Programs and is a accrediting body that sets standards for counseling programs. Trust me when I say that if you are going to do your counseling degree you want to attend a school that has Cacrep approval. Having this approval in most cases makes seeking your license easier because many states will accept a Cacrep accredited program for your educational requirements without ever checking or making you "prove" what classes are for what section. Some states also require counselors to attend a Cacrep accredited program in order to be licensed. Before you embark on any program be it online or in person you need to check with your states board to determine if that degree will be accepted if you intend to get your license to practice. You can go to the National Board for Certified Counselors to find all this information.

Another benefit to attending a Cacrep accredited program is that many times these schools will seek out and be approved for you to take the National Board for Certified Counselors exam even before you are done with graduate school. For example at my current college in my last semester of my counseling program I will be able to sit for the NCE exam and once I complete all my courses for my program upon completion I will be a Nationally certified counselor (which is voluntary) but some states actually use the NCE test that the National board uses. Basically states partner with NBCC for their tests so often times if you have taken the NCE exam you will be ready to go for your state (this varies by state though so be sure to check YOUR states requirements).

So here is a list of thing I believe you should look for when deciding on a counseling program:

1. Cacrep approved program
2. NCC offered in last semester of graduate school

Part 2 will have more information about the various schools I have found so stay tuned!

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Death and famous people



As many of you are already aware of Whitney Houston apparently has died. The cause of her death remains a mystery as of right now but hearing of her death got me thinking. Clearly Whitney has had years of drug use and addiction plaguing her but I wonder if the drug use was just a way to self medicate other issues? Has anyone else noticed how many celebrities are dying? It seems constant lately that someone famous has died and I wonder if being famous has anything to do with their death?

Lets face it we don't give celebrities any privacy and we are constant in our search for every detail about their lives and we are quick to criticize their every move especially when they say we need to respect their privacy. We judge them for their weight, hair color, choice of clothing, partners, children and the list goes on and on. In our minds when they decided to become a celebrity they forfeited their own right to privacy. Do you believe this? I personally can only imagine how celebrities must feel and how it must suck to have someone watching your every move.

But I do wonder as an aspiring therapist just what effect such an invasion has on the mental health of these people. Clearly some of them have issues aka Britney Spears who has publicity lashed out and shaved her head. But does the public have any responsibility for this? Do we really have a right to hound celebrities so much and not let them have any privacy?

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Our brains and a journal

Are you wondering why there is a picture of the human brain above on a counseling blog? When I was told I was going to be taking a lifespan human development course I was like hmmmmm..... I wonder how this is going to relate to counseling itself but you know what it does! Like it really does!!! Just this week as I was reading about our brain and the various parts of it and what those parts are responsible for it just clicked that yes I should know this and this will be helpful later as I am working with clients. It is giving me a better understanding of the hows/why's of certain behaviors and feeling and so I find myself actually enjoying this!

On another note I have decided that I should begin writing in a journal again. This was something I used to do quite frequently but somehow over the last few years I seemed to have slowly stopped. So I got this composition book and I am going to start writing again. I really believe journaling is good for your mental health and that everyone should to some extent do it, although I feel like this blog is somewhat my online journal. So for anyone who is thinking about writing in a journal here are a few journal props for you:

1. What does death teach us about life?
2. Name three people who lives have been improved by knowing you and explain why?
3. What is the one thing I am grateful for today?
4. Why is it important to be genuine?
5. Where do you think you will be in five years?

Enjoy!

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Another week of school :)

We are now into week 3 of my counseling program. This week I don't really have much going on and so it is nice because I can take a little more time with my husband and son. So here is what this week looks like:

1. Theories-
Discussion post
2 discussion responses to other students

2. Ethics-
Super shrinks discussion post
2 responses to other students
Impairment email- We are to email our instructor an email with areas that we feel we will struggle with

3. Lifespan-
Ch 3 Discussion post
2 responses to other students

Next week I have a few papers due along with the normal discussions. Since they are due next week I am starting them this weekend most likely. I will be working on a childhood narrative for my lifespan class and a paper in response to the film The Sea Inside for my ethics course. I hope these post are not as boring as they seem! I just want to give an idea of the workload. I will say that I expect my workload to pick up the further I get along in the program. Keep in mind this is only my first semester and my first set of courses .

I am enjoying how my classes seem to take the self discovery approach to the majority of things and I enjoy being able to do this and work on my self and understanding myself and those around me. I am so glad that I made this choice and I do think it is the right choice for me.

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Beach and personal enjoyment


My counselor says that everyday we should do something that is just for us something to nurture our soul. I wonder how many of us actually do this? We get so caught up on our lives and everything that is going on around us that we neglect to stop and enjoy it or to take pleasure in things that are around us. I am guilty. We live less than a 2 minute drive to the water here in the Pacific Northwest and yet I can't remember the last time I actually took Greyson down there. At least a few weeks.

It was such a beautiful day yesterday that after I picked Greyson up from school we headed down to the beach for look for some sea shells and just take a walk. I so needed the break and the time to enjoy something I like to do....1. look at the water/be by the water and 2. take pictures of Greyson :) A hobby of mine (and maybe someday a job!) is taking photographs. So here are some pictures from yesterday. Warning picture heavy!

Greyson LOVES going down the beach and hunting for shells. Yesterday we decided to hunt for tiny shells ;) This is why they say don't take picture in the early afternoon..................


All of that wood has washed to shore. Can you see Greyson in that picture?? He sort of blends in with the background!


Not somewhere I would walk barefoot......but still beautiful none the less.

And again just my cute little guy playing on the beach! He enjoys walking on top of the washed up wood. So what do you enjoy or do for yourself daily?

Monday, February 6, 2012

Family Zoo Trip.......

The family decided to take a zoo trip on Saturday so we drove down to Seattle and went to the zoo. The weather was perfect for being outside on what is a rare occurrence around here....the sun was shining! We had a great time and we always enjoy going to zoo's and try to go a few times each place we live. Here are some pictures from the zoo! Warning picture heavy :)

Greyson Woodland park zoo 2012:

An owl at the zoo:

Lions/Lioness..look at the male napping while the woman watches over...lol
Giraffes
All of these are my favorites animals...minus the kid of course ;)

Sunday, February 5, 2012

We all have problems........

So true this is. We all have issues. Some have issues with our selves, some have issues with other people, some have issues with relationships, some have issues with co workers etc etc. The list could go on and on. The fact is that we ALL have issues to varying degrees even though the majority do not want to admit that. I have issues and I am currently seeing a therapist for them.

So even someone who is training to be a therapist has issues you say? YES! I am not perfect and even though I know the techniques my counselor is using and I know how to use them (well she does have 20 years experience on me!) I can't seem to apply them to my own life without her direction. I find myself in our sessions trying to figure out what technique she is using....and taking mental notes of how she did it :) and how I felt when she did. So I am working through my own issues but also learning! Plus 2 for therapy.

Everyone has problems that is a fact of life. It is not having problems that is the issue really it is what and how you handle those problems that is the issue. Obviously I recommend that people seek out a trained therapist to help them work through their issues but there are other ways that people can help themselves with life issues. My next favorite way after seeking out a therapist is books. Books can offer you so much in just about anything topic you can think of. So if you're having an issue and can't or won't seek out a therapist look for a book to get you started. If you need some recommendations I would be glad to help you!

So the point of this post you say? Well just to tell you that EVERYONE has problems and no one is immune even famous people and presidents suffer. So keep this in mind the next time you are thinking about your problems, and keep in mind the quote above about tossing them into a pile with everyone else you just might see that they really are not so bad after all....

Wednesday, February 1, 2012

Who am I going to work with?

Profound joy of the heart is like
A magnet that indicates the path of life.
- Mother Teresa


One of the things that counselors have to do is decide what population of people they want to work with. The standards are Couples, Marriage, Family therapy, Addictions, grief counseling, PTSD, mental health, severe mental health issues etc. This is not to say that you are only going to work with one set of people this is to say that you will try to have your internships at locations serving these people, you might take more educational classes after your masters, take as many seminars as you can about this population etc in an effort to REALLY know this population in essence specialize.

Yet as I sit here in the beginning of my program I am interested in just about all of the above, seriously. I wonder at my ability to work with those who suffer from addictions but I took several courses in my undergrad program with an instructor who worked with this population and had for over 20 years and she herself had never had an addiction. I honestly think I would be good working with people who suffer from addictions but I do question my ability. I have personal reasons for being interested in grief counseling and I feel drawn to working with soldiers and their families who are suffering from PTSD and all the rest are about the same.



So what population do I want to work with? Check back in a year because I honestly do not know! I am hoping that with my own personal growth throughout my program that I will have a more definitive answer towards the end but I will revisit the topic a few times I am sure!