Counselling is about helping people with everyday life problems. The counsellor and client work together to help the client work through their issues. Counselling should always be free from judgement and bias, with respect for the client being paramount. Safety, warmth, confidentiality, comfort and privacy are important elements of a counselling relationship.

People often believe counsellors have all the answers and will tell people what to do. This is not the case. Rather, counselling can assist you in enhancing your self-awareness, provide you with a new perspective and enable you to come to a clearer understanding of your situation.

You may believe that your problem is too small to be of concern to a counsellor. This is not true. Remember it is a good idea to talk things through and counselling can help prevent small concerns becoming huge issues.

Counselling is not intended for people with mental illness and if you have concerns you should speak to your health  professional. Your GP is the best point of contact.

Read any book on counselling (or psychotherapy) and chances are you will get a different answer. The British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy accepts that the terms ‘counselling’ and ‘psychotherapy’ are used interchangeably and there is no concrete distinction between the two. Both usually work with the general population, although some specialise in particular areas (trauma, for example). Probably the most important thing for you to know is the qualifications of your chosen professional and the approach used.

A psychologist in contrast is a different story. Psychologists work with different types of people (including people with mental illness) and depending on their training may provide counselling to the general population. To work as a psychologist in Australia they must be registered as such in their own state.

So, a psychologist may provide counselling services, in addition to psychological services, whereas a counsellor (or psychotherapist) will only provide counselling services.

There are a multitude of approaches used by counsellors and psychotherapists. Broadly, you can divide the most popular approaches into five distinct types:

1. Cognitive-behavioural (includes rational  emotive behaviour therapy, solution focused and cognitive therapy)
2. Humanistic (includes person-centred,  gestalt and psychodrama)
3. Existential (includes logotherapy and  phenomenological)
4. Behavioural
5. Psychodynamic (includes psychoanalysis,  object relations and analytical psychology)

Each approach has its own distinct way of working and set of goals for the client. In the same way, you will find that each counsellor is unique and will have his or her own way of working, no matter which approach they use. Common to all counsellors is respect and empathy for their client.

Since no two people are alike, I like to vary my approach depending on the client. As such, a person-centred approach is important to me. However, I also use behavioural and cognitive-behavioural therapy as well as solution focused therapy. I am also interested in positive psychology and may integrate this into my work. Learn more about my online counselling service.

In Australia, anybody can claim to be a counsellor. This however does not mean they are qualified as such. If you want to see a counsellor, check out their qualifications and find out if they are a member of a professional body, such as the Australian Counselling Association. Such counsellors will follow a code  of conduct and receive regular supervision and professional development.