Reflective writing - Personal and professional development - Essay Example

? Personal and Professional Development al affiliation: Personal and Professional Development The journey on this has proved to be challenging and enjoyable. I have had a challenging and enjoyable path in this journey that its ending marks a memorable experience to me. In this paper I have outlined more about this journey of learning new theory and skills. Personal Centered Therapy Personal Centered Therapy (PCT) is one of the theories I have learned in class. From the beginning, I thought that I could put into practice what I had learned about personal centered therapy. However, somehow this has not proved to be an easy feat for me. For instance, I found it difficult to think of its challenges or how I can administer it to a particular client or group. I had to challenge the fact that I could show unconditional positive regard, be emphatic and congruent when having to deal with a client who is a peoadphile. I have always thought it a nightmare dealing with peoadophiles. After taking this course, I have had to question myself and particularly in regard to how my character and beliefs would interfere with the way I administer person centered therapy. CBT (Cognitive Behavior Therapy) In studying cognitive behavior therapy (CBT), I really enjoyed my lectures on various theoretical models. Class exercises on CBT record were great especially when learning how to the use of our thoughts and common thinking traps. Person Centered Therapy theory was always interesting to me and after writing my case study on CBT, I got to like the concept and the principles involved. This is because to me, it suits my character as a method of behavioral study. The structure used is practical in nature and applicable to most client groups. On reading the books CBT for Beginners by Jane Simmons and Rachel Griffiths as well as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with Adults by Stefan Hofmanand Mark Reincke, I successfully prepared for my assignments on this course. Psychodynamic I learnt new and interesting skills while studying psychodynamic psychotherapy. The least favorable theory I learned in the process was psychodynamic approach to counseling. The lecture on psychodynamic theorists challenged my perception and concept of the theory. However, I enjoyed my tutor’s perspective of the various theorists that contributed to this genre. Although I am not a fun of Freudian theories, I was able to relate this theory to that of Melaine Klein and her approach interested me. I must admit that I greatly enjoyed the lessons learnt about psychotherapy and will surely apply whatever I learnt in theory. Assessment-Case Study Our assessment was a case study which proved to be challenging but enjoyable at the same time. It is through this process that I discovered that I enjoy solving problems presented in the form of case studies. I was able to improve my client’s character and use cognitive behavior therapy which was quite encouraging. Using CBT with my client proved to be easy for me as I analyzed and treated her problem, putting theory into effective practice. Through my reading about CBT, I discovered that the therapy is a suitable form of therapy from a multicultural perspective because of its basic nature and how it is practiced. Counseling Skills The lecture on counseling skills reminded me of the basic principles involved in counseling. It also reminded me always to use words which help the clients to tell their stories freely. Initially, I felt that the counseling assessment went well although I always believe in making improvements. However, after receiving the feedback sheet, I felt that it did not reflect the skills I thought I had learnt over the years and this made me feel deflated. I contemplated discussing this with my client as I never wanted to appear confronting. I decided to discuss with my teacher who reassured me that the mark to her was not as negative as I thought it was. I thus felt better about my assessment and I also gained a better understanding of how she interpreted my practical skills. Counseling Across the Life Span In our first lecture, the tutor asked us to take a moment and explore the social clock of our age group. It only took me a minute since I had only one item outstanding about my ‘dos’ and very few on my ‘don’ts’ according to my social clock. This class was important as it reminded me to keep things in perspective. During the adolescence lecture, the teacher asked the class to discuss in pairs a period of transition in our adolescence. This exploration of my transition helped me put into perspective Eriksson’s theory and in particular the contrast in identity versus role confusion. Although I had done extensive research and wrote papers on homosexuality, religion, and stigmatization, I gained further knowledge on Freud’s theory and post modern influences during this lecture. It was painful to watch old helpless individuals living lonely lives. In a video I watched, I noted that the older adults were “fortunate” to be living within a small community which supplied them with visits from care takers. In our lecture the teacher asked us reflect on a time when we felt desperately lonely. I did this exercise with my partner Roz and it was difficult to counsel her as we shared similar experiences. The exercise left me feeling drained and lethargic as it took me back in time to a point I would rather forget about. Out of this lecture I became aware of any hindrances from my past which could affect my role as counselor when faced with this problem with a future client. Death and Loss lecture-Think of time (Mitch told of her father’s death) The lecture on death and loss further enhanced my interest in my area of study as we focused on stage theories, the process of mourning, complicated mourning and grief counseling among others. Before we attended this lecture I had already decided to write my life span essay on unemployment and grief. I had engaged in extensive reading on this area and established that the link between grief and unemployment was fascinating. Grief is often thought of in terms of loss of a loved one but applying this type of loss to unemployment was extremely interesting. Our class exercise involved us getting into pairs and thinking about a time in our lives when we experienced loss or death. I paired up with Mitch who gave me a great experience of losing her father. Mitch was unable to mourn the loss of her father as she was expected to arrange the funeral and more or less hold the family together. Her role made it hard for her to grieve the loss of her father but I am still not sure whether she came to the point where she got to grieve eventuality. I found a special interest in this area of study after I wrote my life span essay on unemployment and grief. I was able to relate it to Kluber’s Ross five stages of grieving as I myself have experienced this in the past. The essay proved challenging as we had to apply a theory in our client’s story which was extremely challenging. I was not sure whether I would capture the true meaning and essence of my client’s story. I had never conducted and recorded an interview before and I found that this task demanded that we apply counseling analytical skills. I felt that while conducting the interview, I had to use many skills in order to get the best out of my client/participant. Initially I thought of writing my essay and after approaching my teacher on this she claimed that I was making it too complicated. Undertaking Mental Health While studying about mental health, we discussed on mood disorder-bipolar and post-natal depression. During the lecture on understanding mental health, I learnt that men suffer more post-natal depression. According to me, the idea of having each student present on a mental health disorder was a great learning tool. I was not aware that men suffer from postnatal depression. Other interesting subjects for me included addiction, narcissistic personality disorder and body dysmorphic disorder. I decide that on my personal initiative, I would read more on these subjects. Presentation and Handout Assessment I had a presentation on Bipolar disorder which I enjoyed delivering although at first it seemed to be nerve racking. At first, when I received the topic on bipolar disorder, I was apprehensive about the subject area. However, the more I read on the subject, the more it became interesting to me. In line with the presentation, I enjoyed compiling a booklet on bipolar order. This is because it reinforced how important it is to put together learning tool that could help individuals suffering with bipolar understand better their illness. It also helped family members to understand better their disorder. Developing my booklet also helped me think of all various stages of bipolar disorder. Final Year Project Working on my final year project reminded me how much I enjoyed research and the wealth of knowledge that is gained from reading diverse resources of knowledge. Writing my literature review on adolescent depression might appear challenging but exciting as well. This is because there is a vast array of articles on this particular subject. As a result I would like to continue researching on this topic in the future. Conclusion It is my perception that this course has equipped me with the foundation to grow and develop as a critical reader and thinker throughout my life. It has also made me more confident in pursuing future courses putting in mind that with dedication, perseverance and commitment I can achieve desired goals. This course has helped me enhance my skills which could help in future learning about the counseling field. At first, I felt like I had to be a perfectionist but this changed with time as I realized that I needed to be more realistic when dealing with issues. This helped me lift the stress of trying to do much more than expected. I also felt more confident about completing my doctoral degree after all the assessments that I completed on this course. Pursuing this course has further helped me in planning and organizing my personal life as I prepared to further my education. I had achieved this keeping in mind that to successfully complete my doctorate studies, I needed to apply continuous dedication, organization and perseverance. Read More