Counselling and Psychological Wellbeing
Counselling and Psychological Wellbeing is professional advice, recommendations and explanations offered to clients by a qualified psychologist. It can be a single event, or may be extended to several sessions (that depends on the complexity of psychological issues, and personal qualities of the person receiving the advice).
During counseling sessions, services are provided for people who are eager to address and cope more effectively with psychological concerns, by applying special counselling techniques. A psychologist helps to cope with issues arising from everyday situations.
By applying special tests, a psychologist explores different mental processes, such as attention, memory, intellectual skills, thinking, personal qualities, self-awareness, ability to make connections and maintain relationships, etc. It also includes dealing with issues that arise in interpersonal relationships, at work or in the family.
During the counseling process, a psychologist can help to enhance self-esteem and positive world outlook, to overcome the feeling of hopelessness, to acquire the feeling of being in control and responsible for own actions, to find solutions to everyday problems, identify own strengths, enhance skills of dealing with stress, negative emotions, attempt to solve interpersonal conflicts.
The purpose is to help clarify, understand and deal with personal and inter-personal difficulties related to psychological wellbeing or behavior- related concerns.
When psychological consulting is needed?
Counselling is provided for university students and employees, who need help in attempts address various personal issues and for those who have personal psychological difficulties. In most cases, consulting is needed to better understand the concerns that negatively affect academic performance and overall personal well-being.
The issues for counseling in most cases relate to:
- Uncertainty caused by the need to take important decisions
- Personal and interpersonal difficulties
- Conflicts with family, friends, and colleagues
- Personal worries about close relationships
- Feeling of loneliness
- Problems at work or studies
- Undesired behavior (unwillingness to work or study)
- Strong feeling of sadness, anxiety, fears
- Stressful events (divorce, loss of the joy of life, and other unpleasant experiences)
- Personal traumas, losses, severe diseases
- Abuse of certain substances
- Lack of self-confidence
- Own intellectual abilities and deficiencies
- Deeper self-awareness
- Children behavior and their emotional difficulties
- Parents’ wish to better understand their children, their abilities and difficulties
We will attempt to help to seek for
- Better self- awareness of own difficulties
- Identify and expand the range of means of coping with stress.
Psychological support during the counselling sessions, solution of psychological concerns will enable to better focus on academic and work results.
Should you encounter any psychological difficulties (whether emotional, cognitive, behavioral, social, or personality related) which can interfere with university activities, professional experience and personal development, you can attend the offered counselling sessions and in this way try to find solutions to your problems, and seek for further personality growth.
Confidentiality
University consultants adhere to the principles of confidentiality. Not only does a person’s psychological wellbeing depend on psychologists, but they also obtain very personal information. Nobody (including relatives, colleagues, managers, faculty, and students) can get access to the information about your counselling without your personal consent. The information obtained during counseling sessions is never included into students’ personal files.
Every psychologist adheres to psychologists’ norms of ethics, which guarantee confidentiality of the information about your application and any information obtained through counselling. Exceptions are only made in cases when there is a threat to your or other people’s health and life; or if disclosure is needed to prevent clear, imminent danger to the client or others.
Consulting sessions might be recorded (i.e. certain demographic information, goals, etc.) for clinical and research purposes; and in order to ensure continuous professional development. Those records are also kept for reporting purposes.
The process of psychological counselling
Psychological consulting is available for all members of ISM community, both students and employees.
If you want to receive help, you can either register (book your appointment) or just come during office hours (drop-in).
How does counselling work?
Depending on your specific needs, you might be offered time, day and place for a single session, or you might be offered a more specialised services (several sessions).
In case a longer session is required (several appointments) day and time can be agreed on with a consultant.
If needed, an appointment can be cancelled.
In case two appointments are missed without prior warning and serious cause, further counselling will be terminated.