Integrating Skills for Effective Counseling Molly Kellogg, RD, LCSW

Integrating Skills for Effective Counseling

Molly Kellogg, RD, LCSW

THE CHANGE PROCESS

• Engaging

• Focusing

• Evoking

• Planning


Our Outline

• How to both engage AND focus

• Caring for ourselves to avoid burnout



Fundamental Counseling Skills

• Open questions

• Affirm Efforts and Strengths

• Reflect

• Summarize

Engagement skills

• Introduce yourself with eye contact

• Client-centered small talk

• Reflect

• Use your body language

• Discuss the goals and ask for input

• Open with open questions

• Roll with resistance


When to move on to focus and planning

• “You get me.”

• Attend to body language including eye contact

• Has the client shared some of what matters and/or asked questions?


Focusing

• Reflect any possible topics you hear and ask permission to discuss

• Looking back, what steps did it take?

• What might you work on in the next few weeks?

• If there were something you would do for your child’s health, what would it be?


When it too much has been evoked

• Affirm something

• Empathize and contain

• Offer choice

• Offer focused support



Affirming

• Thanks for coming in today.• That’s a great suggestion.• You clearly want to do as much as you

can for your health.• You can be very persistent when you set

your mind to something.• I would find that difficult to deal with too.

Empathize and contain

• you’re really upset about your daughter’s father, and it’s making it hard to focus on her nutrition.

• You’re worried about your home situation. What part might we be able to problem-solve about today?


Offer choice and support

• Menu of topics

• Suggest brief discussion

• Include not addressing nutrition as an option

• Offer support

• Offer referrals


Definition of burnout

Trying to change someone else’s life and being attached to

the results.


Making sessions easier on you

• Watch the “righting reflex”• Rolling with Resistance

• Use Elicit/Provide/Elicit when giving advice


Roll with Resistance

• Express empathy

• Affirm something

• Reflect ambivalence

• Acknowledge resistance

• Support choice



When it’s time to provide advice

• Elicit What client already knows and wants to know

• Provide information in neutral manner

• Elicit client’s response to, interpretation of the information

Take care of yourself

• Remind yourself you are doing your best

• Find ways to vent (without disrespect)

• Ask for support from colleagues

• Take breaks, breathe

• Leave work at work

• Self-care at home



Documents

Integrating Skills for Effective Counseling Molly Kellogg, RD, LCSW