Counseling for a Health Living

Counselling is a profession that helps individuals deal with emotional issues as a result of family conflicts, and educational, vocational, financial, or health problems. The process involves the Counsellor identifying practical solutions to an identified issue while listening more than talking when the client bares their mind about the problem.

Counselling is a process where the counsellor helps the client have a useful conversation that eventually yields solutions to their problems. Counselling is a talk therapy; prescribing, advocating, suggesting and directing. Talk therapy helps people overcome various challenges such as depression, stress, anxiety, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and mental, emotional and behavioural issues. The process of therapy provides a confidential, safe, and non-judgmental experience that allows free expression of difficult and uneasy challenges with the Counsellor or Therapist.

The first step to counselling is to admit and recognize that you need to change something about yourself or improve a situation where you are a principal actor. It is pertinent to find someone who has used the services of a therapist to help you understand the reason why you need to see one. As a prospective client, search for the right therapist that understands your particular problem or issue. Wherever there is counselling, guidance is involved. Counselling and Guidance go side by side. Guidance is important to equip a client with useful information on how to handle diverse situations in life. Prevention is better than cure. Guidance helps in making choices in life and involves education and career. Those who are yet to make mistakes are guided and those in distress as regards career choices are given comprehensive career guidance through counselling.

The Goals of Counselling include but are not limited to the following: 1.Assist in developing positive practices. 2.Promote behavioural change 3.Help improve the interpersonal relationship 4.Help others enhance their ability and capacity to cope with challenges and solve them 5.Help in goal setting and drawing out potential.

Guidance and counselling sessions allow students to ask questions and clarify difficult situations in their lives. Those having drug challenges, different kinds of abuses and personal hurts are assisted and stabilized through counselling. Counselling brings students and school administration closer to respecting authority and following appropriate channels in the school environment. It also helps students to live in peace and harmony within and outside the school community, adjust and settle comfortably and appreciate their education in a better way

Students or clients are counselled on proper behaviour such as politeness, courteousness, respectfulness and many others. Counselling molds students and inculcates in them, valuable skills of life. During the sessions, guidance is given on how to deal with psychological problems and in the process, clients develop problem-solving skills. Counselling can help one to cope with mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression and many other disorders. It can also help one to deal with difficult life situations such as the loss of someone, work stressors, emotional issues, identity challenges, educational problems and other uncomfortable situations and disruptive conditions.

In recent times the need for counselling has become pertinent due to the uptick in the misuse of drugs, suicide and other mental health conditions. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) Report in 2021 revealed that about 275 million people misused drugs worldwide, while over 36 million people suffered from drug use disorders. For Nigeria, the report revealed that

there were cases of 14.3 million drug users out of which 3 million suffered from drug use disorder. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) also reports that 40% of Nigerian youths are into drugs. Nigeria is reported to have a large caseload of depression and ranks 15th in the World of Suicide Frequency. According to the World Health Organization, globally, an estimated 12 billion working days are lost every year to depression and anxiety at US$ 1 trillion per year in lost productivity.

Counselling helps reduce work stressors associated with busy schedules and assists clients who have experienced traumatic situations to stabilize and continue a healthy life. The issues created by disrupted mental health are invisible and easily ignored, but it reduces one’s well-being, so it is imperative that employers, employees and students to pay attention to their bodies to avoid being victims. It is important to pay attention to the challenges at work and at home to avoid mental, emotional or physical breakdowns.

Counselling comes in handy when you need to speak to someone. Counselling is confidential! I encourage everyone to key into counselling. The checklist below will help you assess your mental health status to prompt a visit to a Counsellor: a. Excessive workload. b. Undefined schedule/unclear job role. c. Conflict/violence. d. Discrimination (cultural, language, gender). e. Harassment/Bullying (any kind) f. Unsafe environment g. Job insecurity h. Lack of support from colleagues, friends and family. i. Under or over promotion j. Social life deficiencies. There is a Counselling Unit at Baze University. You can walk-in or pay a scheduled visit. We are located in the Student Support Office and open throughout the week. Phone-in services can also be arranged.

*Mrs. V. S. TARKA is the University Counsellor and Head of the Students Support Unit.