conscious – Iain Douglas Stewart

L3CiCS Comparing Counselling Theories Assignment

By Iain 27 June 2020Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

The aim of this essay is to compare and contrast two counselling theories of my choice. I have chosen to compare Psychodynamic Counselling and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. The philosophy behind the Psychodynamic Counselling approach is that we all have an unconscious mind as well as a conscious one. It states that the unconscious mind can hold on to painful memories…

L3CiCS Reflective Diary – 8th May 2020

By Iain 8 May 2020Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

This week in lockdown, I am working on self-awareness and how it contributes to the ability to empathise with others. Empathy is a kind of emotional imagination; it is the ability to map the knowledge of your own feelings to those of someone else in order to gain a deeper understanding of how those emotions influenced their mental state, their…

L3CiCS Reflective Diary – 3rd April 2020

By Iain 3 April 2020Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

This week we looked at common mental health problems and possible reasons for their incidence in society. Mental health problems could be seen as skewed rules that people are trying to live their lives by. These abstract rules are mostly developed alongside the organism as it grows and learns to navigate this world we live in. These self-created rules form…

L3CiCS Reflective Diary – 1st February 2020

By Iain 1 February 2020Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

This week we talked in small groups about how we could use counselling theory to understand our own personality, or apply ideas found in the theories we have covered this year so far to increase our self-awareness, and reflect on ways in which one or more theories have helped us understand ourselves. For me, the concept of congruence, and being…

L3CiCS Reflective Diary – 10th January 2020

By Iain 10 January 2020Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

Over the past few weeks we’ve been learning about three very different counselling theories – Person-centred counselling, Psychodynamic counselling and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) – with very different methods, glossaries and philosophies that ultimately all work towards the same goal, which is helping people. They each offer a different language, and a different way of understanding our personality or self,…

L3CiCS Learning Log – 13th December 2019

By Iain 13 December 2019Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

The origins of Psychodynamic Counselling can be traced back to Sigmund Freud in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, and the psychodynamic theory has been continually developed, modified and refined over time. It is based around the philosophy that people are driven by unconscious patterns of behaviour and desires which are shaped by their past experiences. Some examples of things…

L3CiCS Learning Log – 29th November 2019

By Iain 29 November 2019Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

Person Centred Counselling was developed by Carl Rogers in the 1950’s around the philosophy that people can change, and that they are not bound by personal events in their past, or their circumstances in the present. This change is achieved by the counsellor making use of the core conditions of the Person Centred approach, and these are: 1. Empathy –…

L3CiCS Reflective Diary – 22nd November 2019

By Iain 22 November 2019Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

This week we went over some Case Studies, and applied a SMART model to them with the aim of helping the client. I really enjoyed learning about the SMART model, and having a quick look at some of the other models and systems out there. We’ve learned how to ask questions, resist the pushing of our boundaries, how to be…

L3CiCS Learning Log – 27th September 2019

By Iain 27 September 2019Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

This week we spoke briefly about ways in which clients could consciously or unconsciously break boundaries. Examples of ways in which a client could consciously cross a boundary could include: • Turning up late because of nerves or uncomfortable feelings • Asking to leave early because they may have been overwhelmed • Not paying promptly if a fee is required…

L3CiCS Learning Log – 20th September 2019

By Iain 20 September 2019Qualifications courseworkNo Comments

In this first week, our tutor gave us an overview of what the course would entail, and the subjects we would be covering. She also illustrated some differences between this course, the CPCAB Level 3 Certificate in Counselling Studies, and the CPCAB Level 2 Certificate in Counselling Skills that I completed in 2018. The main difference is that this course…