Thoughts on Counselling

Firstly, we're done with the presentation for our Counselling module! Thank God for awesome and highly efficient groupmates. The process was draggy at times (well as with most projects), but we got a pretty interesting topic, Depression and Anxiety, to work on, so I've definitely learnt valuable lessons from all that research. Did you know, that 1 suicide occurs every 40 seconds? (Okay don't remind me, I was trying to sound serious while getting this point across but my classmates laughed. Heh.)

No prizes for guessing why we were all in blue

And that concludes the module. It got boring along the way, but I do not regret taking this elective. It opened my eyes to matters concerning other people, and matters concerning myself. For one of the rare times, I can say that I've achieved the objectives of the course - I've learnt useful skills in Counselling that will help me as a future teacher and even as a person, and I've reflected and learnt more about myself in the process.

We were required to go through individual counselling (better termed as Personal Development Sessions) as part of the course. Although I found most of the sessions boring because I had no pressing problems or issues to talk about with my counsellor (even if I had, I wouldn't unload them on a... stranger), the sessions were useful overall. They gave me a clearer idea on my personality and inclinations, and allowed me to reflect on and reason why I do certain things. For example, why do I always say "anything" when people ask where I wish to go for a meal? Why am I so indecisive around people, but the other way round when I'm alone? Yeah, it's pretty interesting on the whole.

There were also weekly role-plays, where 3 of us in a group would take turns assuming the counsellor, client, and observer roles. Interestingly, each time I took on the role of a counsellor and my "client" bombarded me with his or her problems and feelings of despondence based on real-life scenarios, I'd have the urge to say, "I'll pray for you." But of course, I kept that back because it's not a "tangible" solution. Which leads me to question, how far can counselling help a person? Sure, we can explore solutions with our clients using the lessons we've learnt. But isn't this all too mechanic when you really think about it? After all, there's only One who can save these people from the deepest pits...

All in all, I've enjoyed the course. It's been a break away from the mundane academic courses. Sometimes we get thrown into the hustle and bustle of life and forget there's still a human side to the world. It's been a privilege sharing in people's life stories and experiences, a window view into the future. Stripping away everything that goes on around, I'm still human, and so are the people around me.

And no, I ain't gonna S/U this module. Fight till the end, man!