COUNSELING
Therapy is a relationship between people that works in part because of a clearly defined set of rights and responsibilities held by each person. As a client in counseling, you have certain rights and responsibilities that are important for you to understand. There are also limitations to those rights that you should be aware of. As your service provider, we have corresponding responsibilities to you. These rights and responsibilities are described in the following sections.
Counseling has both been benefits and risks. Risks may include experiencing uncomfortable feelings, such as sadness, guilt, anxiety, anger, frustration, loneliness, and helplessness because the process of counseling often requires discussing the unpleasant aspects of your life. However, counseling has been shown to have benefits for individuals who undertake it. Therapy often leads to a significant reduction in feelings of distress, increased skills in managing stress, and resolutions to specific problems. Counseling requires a very active effort on your part. To be most successful, you will have to work on things we discuss outside of sessions.
The first 2-4 sessions will involve a comprehensive evaluation of your needs. By the end of the evaluation, we will be able to offer you some initial impressions of what our work might include. At that point, we will discuss your treatment goals and create an initial treatment plan. If you have questions about procedures, we will be happy to help you set up a meeting with another Lake Cumberland Recovery, Inc. substance abuse professional for a second opinion.