By Minnie Whitley


Stress normally affects people from different walks of life, such as college students, couples, working professionals among many others. When this happens, mental health counselors are the next important people in straightening things out to avoid them going out of hand. The work of these professionals mainly involves the solving of problems that their patients are facing. Before seeking mental health counseling Sarasota residents need to understand some facts.

Counselors in this field normally put real life experiences into play when attending to their patients. This helps in creating stronger bonds with them, something which is essential for a complete recovery. Once one consults them, the first thing that they will do is an emotional or mental disorder diagnosis. They will work together with the patient in the treatment process. This may sometimes call for the help of other professionals in the industry such as social workers and psychiatrists.

Once a bond has been created between the above mentioned three, a patient can now be referred to a support group or even facilities of inpatient treatment. Most of the counselors have however established their own private practice. They can therefore be consulted as individual professionals for their services.

Before one gets to practice this profession there is some training required. It takes many years of education and continuous learning thereafter for the skills to be mastered well. A degree is therefore a must have. Accompanied with this is about 4000 hours of close supervision by a clinical supervisor after passing the state test for licensing.

Some of the services offered include; assessment and diagnosis, psychotherapy, planning of treatment and review of utilization as well as solution focused therapies which are brief. The counselors also help with alcoholism and drug addiction, crisis management together with programs on psychoeducation and prevention. You can therefore look for them when having problems relate to such.

If looking for them, there are various setups from which you can find them. These are the likes of community agencies, integrated delivery systems and behavioral healthcare centers. As mentioned earlier, some of the do private practice. The other places where their services are offered include hospitals, employee assistance programs and centers for substance abuse treatment.

In the US, this profession is represented by an organization for professional membership. This is known as the American Mental Health Counselors Association. In order for one to be a member with the organization, they have to be holding a counseling masters degree or in a related field of mental health. In addition to this, they need adhere to Clinical Practice National Standards that have been set by AMHCA. It is only after meeting these requirements that one can register as a member with the organization and add it to their resume.

Those seeking the services of the counselors are advised to check and ensure that they consult qualified persons. This can simply be done by checking the above regulations. It is also advisable to look for individuals who have been in the industry for quite some time.




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