Counselling in work related situations
Reasons for counselling
Work can be stressful for many reasons, and cultural differences can cause additional problems. Managing stress, learning to be assertive, living with our own perfectionism or adjusting it, finding a good work-life balance and setting boundaries, or coping better with cultural differences - these are all possible goals for counselling.
It could also be that you are dissatisfied with your progress professionally, or want to better understand your own possibilities and find out what you want to achieve.
The role of prolonged stress
We can all be tired, exhausted, irritated or sad during difficult phases at work or in our private life. We recover when we go on vacation, make changes, or reach a more balanced and rewarding phase in life.
However, it can sometimes be the case that a stressful period of time becomes very long. A heavy workload, an unsupportive (work)environment, unclear goals at work or not being able to value those goals, having difficulties with children or a partner, being a long-term caretaker, having very high standards, experiencing difficulties with setting boundaries - all of these can contribute to the level of stress, and everybody has a personal sensitivity level regarding what is a “lot” or “too much”.
Prolonged stress and difficulties can sometimes lead to serious physical, cognitive and emotional symptoms. We often use the word “burnout” if these symptoms are present in a certain combination and for a long time.
The way counselling can help
If you experience a lot of stress or have psychological or (unexplained) somatic complaints, it pays to seek help to prevent illness or (prolonged) burnout.
You can find more information about the way of recovery and my approach here , as I think there are many factors contributing to stress, and it is a personal decision on which level we want to work first - it can be a wide range from cognitive tools and daily structure management to relational or existential questions.
Photo: A pomegranate tree in an illustration for the Tacuinum Sanitatis, Lombardy, late 14th century (Biblioteca Casanatense, Rome)