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SUPPORTIVE CARE AND COUNSELING
Por: Rev. Dr. José Abraham De Jesús-Rivera
I. Supportive care:
- Focus on here-and-now problems in living-helping persons to handle or accept these in reality-oriented ways.
- Insight-oriented methods, uses pastoral psychotherapy. Is in more in-depth counseling.
- Supportive methods are more action-oriented and involved a larger degree of counselor activity and careful use of authority than pastoral psychotherapy.
II. Methods of Supportive counseling:
- Gratifying dependency needs. Forms of gratification includes; comforting, sustaining, feeding (emotionally and physically), inspiring guiding. The counselor assumes the "parent" figure.
- Emotional catharsis. Pouring out one's feelings in an understanding relationships. Helps to reduce anxiety.
- Objective review of the stress situation. Help persons to view their problems from a wider perspective. It helps make wiser decisions.
- Aiding the ego's defenses. Help to uncover the defense mechanism inherent in every person. Use of rationalization, repression, and projection.
- Changing the life situation. Help the person to make changes , or if not possible, arrange to have changes made in the circumstances (physical, economic, or interpersonal).
- Encouraging appropriate action. When persons are paralyzed by feelings of anxiety, defeat, failure, damaged self-esteem, or tragic loss.
- Encourage appropriate relationships.
- Using religious resources. Prayer, devotions, scriptures, communion, etc., constitute a valuable supportive resources.
For more information on this topic consult the book by:
Howard Clinebell, Pastoral Care and Counseling: Nashville: Abingdom Press, 1984.
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