What is Supervision?
Supervision is an essential requirement for all counsellors and therapists and is also useful for others working in helping professions. Counsellors would usually meet with their supervisor for a minimum of one and half hours every 4 weeks. This is preferably an individual session but can happen in a small group too.
It is a time and space for the counsellor to explore their work with an experienced supervisor with the view to enabling them to be a balanced practitioner, not swayed by the impact of their clients stories and to ensure they remain steady and strong with clear boundaries. It is a space to check our own well being and to ensure that the level of compassion that we can work with is not depleted by overload or emotional interweaving of client work with our own life story.
If we are not fully aware a counsellor can become isolated and if not addressed the weight of distress can create difficulties. Supervision offers a place to share and to allow you to remain confident and grounded. Just as those we are working with need stability of mind, so does the counsellor. We cannot offer meaningful insights if our mind is blurred with anxieties or determination to ‘fix’ for example.
The supervisory relationship is an important working alliance. The experience and training of the supervisor supports them to have a ‘wide view’ of the supervisee. For example are ethical considerations and safety being upheld, is the counsellor working with issues which are beyond their current limits, what do they need to feel more stable, are they taking adequate self care, are current circumstances in their life impinging on their work…? There are many things that can be considered.
Fundamentally a supervision session should be a place where a supervisee feels welcomed and enabled to reflect upon all aspects of their work and feel as firm as they can in their confidence and competence as a practitioner.
If you are looking for a supervisor please see individual profiles for further information.