Julian Henley, P. G. Dipl. Counsellor, Humanistic, Online Counselling, Email

My name is Julian Henley. I am qualified at postgraduate level as a humanistic counsellor (see Qualifications page). Although I now devote myself to online counselling (or counseling) services, I am also an experienced face-to-face counsellor. Before deciding to carry out counseling work privately, I worked for a national agency of counsellors set up to offer counselling to clients with drug or alcohol addictions.

In addition to my postgraduate counseling training, I have also undergone specialist training in online counseling.

I aim to provide a quality counseling service at a reasonable cost, working within the ethical framework laid down by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). The service is flexible, not only involving email counselling but also utilising instant messaging technology to generate virtual counseling sessions. The system enables counseling clients to communicate and express themselves in realtime thus maximising the richness of the working alliance (an extremely important aspect of counselling). Devices such as emoticons can also be used to express mood and feelings as they emerge during counseling sessions.

There are many types or models of counsellng. Perhaps the best known counselling model is the Freudian psychoanalytical approach which is regarded as psychodynamic counselling. This often involves the client lying on a couch while the therapist/counsellor interprets their thoughts, fantasies, etc. There are many counselling models that come under the psychodynamic counseling umbrella and they vary somewhat, but they share a belief in an unconscious part of the mind the content of which needs to be brought into consciousness for change to occur.

The psychodynamic counseling approach is very old and since its inception a new set of counseling models has emerged to become known as the humanistic counselling tradition. These models differ from the psychodynamic tradition in that they consider the relationship between counselling client and counsellor to be essential for change to occur. Person-centred counselling (a humanistic counseling model) in particular regards the quality of the counselling relationship as the key to change. Research supports the notion that the quality of therapeutic relationship in counselling is immensely powerful, indeed it is the best predictor of positive change. Humanistic counselling models also believe in the innate ability of human beings to grow and develop psychologically.

My approach is primarily person-centred. This is because I believe that the bond between the counsellor and the client is the most powerful instrument of positive change. Carl Rogers (the father of person-centred counseling) believed there were three conditions that were necessary for therapeutic change in counselling: congruence (counsellor genuineness); empathy; and unconditional positive regard. I too consider these to be crucial in counselling. My aim in counselling is always to foster a non-judgemental, genuine relationship and to understand you very deeply. However, in my experience this is not always enough and I sometimes draw from other counselling models such as Transactional Analysis counselling and Gestalt counselling. I aim to tailor my approach to the needs of individual counselling clients.

It is important to remember that counselling is not a 'magic wand' that will make all your problems disappear, and online counselling is not suitable for everyone. However, counselling has helped many people with a wide range of problems. Just a few examples include bereavement, relationship or marriage problems, shyness, low self-esteem, addiction, feelings of isolation or alienation.... The list is virtually endless and of course each individual is unique. Many counselling clients find they gain great self-awareness and self-acceptance through counselling.

I feel it is important that the client sets his or her own goals for counselling.

There are many reasons why clients might opt for online counselling as opposed to face-to-face counselling. For example, they might find it difficult to leave their home to meet a counsellor face-to-face if they suffer from illness, agoraphobia or severe depression.

Commonly, counselling clients feel less threatened when expressing themselves via the internet. Much has been written about the phenomenon known as the disinhibition effect (see articles page) which occurs online. People often feel more free to open up, less defensive and less inhibited. Many counseling clients feel liberated online and some even report that they feel more real, truly their real selves in online counselling.

In the case of email counselling, clients can take the time to reflect upon what they are expressing (a face-to-face counseling session would feel more hurried). They can re-read what they have typed and reflect upon its meaning - this can be powerfully therapeutic.