Name: Qudsiyah Advani

Assignment Number: 5

Word Count: 754

Q1. Explain Family counselling. Share some techniques with your own examples.

Ans 1. Family counseling, also known as family therapy, is a type of psychological counseling that helps
family members improve communication and resolve conflicts. It can involve all family members or just
those able or willing to participate. The goal is to work on improving the relationships within the family
unit and to create a healthier home environment. The following are few techniques we can use:-

1. Role play: Family members act out specific scenarios to gain insight into their and the other’s
behaviors and feelings. In a family where parents are struggling to understand their teenager's
perspective, the therapist can have the parents and teenager switch roles, with the parents
playing the teenager and vice versa. This helps each party gain empathy and understanding for
the other’s viewpoint.

2. Colored candy go around: This technique involves using colored candies (like M&M's or Skittles)
to facilitate conversation among family members. Each color is associated with a specific type of
question or topic. for example, during a family session, the therapist places a bowl of colored
candies on the table. Each family member takes turns picking the candy and answering a
question based on its color. For instance, red might represent "something you worry about,"
blue might represent "a time you felt misunderstood," and yellow might represent "favorite
family memory." This activity serves as an ice breaker and encourages family members to share
their feelings and experiences in a structured yet fun manner.

3. Emotional ball: An emotional ball is a ball that has different emotions written on each section.
Family members take turns catching the ball and discussing a time they felt the emotion their
hand lands on. For example, the therapist throws the emotional ball to a family member. The
child catches it and sees the word "sad" under their thumb. They are then encouraged to share
a moment when they felt sad and explain why. This technique helps family members express
and understand each other's emotions.

Q2. Explain genogram with your own family structure.

Ans 2. A genogram is a representation of a family tree that goes beyond a traditional family tree by
providing detailed information about relationships, patterns, and history within a family.
Q3. S, female, 24, feels overworked and overburdened in her job. She reports she is underpaid in
comparison to her work pressure. She reports she is often too stressed to sleep. She ends up going to
the gym and running to the point of exhaustion, even in the middle of the night. Sometimes she
collapses at work, which increases her level of stress and causes her to fall further behind. She is not
happy and cannot fathom what her future will be. She reveals that she has a habit of drinking a lot of
coffee throughout the day to help cope with her job stress. She states she is generally unhappy with her
job and life.

Plan a counselling session with proper probing questions, case history and techniques you'll use session
wise.

Ans 3.
Client Background:

 Name: S

 Gender: Female

 Age: 24

 Present concerns: feels overworked, underpaid, and overburdened in her job. experiences high
stress levels, difficulty sleeping, excessive exercise, job dissatisfaction, future uncertainty, high
coffee consumption, and general unhappiness.

Goals:

1. Reduce stress levels and improve sleep quality.

2. Develop healthier coping mechanisms for stress.

3. Address job dissatisfaction and explore future career goals.

4. Improve overall mental health and happiness.

Session 1: Initial assessment and rapport building

 Objective: Establish rapport, understand the client's concerns, and gather detailed case history.

 Probing Questions:

 "Can you tell me more about your job and the specific aspects that make you feel
overworked?"

 "How long have you been feeling this way?"

 "What does your typical day look like, both at work and outside of work?"

 "How often do you go to the gym and what drives you to go at night?"

 "Can you describe your sleep pattern and what happens when you try to sleep?"

 "How much coffee do you consume in a day?"

 "What are your thoughts about your future career and life in general?"

 As a therapist I will actively listen, be empathetic, and bestow unconditional positive regard.

Session 2: Identifying stressors and providing few coping strategies

 Objective: TO Identify specific stressors and introduce basic stress management techniques.

 Probing Questions:
  "What are the main sources of stress at your job?"

 "How do you usually manage stress?"

 "Can you describe a time when you felt less stressed and more in control?"

 As a therapist I will try to psycho-educate the client on stress, and introduce to deep breathing
exercises, and mindfulness practices, and would tell them to try until the next session.

Session 3: Addressing sleep issues and exercise patterns

 Objective: To understand sleep disturbances and develop healthier exercise routines.

 Probing Questions:

 "What happens when you try to fall asleep?"

 "How do you feel after running to the point of exhaustion?"

 "Have you noticed any patterns or triggers that make it harder to sleep?"

 “Did you try the breathing techniques I introduced you to in the last session?”

 “How do you feel after doing it?”

 As a therapist I will try to give information on the importnce and benefits of proper sleep
schedule, would introduce some relaxation techniques, and create plan for exercise by which the
client would not exhaust over.

Session 4-5: Addressing overwork andjob dissatisfaction

 Objective: Explore feelings of overwork and dissatisfaction with her job.

 Probing Questions:

 "What do you enjoy about your job, if anything?"

 “Was there any other job that you wanted to pursue but couldn’t, If yes what was the
reason behind leaving the thought of the job you were passionate about?”

 "What would an ideal job look like for you?"

 “What is one job in the world that you would do for free?”

 "How do you feel about the possibility of changing jobs or careers?"

 As a therapist I will try to provide cognitive restructuring of their cognitive distortions and
provide them with career exploration activities.
 Session 6: Developing healthy coping mechanisms and Encouraging self-care.

 Objective: Replace unhealthy coping mechanisms with healthier alternatives, encouraging self-
care practices to improve overall well-being

 Probing Questions:

 "What do you think would help you manage your stress more effectively?"

 "How do you feel about reducing your coffee intake?"

 "What activities do you enjoy that help you relax?"

 "What self-care activities make you feel recharged?"

 "How can you incorporate these activities into your routine?"

 As a therapist I will provide the client with the schedule of behavioral activation, and also
develop a stress management plan, and tell the client to reduce their caffeine intake slowly and
gradually. I would also help the client do self-care planning, educate them on mindfulness and
meditation.

Session 7-8: Future Planning and monitoring progress

 Objective: To set short-term and long-term goals for personal and professional life and also
review progress, address challenges, and adjust strategies as needed.

 Probing Questions:

 "Where do you see yourself in five years?"

 "What steps can you take now to move towards your goals?"

 "How have you been feeling since our last session?"

 "What strategies have been most helpful for you?"

 "Are there any areas where you feel stuck or need more support?"

 As a therapist I will first create an action plan, review the progress the client has made till now
and would reinforce positive changes.

Session 9: Preparing for future Challenges

 Objective: To prepare the client for future challenges and discuss maintenance strategies.

 Probing Questions:

 "How can you prepare for potential setbacks?"

  "What challenges do you foresee in maintaining the progress you've made?"

 "What strategies will you continue to use to manage stress and maintain well-being?"

 As a therapist I will give a relapse prevention, and would give maintenance planning, and create
a long-term self-care plan.

If there is any information about the client that needs to be addressed and prioritized, I will address
it in the upcoming sessions.