Russ Webb - Insight Counselling Services

My practice to focus on the goals of the client and help them reach their goals. Many times the goal is to start to feel better as they may be struggling with depression, anxiety, stress, substance misuse, addiction, trauma, relationship problems, anger, loss, and grief or difficulties in managing what is happening in their lives. Many times people are unaware of the transitions that are happening in their lives and don't recognize that every transition starts with loss. But if the loss is not recognized and validated, it becomes misinterpreted in the context of their life. It is important to me to address what is most important to the client and to understand and empathize to ensure that they feel heard and validated in their process. However, after trust has been established, it is just as important to challenge negative thinking patterns or ineffective behaviours that do not work for them and open up new ways of seeing the world, encouraging experimentation with new ways of interacting with the world and with themselves. For couples, I need to be able to connect and build a positive relationship with each individually and also as a couple. My approach is to understand how their individual issues may be contributing to the negative dynamic they find themselves caught in with each other. Relationship problems can sometimes be addressed by improving communication between them, but many times their individual pasts can interfere with building trust, communicating their needs effectively, and developing a sense of "we" rather than "you and me". Negative patterns need to be challenged by experimenting with new behaviors that automatically change the old dynamics and relationship interaction. Couples counselling is a valuable investment in improving the connectedness and meaning of the relationship.