Rarely do people stop to think of mental health unless they are forced by circumstances. In my case mental institution is a topic that always fascinates me because I have been around people who happen to have mental problems, I find them very interesting, and I would love to help them in any way I possibly can.
Mental health institutions are like asylums that are modernized to cater to patients that are psychologically affected or their brains do not function properly causing them to behave in a peculiar manner that is not pleasing or are commonly termed as mad. These institutions take these people as their patients and help in treating or in teaching them ways by which they can live comfortably with normal people. This is very important since the burden is lessened for the families who are responsible for them. Some of the patients are simply just slow in understanding things and require an environment where things are moving at the same pace with them.
The major employees of a mental health institution are the counselors, they are not the only ones but are very important to the institution and they have to be licensed that is, they should have studied for the particular course and be very knowledgeable about it too. They are very important because they find out what is wrong with the patient since they all don’t suffer from the same ailment.” A mental health counselor provides mental health and substance abuse care to millions of people” (American Counseling Association, 2006). Delivering the news to the family members and friends that they might have symptoms of mental illness can be such a huge blow and might cause them to act irrationally. So the counselors are there to advise the patients and family members and to give them hope too this is known as therapy. The counselor should be well experienced in this field as it might be difficult to convince the family members to accept the patient as they are.
The course that I am currently undertaking may be advantageous to me as they are almost in the same line of work. I am currently pursuing MS in Mental Health Counseling. I have already finished a course in clinical psychology studies. Studying Mental Health Counseling has influenced my life in a great manner because I thought it did not involve a lot of energy. I have come to learn it involves almost all my energy that is in the form of one’s personality and determination. One may feel compelled to quit at the beginning but I decided to continue for this is my passion. In psychology, I am beginning to understand how a human being’s mind works and I think it is very important to know this as a counselor.
I am able to listen to people without judging them and giving them advice, back while I was still in school I was one of the leaders in the guidance and counseling team. This way I was able to help many of the students into helping them make the correct decisions and guiding them too. Responsibility is one of the aspects that came with being a leader in the guidance and counseling, which also helped me a lot later on life. I can also be able to work well under pressure and still produce the desired results.
While undertaking my course in Mental Health Counseling I have been able to develop my abilities such as; being patient with the patients. Patients can be very stubborn and reluctant to do things sometimes they are very rude and one has to be very patient and understanding with them, which I am now very good at. Sometimes I am inclined to deliver devastating news to relatives and friends, at the beginning, this was very difficult for me but in time I mastered the skill and was able even to offer advice and counsel them too, which can be very comforting to them at the moment.
When one offers their services to people without expecting any payment but from the goodness of your heart, it requires you to have a lot of determination and strength. I would know this for I had once worked in an organization that assisted the clients with registration, resume writing, job searches, veteran benefit information and provision of employment details. Sometimes it was hard having to deal with mature adults who sometimes acted like little children due to frustrations associated with job search. Some of them were just arrogant and rude but after some listening and talking to them, they seemed more calm and at ease with us. It was all worth it because at the end of the initiative, they looked better and it was wonderful knowing I had helped in shaping someone’s life.
When mental instability strikes a loved one, it changes one’s life forever. Four years ago a dear friend of mine was involved in a really nasty accident. Although he recovered from the bruises and broken limbs, he suffered a severe trauma that left him mildly insane. Many visits to the doctor’s office did not do him much good but instead with time he worsened. At first, it was unacceptable to me to believe that such a misfortune could occur but came to accept it later on. The parents were reluctant to enroll him in a mental institution either out of denial or mere embarrassment. Persistence from relatives and friends finally bore fruit and the parents placed him in a private institution recommended to them by a family doctor. It took quite some time but he started getting better, he could remember people’s names and other little things. This incident changed my life for the better and I wanted to be involved in this process of making peoples lives better.
Although I have always wanted to have a career that involves making other peoples lives better, this incident confirmed to me that being a mental health counselor was something that I had great passion for and it is what I want to invest my time in.
Becoming a licensed mental health counselor is very serious and demanding and one is required to have the needed qualifications. As much as I want to have a bachelors degree in psychology and put it into practice and good use after I finish studying, I also want to have a career as licensed counselor.
The licensing of a mental health counselor is very important as the work itself is delicate and requires many skills. Since it involves patients, the responsibility of their lives will be in your hands one will have to be very qualified to handle this type of work, and one should have the understanding of the work he/she is doing. Hence, licensing will require a lot of consideration and some amount of time, because it is not just given to anybody.
Licensure involves training and the time taken in training varies depending with the state in which one is located. As for me coming from Michigan state I will be required to invest 4000 hours of my time in training(Dilillo, Degue, Cohen & Morgan, 2006) Which I don’t mind because after the training I will emerge more experienced. Some states also require one to be observed during training to check whether they are doing as required of them. The observation is mainly done by the experienced staff that works for the institution sometimes those that does not work for the institution but are equally experienced.
In conclusion, I will be willing to devote my time fully into these programs and any other training required if necessary. My greatest passion is in working as a counselor in a mental health institution and work done when there is passion is usually done very well and in the best way possible. I believe I have what it takes to be a good counselor and my skills would be very beneficial to many and I will be helping them.
Reference
Dilillo, D. , Sarah, D. , Lee, M,. & Robert, M. The path to licensure for academic psychologists: How tough is the road. Professional psychology: Research and practice, 37, 567-586. Web.
American Counseling Association. 2006. Who are licensed professional counselors. Web.