Hello, and welcome to Counselor Weekly! Thanks again for being part of the community!

So let's get to it!

Here's the short and skinny of today's newsletter:

• Meme of the Day

• Ethics Question

• Weekly Resource

• Interesting Articles

• Home Address Privacy Law

• Cat Photo

Today in history: on 11/22/2001, Pixar's Toy Story, the first entirely computer-animated feature-length film, was released and became a critical and commercial hit.

Until I have an official sponsor, looks like I'm the sponsor!

It’s live!

Find Your Supervisor is finally live! Just click HERE, or the photo above and it will take you right to the site. If you are an LPC Supervisor in Texas (sorry, starting in Texas only and will look at options for other states down the road), or a potential Supervisee looking for a Supervisor, this is the place for you! It's a directory for LPC Supervisors to market their services by listing their information so that potential Supervisees can connect with them and hopefully find a perfect match! If you have any questions, click REPLY to this email and I can answer any questions you have. Thanks again for allowing me this personal promotion! 🙏

Meme of the Day

Ethics Question 🤔

I recently spoke with a therapist that is supervising graduate level students with no degree or licensure as part of her role in a private practice. The private practice is charging $85 per session for clients to meet with graduate interns, and the practice retains the entire fee as graduate students cannot receive financial reimbursement for these services. The site also does NOT appear to specifically state the students are not licensed and have not completed a master’s degree, or that they are being supervised as part of an internship for their degree. It is reportedly stated in the informed consent agreement, but not on the site where clients pick a “counselor” and schedule an appointment.

What do you think? Ethical? Legal? Hit REPLY to this email to let me know what you think.

Interested in becoming trained in crisis counseling?

To become a Crisis Counselor volunteer, you will need to complete their free online mental health training. Over the course of 30 hours, you will learn reflective listening, collaborative problem-solving, and crisis management. You can train anywhere—in your PJs, in a coffee shop, whatever works for you! After completing training, volunteer Crisis Counselors commit to volunteering four hours per week until 200 hours are reached. Ideally, they expect you to fulfill your 200-hours volunteering commitment within one year. 

https://www.crisistextline.org/student-learning-program-slp/

Even if you have no desire to volunteer your time (which could be an excellent way to gain more direct hours if you’re an LPC Associate trying to complete your supervision), this training is an excellent, and FREE, opportunity to hone your counseling skills.

Case Study: Failure to Differentiate Between Counseling and Life Coaching

Many counselors have begun offering “coaching” services as well. This can lead to some very serious ethical/criminal situations.

Reducing Social Media Use Significantly Improves Body Image in Teens, Young Adults

This shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise… another reminder to help clients find alternative ways to spend time rather than scrolling social media.

The Long, Lonely Trek to Licensure

This article is an interesting perspective from a new counselor working towards full licensure and the stress of becoming a therapist.

Home Address Privacy Law

Message from the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council:

We are pleased to inform you that the 88th Legislature has recently passed SB510, allowing licensees the option to keep their home address private. As a result, the Council has implemented changes to its online licensing system, providing licensees with the ability to indicate whether their address of record is their home address.

If you are currently using your home address as your address of record and wish to maintain your privacy, we encourage you to take advantage of this new feature. To do so, simply log in to the online licensing system and navigate to the change of address function. Rest assured, you do not need to actually change your address; rather, you will be prompted to select whether your address of record is your home address.

Maintaining the privacy of your personal information is of utmost importance to us. With the implementation of this new system, you have greater control over what information is disclosed. By selecting the appropriate option, you can ensure that your home address remains confidential and only pertinent information is visible to the necessary parties.

We understand the significance of privacy and the peace of mind it brings, particularly when it comes to personal contact information. With our enhanced online licensing system, we strive to provide the utmost convenience and security to our valued licensees. Your satisfaction is our top priority, and we are committed to continuing to improve our services to meet your needs.

Sincerely,

Darrel D. Spinks - Executive Director

Buzz Lightyear Cat! Created with an AI image generator.