Attending your first counselling appointment can feel daunting. If you’ve never seen a counsellor before, you might have no idea what to expect. Even if you have been to a counsellor in the past, you might feel anxious about meeting someone new and not knowing how they work. Getting over the hurdle of making your first appointment can be really challenging, so let’s paint a picture of what your first appointment at Fairy Wren Counselling will look like.

The single most important factor in whether your counselling journey will be a success is the quality of the therapeutic relationship. It’s really important to begin building that relationship right away, so that you feel safe and comfortable. People often come to counselling to discuss issues that are painful and difficult to talk about and it takes time to open up about these things. So in our first session, the focus is on building a sense of safety and trust.

If you’re having an in-person appointment, We’ll walk to my consulting room and ask you to choose where you’d like to sit. There’s a choice of a comfy couch or a table and chairs, and you can take your pick. If we’re connecting online, we’ll take a few moments to make sure that you can see and hear me clearly and then we’ll begin the session.

The first thing we’ll do is go over the service agreement, which will have been emailed to you prior to your first appointment. This agreement contains guidelines which are intended to protect your privacy and rights as a client. We’ll talk about things like confidentiality, how your information is stored, how you can end counselling if you don’t want to continue and other important points. You’ll have an opportunity to ask any questions you might have about the agreement or counselling in general. Asking questions is encouraged so that you can be clear on any points you don’t understand, which will help you to feel more comfortable.

Once the paperwork is done, we’ll begin the counselling process. The most important part of the first appointment is for me to gain an understanding of what’s brought you to counselling. We’ll talk about what’s been going on in your life and what you’re struggling with. I might ask you questions to dig a little deeper or clarify anything that might be important. You don’t have to talk about anything that you don’t want to, and the counselling process will move at your pace. Counselling is a collaborative process, so this part of the conversation helps me to understand what it’s like to walk in your shoes so that we can work from your perspective. 

The next thing we’ll do is talk a bit about what you’d like to get out of counselling. Once you’ve told me what it’s like to live in your world and the areas of difficulty, I’ll ask you some questions about how you’d like things to be different. This gives our sessions focus and helps me to understand what you need from me. Counselling is centered around the client’s needs, and talking about what you want to get out of counselling makes sure that we’re working towards the goal that matters most to you. 

More often than not, this is where we’ll end the first session. I’ll sum up what we’ve chatted about and check in with you that I’ve understood you correctly. We typically end the first session by choosing what we’re going to work on in the next appointment. I’ll make a note of this so that we can pick it up next time. Of course, this isn’t set in stone. If you decide you’d like to work on something different in your next appointment, then we can change our focus to suit your needs.

The first counselling session is typically quite relaxed, and usually involves a lot of talking around your background, what’s happening in your life right now and what you’d like to achieve with counselling. My clients say that they often feel “lighter” after their first session because the simple act of talking things through with someone can be really powerful. It’s quite unusual that we get the chance to speak to someone about our thoughts and feelings while they listen without interrupting or waiting for their turn to talk. Laying everything out on the table and knowing that you’ve got support to move through your challenges can be so comforting.  Hopefully, you’ll leave your first session feeling like you’ve been heard, supported and understood. 

If you’re ready to begin your counselling journey, you can book an appointment with me right now. If you’d like to ask any questions or see if I’m a good fit for you, I offer 10-minute phone or video consultations with new clients, free of charge. Initial consultations can be booked by sending me an email at fairywrencounselling@gmail.com.