Five Ways Counseling can Help your Relationships
Relationships can be so tricky. Each of us brings our own dynamics into every relationship, so each and every relationship is so unique. Sometimes, this creates a beautiful bond and other times, it creates chaos and anxiety. No two relationships are identical.
Take a moment to consider some of your best and worst relationships. We’re not just talking romantic, here. Are you remembering one particularly difficult relationship? Maybe it’s a coworker whose attitude you just can’t stand, or your spouse’s long lost cousin who is way too needy. Now think of a solid relationship in your life. Perhaps your mom has always understood you and listened to you, or a friend has always come alongside you in life’s difficult moments.
Each of the relationships you’re thinking about are so different from one another. Your two best relationships may fill your cup in two totally different ways! And on the flip side. two people that really grind your gears may aggravate you for completely different reasons. So, if all of your relationships are really so different, you might be wondering how counseling could be any help to you! Here’s a few ways that counseling can help your relationships:
You can only control you in your relationships.
This is probably the most obvious. Although it sometimes feels unfortunate, you’re the only person you can control in your relationships. If you don’t like the way a relationship is going, you can talk it through with your counselor, figure out what’s going on, and make an action plan for how to make things better.
You can learn what kinds of people you gravitate toward.
As you begin to consider what is working in some of your best relationships, you might begin to notice what characteristics you appreciate most in people, or what kinds of people are just easiest for you to get along with. Sometimes, all it takes is a moment’s thought.
You get a better idea of what kinds of people are hard for you to get along with.
The opposite is true here, too. If relationships are a struggle, maybe talking through some of them will help you highlight similar traits that you struggle to be patient with. Even better, you can talk through what makes them so difficult for you, which sometimes gives you more patience for those aggravating moments.
Your relationship with your counselor is like a safe practice relationship.
Your counselor is the perfect place to safely practice taking the risks you may not want to take with the foundational people in your day to day life. Afraid to express your opinion to a friend without hurting their feelings? Talk with your counselor about ways to say it gently, or even try a role play!
Your counselor may be able to give you insight about you!
This is the best one, in my opinion. Your counselor is always observing, and maybe they begin to notice after a few sessions that you seem to tread very lightly when you have a strong opinion, you hate to let others down, or you come on a little strong sometimes. Good counselors will help you to see these things in yourself and use them to your benefit, not your detriment!
So, there are lots of ways counseling can benefit your relationships! And this is certainly not exhaustive. Your relationship with your counselor is just another relationship amongst many in your life, so it can certainly be a place where you can grow as a person and as one half of a relationship.
