Instruction
You should respond to at least 1 other classmates’ posts. You must also consult and use at least one outside source and list the reference in the discussion and use it to support your answer to one or more of the questions. When asserting opinions, you must provide evidence from the text or another source as the basis for your opinion.
In my opinion having to consider abortion and going through the process is one markable decision that will stay with you for the rest of your life. Some personal characteristics of effective counselors from chapter 2 that would be helpful in this situation would be that effective therapists are authentic, sincere, and honest. Giving the financial situation of this family which already consists of two children, bringing another life to the world would need them to be financially stable enough to sustain and give them the time that they will require. Stating the facts and working the way up from there is the first step to take in order to solve the issue. Another personal characteristic that would be crucial is appreciating the influence of culture, this Latina woman has most likely been hearing her whole life that abortion should be abolished, when she mentioned that she and her husband “had” to get married because she had gotten pregnant clearly shows it. Understanding the culture that she comes from is a needed step in the process of getting her over this specific fear. Summarizing, mindfulness is a state of being aware, with acceptance, of thoughts, emotions, and sensations (Campbell & Christopher, 2012) and it is what this case needs to be properly addressed.
Some of the issues faced by beginning therapists that might become an issue for this specific case is first of all being aware of your countertransference, because abortion is such a controversial topic, personal thoughts should be left behind and the only focus should be on how I can help the client understand that feelings are inevitable and choosing the best decision for her and her family. A second beginner issue is declining to give advice, once again opting for abortion will forever shape your life, you would not want your clients to then be coming to blame you for the consequences of their actions. As therapists we should help clients to be independent enough to make decisions by their own, otherwise dependence on the therapist will increase and they will never learn to make their own decisions and face the consequences for such.
An ethical issue that needs to be consider in this, and all cases is informed consent, it builds a stronger relationship between the therapist and the client when they both are in the same page about the responsibilities and goals for each. The second ethical issue that cannot be left behind is confidentiality, clients should be aware that any information that is mentioned in sessions cannot be shared without their permission, this ethical issue also builds trust and a more rich client-therapist relationship.
