Hope | Musings from the therapy room

For the last two months I have had the privilege of providing in person counselling sessions to clients from the rooms of Station Place, Wagga Wagga. I have reflected a lot on this journey so far, the impact I am able to have on others and indeed the impact others are having on me.

Offering in person counselling services from 12 Station Place, Wagga Wagga.

It has been an honour and a privilege to be able to support clients in this way. Clients come through the doors with many various concerns traversing the breadth of human experience. They come from a wide range of lived experience, family background, age and genders. They come with varied previous experiences of counselling and therapy. While there are so many differences in the clients that come through the door, there is one thing they have in common. Hope.

Maybe this sounds strange to you, dear reader. And I understand why. One of the hallmarks of depression, for example, is a sense of hopelessness. While can be true for many, the action of moving forward with counselling is a act of hopefulness. It can be the beginning of creating new thought patterns to challenge learned helplessness and our inner critics.

I have witnessed small glimmers of hope begin to blossom into plans for the future otherwise not enjoyed.

I have witnessed people begin to let go of anxieties that acted like anchors in their life and step forward with meaningful, values led actions.

I have witnessed people take despair and sit alongside the emotional experiences it creates to find a way forward based on the hope they have for their future.

All of these personal developments are important, worthy of celebration and earned.

As I reflect on this theme of hope, a thought crystalised fore me: Some people think that it is naive to hope, in the face of all that troubles us. But I disagree. To have hope in the face of hardship is an act of defiance.

For the people in the back:

"To have hope in the face of hardship is an act of defiance!"

To the clients I have worked with, thank you for your trust in me and for sharing your stories. It is truly an honour and one I don't take on lightly.

Hope is an act of defiance.

If you are in a place where you want to start stepping forward with hope and you're looking for a professional to partner with on this, don't hesitate to reach out.