Use of Self

Running head: USE OF SELF
USE OF SELF
Name of the student:
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1
USE OF SELF
The concept of the therapeutic of self can be found to be quite prevalent both in the
humanistic as well as in the relational approaches towards counseling and psychotherapy. The
term “use of self” is mainly found to refer specifically to the different types of ways in which a
therapist can draw upon his own feelings, personality as well as experiences so that they can
enhance the therapeutic process. One of the famous study conducted by Wokset (2016) states
that “Use of self involves the operationalisation of personal characteristics so that they impact on
the client in such a way as to become potentially significant determinants of the therapeutic
process.” I have learnt that in order to work in an ethical manner and in the best interests for the
clients, the therapist use of self needs to be employed thoughtfully as well as with the therapeutic
intent. It is important for the therapist to be not only reflective but also reflexive in their
approach (Strong et al., 2015). I believe that in order to use ourselves in the therapeutic
relationship, I need to develop and thereby nurture my attributes of self-awareness. I have come
to understand that if our responses and the patterns remain outside the domain of our awareness,
we would not be able to reflect on how they might be detrimental or useful in the different
therapeutic process established with the clients. I have realized that many of our feelings as well
as experiences happen to be outside our conscious awareness. I have understood that with the
process of self-reflection, I would be able to identify the previously unacknowledged thoughts
and feelings to my awareness. This would help me to be able to realize my personal attributes
that can hinder or promote the therapeutic relationship with the client ultimately helping the
client to feel empowered and encouraged without feeling judged (Stuck et al., 2015).
Role-playing can be explained as a form of game where the participants assume the role
of specific characters and participate in stories with each of them bound to play their specific
roles of the characters as done in real life scenarios (Bhargava & Sriram, 2016). While