Let's Talk

I recently saw an informational video discussing different ways Americans talk depending on where they are from. The video discusses some characteristics of speech from Kentucky, Ohio, and Texas. It talks about how those in Kentucky tend to wait before getting down to the point of what they need to talk to someone about. It also showed the southern accent characterized by those from Kentucky. When looking at Ohio, some people discussed the fact that they have no accent. The communication is more direct and at a faster pace than that of Kentucky. In Texas, they talked about how people were constantly wanting to talk to each other. The language they demonstrated was very direct and matter of fact. It was also characterized by the typical Texan drawl. The video is very in interesting in how it demonstrates the differences in communication patterns in people from different places within the United States of America. It is a very interesting phenomenon that those within the States have different forms of communication.
This may seem like an odd subject for this course, but just as those in America have different forms of communication depending on where they are from, each counselor has a different approach to the counseling setting that is influenced by their background. We have read many different books in this class and each of these authors have a different perspective on what causes psychological dysfunction and how to help heal those dysfunctions. These perspectives come from the experiences the authors have had in their life and based off what they have seen in the counseling setting. None of the authors we have been reading are necessarily wrong, and this is what we are learning. Each of these theories we have been reading about this semester can be used to approach counseling with unique individuals whose own experiences affect how they view and respond to circumstances surrounding them. What may help one person who is experiencing depression, may not help another person dealing with depression. It is through learning different theories of development, the source of problems, and how to help those overcome the problem.
I at first was very confused as to why we had to read so many different theories on Christian counseling. I agreed for the most part with what the authors were saying, however, not to the extent the author was trying to suggest their theory could be used. Then it began to dawn on me that we are learning different ways to handle problems because we are unique individuals who, because of our past experiences, have different perspectives. By learning how to approach counseling from different perspectives, we learn how to approach counseling from the unique perspectives of each client. My past experiences help me to understand this to a greater extent. My family moved from Kentucky into Ohio many, many years ago. To this day, my family still holds some forms of communication through the words we choose to use that shows the difference between my upbringing in Kentucky and Ohio. I understand that we all have different ways we communicate and look at the world around us. In counseling, I must see the world through the clients eyes, something I may consider insignificant, may be very significant to my client. This is one of the main things I am learning this semester.