Psychosocial counseling is a service provided by a skilled professional psychologist or counselor to an individual, family, or group for the purpose of improving well-being, alleviating distress, and enhancing effective coping skills.

Any individual who is going through any kind of distress, feeling unhappy or disturbed in any way, having physical or mental health related issues, unable to meet a goal, inconsistent in behaviours, having issues in relationship followed by moods swings or simply feeling confused about something or the other and looking for appropriate guidance in decision making can seek psychological counseling.

Psychology is the scientific study of the human mind and behaviour. Individuals who practice Psychology are known as Psychologists and study how human beings think, behave and feel in different social settings. They are experts in human behaviour. Psychiatry is a branch of medicine that deals with the treatment of mental illness, emotional disturbances, and abnormal behaviour. Psychiatrists look at biological, neurological and biochemical abnormalities to diagnose mental illnesses and prescribe medications to treat them.

Psychologists primarily utilize different types of therapies to manage symptoms and help their patients cope with their life problems. They are also qualified in conducting psychometric tests, which evaluate a person’s mental state and personal attributes to determine the right course of action for the patient.

In a typical mental health care setting, the work of therapies is generally taken care of by Psychologists. However, if the mental health condition of the client requires pharmacological intervention at any point of time, the psychologist can recommend him/her to seek consultation from a Psychiatrist. For example, if a client is suffering from Mild Depression or infrequent episodes of mood swings, psychotherapy will lead to good prognosis. Whereas if a client is suffering from Severe Depression and recently attempted suicide, a Psychiatrist will take charge and first prescribe anti-depressant medications to the person to manage the suicidal tendencies and make the person more open to talking and treatment. After stabilisation, the psychologist would start the therapy to get to the root cause of the person’s difficulties and help them manage their negative thoughts and emotions. Thus, consulting a psychologist does not mean that taking medicine is compulsory. However, psychologists and psychiatrists often work together in many mental health-care settings to help patients heal better.

There are times when things get rough and tough for us and we look up to someone with whom we can discuss our problems and reach solutions. The first people we look to are our near and dear ones, however, when things continue to be unmanageable even after confiding to close ones, one must seek professional help. Usually one comes to a Psychologist for consultation through referrals (which can be through all kinds of medicine practitioners, family physicians, paediatricians, dietitians, school teachers, special educators, non-psychological guidance counselors etc.) or through social suggestions (friends and family who have consulted someone). But, if someone is aware enough about the kind of distress he/she is going through, professional help can also be sought without any referrals.

Yes, you can, but it will be just a guidance and not an intervention with long term effect. This is because psychological counselling or therapeutic intervention works best if the client is proactive and ready to take the onus of self healing.

Yes, of course. It has been often observed that children exhibit disruptive behaviours due to various reasons like developmental issues, low cognitive skills, academic issues, anxiety, trauma and many more leading to emotional disturbances. But they are unable to identify the cause and hence unable to manage the situations themselves. In such cases, psychologists provide child-based therapeutic interventions and remedial guidance to children as well as parents at intervals.

Every individual has entirely different life stories and hence every therapeutic plan is tailor-made. But no change can happen overnight, so one has to be patient and regular in availing the consultation. To observe significant changes, one has to undergo the process at least for 3 to 6 months with intervals of 10 - 15 days on average, but again it varies from client to client.

It depends on the intensity of the difficulties one is going through.