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This is a recurring post that attempts to answer the questions that I, and other counselors had when we first started in the field. I sincerely hope this helps. Question: How do I know if I’m actually helping? First off, great question! Second of all, feeling inadequate as a clinician is a perfectly normal feeling…

Question: How do I know if I’m actually helping?
First off, great question! Second of all, feeling inadequate as a clinician is a perfectly normal feeling that is shared by the vast majority of clinicians starting out. Danielle Marquez, a soon to be LCSW and Sifi certified clinician answered this question for Mu Sigma Rho by emphasizing “honesty” as a major ingredient in creating effective therapeutic treatment. One first step could be practicing introspection and determining what is being elicited in you from your interactions with clients. Is it one client in particular or is this a general feeling? Ultimately, feedback helps alleviate your concerns; as in acquiring feedback regarding clinical outcomes from your supervisor, acquiring feedback directly from your clients, or acquiring feedback from yourself in the form of self reflection. In all these examples of feedback honesty will help you understand why you are feeling incompetent and if there is anything you can do about it. A generalized feeling of incompetence is often times associated with being a beginner in any new field so please also take this into account. Remember that when you sign on to this field you are agreeing to be a perpetual student therefore you will have fleeting feelings of incompetence. Try instead to re frame this by telling yourself that you are an investigator in search of better ways to serve others!