Soul Centered Counseling

What is meant by the word Soul in Soul Centered Counseling?

Soul is defined here as the eternal, individualized aspect of each of us that is imbued with divine qualities and wisdom. Our souls have goals and purposes to achieve and lessons to learn just as the human aspect of ourselves do. These goals and purposes are often intertwined in complex ways that we do not always fully understand. Both our personalities and the aspect of us I am referring to as our soul influence our choices, life directions, and the ways we respond to life. Ideally as we continue to develop personally and spiritually our souls and personalities come into greater alignment with one another and are able to work in harmony. We are able to live more authentically and make choices that are in our best interest; Embodying and expressing the positive qualities of our soul more frequently and fully such as compassion, strength, joy, wisdom and so forth.

The focus of Soul Centered Counseling is the development and implementation of strategies to reach client-identified goals, such as enhanced connection with yourself, others, and your personal sense of divinity. There is also a focus on an enhanced sense of joy, peace, satisfaction with your life, and greater alignment with your sense of purpose.  The purpose of Soul Centered Counseling in a sense is two-fold. The first primary purpose is, to assist people in their spiritual development. The second primary purpose is, to view life circumstances from a spiritual perspective and to employ spiritually oriented techniques and methods to assist in addressing life issues and goals. The approaches taken in many ways will be dependent upon you, your goals, life issues, and personal beliefs. Some of the potential methods employed are mentioned below.

Soul Centered Counseling Methods and Goals

• Accessing inner guidance
• Exploring life circumstances from a spiritual perspective
• Exploring relationships and life circumstances as clues to the spiritual qualities you are working to cultivate.
• Prayer
• Exploring your life purpose and your spiritual mission
• Working with Angels and Ascended Masters
• Aligning your thoughts with the goals you wish to achieve
• The creation and use of affirmations
• Understanding and clearing karmic patterns
• Contributing to the greater good and finding a joyful path of service

Ministerial Counseling Versus Psychotherapy

I am an Ordained Healing and Counseling Minister in the Rays of Healing Church in Northern Virginia, a Non-Denominational Metaphysical Church which focuses on spiritual education and healing services. In addition to being a minister, I am also licensed in Virginia with training and experience in diagnosing and treating emotional problems. While there are some similarities between ministerial counseling and psychotherapy, they are very different activities and it is important that you understand the differences between them.  It is also important to understand that this is a separate and distinct service from psychotherapy and a separate role from that of a mental health professional. I am not operating as a mental health professional in this capacity.

Psychotherapy is a health care service and is usually reimbursable through health insurance policies. Psychotherapy typically operates under the medical model, offers mental health diagnoses, and corresponding treatments. This is not true for this ministerial counseling. What may be true is that both ministerial counseling and psychotherapy may utilize knowledge of human nature, mechanisms of change, and interactive counseling techniques in various ways.  The major differences between psychotherapy and our Soul Centered Counseling Services offered at Lumeria are in the goals, method, focus, and level of professional responsibility.  If you are primarily seeking assistance with mental health issues then it is most appropriate to pursue mental health counseling.

Soul Centered Counseling is not specifically intended to treat mental health diagnostic issues. However it is possible that certain types of mental health benefits may be gained through participating in Soul Centered Counseling such as an increased sense of peace, joy, and fulfillment in your life and a greater sense of your own strength and worth as a person and as a spiritual being. Another potential benefit is a renewed sense of enthusiasm about your life and the direction you are moving in. While our ministerial counseling cannot provide your mental health treatment, offer diagnosis, bill insurance and so forth, we do occasionally work with people who have mental health issues, such as depression or anxiety, who are usually seeking treatment from a mental health provider elsewhere. (In the same way, we do not offer medical care but may work with people who may have physical health issues from minor to acute.) 

It is also important to acknowledge that in addition to the potential benefits of ministerial counseling, there is also the possibility that discussing certain life issues may bring up painful feelings, as is true with any kind of counseling. Usually these feelings are passing and people ultimately feel better after expressing them. If these feeling should continue and you find they are difficult for you to handle you may contact me and together we will decide the best course of action.

If in our work together it becomes apparent that you may be dealing with significant mental health issues which would benefit from mental health counseling, I will recommend this to you. In some cases I may feel it necessary for you to pursue this in order to continue our work together, and may request your permission to have contact with your mental health provider. This is something that must be determined on a case by case basis and is likely to be an infrequent occurrence.

There are a few other issues that are important to review regarding ministerial counseling and psychotherapy. If you are seeking counseling for a matter with legal implications, that you may ultimately wish or need to testify in a court of law about, then in many cases it is in your best interest to receive counseling services from a licensed mental health provider. In addition, if you are actively suicidal, meaning you have a strong intent or desire to commit suicide then it is important to seek mental health treatment for this issue. There may be some cases where the services offered at Lumeria could work as an adjunct to your mental health treatment in support of your well being during a time when you are feeling suicidal or coping with other serious mental health concerns. However this must be discussed on a case by case basis and with the knowledge and agreement of your mental health provider.

How do I decide if Soul Centered Counseling is right for me?

Reading this informational overview should help to give you a sense of the purpose and focus of Soul Centered Counseling. If you have felt intrigued or drawn to finding out more, then this is a sign that it could be a fit. Of course one of the most important ingredients in any type of counseling is the fit between you and your counselor. If you are interested in inquiring about whether this might be something that would be appropriate and helpful to you we can begin with a phone consultation, followed by an initial consultation to meet each other and discuss your particular counseling interests and goals.  Provided it feels appropriate to both of us, we may continue with an extended discussion of your goals and issues and begin to formulate an initial action plan for our work together over 2-4 sessions.  After this point the focus would be on implementing that plan and revising it as needed to best meet your needs and goals. Some people may only feel the need to check in briefly, while others may wish to engage in more extended spiritual counseling work. Either can be appropriate.