Mental Health
When looking for support in dealing with personal or professional issues, it can sometimes be difficult to identify exactly what support service would best suit your needs. With the amount of services available to employees, being able to discern the difference between an issue that requires mental health counseling vs social work can be incredibly helpful, and avoid the need for multiple referrals.
Let’s explore how counseling and social work operate – how they may be able to address your concerns, and why it’s important to seek out their services when you need them, even if you think your issue may be minor.
What is Counseling?
Counseling is a process that involves working with a professional counselor to help clients reach their goals, whether they be in terms of mental health, career, or educational goals. A counselor helps clients work through and overcome issues that may be giving their mental health and well-being challenges – say, for example, working with an individual who may have experienced a death in the family to help talk through the grief and stressors that a client may be having.
Typically, they will use sessions to help a client explore the challenges that they face – for example, this could involve talking about what the family member may have meant to their life, the stressors of dealing with family and friends as a result of this event, just as one example.
Over time, the counselor will provide support and guidance to work through the issue. This could involve exploring strategies to help improve well-being, providing an independent perspective on a situation, and more broadly allowing for a client to explore their feelings in a safe and independent environment. A counselor may not be able to solve every issue, but they can help provide the frameworks necessary to live a fulfilling and rewarding life while being able to deal with the complexities of difficult personal interactions.
What is Social Work?
Social work differs from counseling in that where a counselor may work on the needs of an individual, a social worker typically works as a professional problem-solver, particularly for those who experience disadvantages in society.
Social workers work in a variety of different settings, but their role is almost always identical – social workers aim to help vulnerable and disadvantaged communities work through challenges they face throughout their lives, acting as an advocate and support to help get through some of the more difficult moments.
For example, a social worker may work with individuals with mental health issues, to enable them to connect with services that they may not necessarily be aware of or comfortable speaking with on their own. They may work with communities that are culturally and linguistically diverse to help share vital information such as medical and transport services, and ultimately, social workers act as fierce advocates for their clients and communities.
How do Counselling and Social Work Differ?
Counseling and social work differ in a few key ways. Where a counselor may help a client work through issues that are making them experience mental health distress, such as the loss of a family member or a separation, a social worker instead works with disadvantaged sections of society to help them navigate the complexities of the public health and social security sectors.
As a personal tool, counseling can be incredibly powerful if you’re looking to work through a major life event and deal with those issues – counselors can provide valuable guidance and insight for major life moments such as separation, anxiety, and death in the family.
Social workers differ, as they are powerful advocates in their role assisting vulnerable groups in accessing the services they need. For example, this may involve an advocate providing support for a client who may not be able to make long phone calls, to advocating for improvements to local facilities so that communities can access them when required.
Both counselors and social workers form an invaluable segment of healthcare – as highly regarded support roles that can help people who need help get the support they need in a timely fashion. Social workers and counselors make a difference in the everyday lives of Americans – forming the secret, super workforce that makes a positive difference to the communities they’re a part of.
