ABSTRACT
A patient with chronic pain not associated with terminal or life-threatening illness may be stuck in a vicious circle of pain, depression, and reduced mobility that seriously circumscribes their life. A "ripe" patient is someone who is exactly ready for counselling. People who have suffered childhood trauma are often left permanently emotionally and developmentally disabled. Many people suffer from phobias that are life-limiting and cause a great deal of distress. Sometimes a patient who is suffering from a mental illness, such as schizophrenia, but who is being adequately treated with medication, may need counselling for a specific event, such as depression, close bereavement, or other sudden life-changing or life-limiting event or transition. Vicarious traumatization is a situation that the counsellor of deeply traumatized patients can experience. Marion Crowley describes this process as psychic contamination, whereby the patient's emotional experience intrudes into our unconsciousness and that this occurs out of our awareness.
