How to Counsel Mental Abuse

Mental abuse is just as serious and debilitating as physical abuse. The emotional and psychological trauma that mental abuse can cause should not be overlooked and should be dealt with in an empathetic and intelligent way. Learn how to counsel individuals who have undergone mental abuse to help them to understand and heal from the trauma of their tragic experiences and begin to live a healthy and fulfilling life.

Instructions

• 1

  Become well versed on various therapeutic models to deal with mental and psychological abuse. Read up on the most effective therapeutic forms such as feminist therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and humanistic approaches so you can help someone with the trauma associated with mental abuse.

• 2

  Determine the length and severity of the mental abuse. Give the client an inventory or get a full history to provide you with insight on how deep the trauma has gone. Be empathetic and gentle when getting information from the client. This person may have trouble trusting other individuals or difficulty in discussing the specifics of her particular situation.

• 3

  Listen attentively to his story. Take notes on various cognitive distortions, suicidal thoughts, delusions or low self esteem issues that you hear. Make sure you get an accurate read for how stable the person is and provide him with adequate assurance that you will help him heal.

• 4

  Give the client periodic inventories to assess the patient's depression and anxiety, which needs to be managed effectively to prevent self harm or psychosis. Beck's Depression Inventory is typically used and is quite effective in determining the severity of depressive symptoms.

• 5

  Be aware of subtleties of mental abuse such as yelling, name calling or even creating illusions of fear: "no one else will love you" or "if you really loved me you'd do such and such." This behavior is a typical though subtle sign of mental abuse, but it isn't usually regarded as serious. Help the person to reintegrate positive self messages by giving her exercises in self esteem and confidence.

• 6

  Empower the client and give him the tools to make positive decisions. Make sure that you are careful not to make her dependent on you or anyone else. Be an advocate for his positive self care and self esteem. Allow him to make his own decisions, which is very important for clients with a long history of mental abuse.