Workshop Mania!

Counselling is something that I have wanted to do for many years now. I had the opportunity to attend a couple counselling workshops over the last 2 months and they were fantastic! It was very cool to meet people who are in the counselling field, as well as people who are interested in becoming counsellors. The workshops were free and offered through Stenberg College. My amazing landlord gave me the article in the newspaper about them and I am so glad that I got to go! There were 4 workshops offered each with a different topic.

The first one I went to was called Sexual Awakening. I am someone who gets very nervous talking about sex and I make it super awkward. But that's how I was raised and the culture I was surrounded by. This workshop was fantastic because right off the bat, the man running the workshop made it so it was not taboo. He was so relaxed and presented it as a natural, normal, let's get rid of the stigma attitude. I didn't think that I would get as much out of it as I did. It was fascinating to learn how the presenter works in sex therapy with clients, but I think I took more out of it for my personal life. In not being afraid to say what I like and

Too much text not enough pictures!

don't like and express things to a future partner. That sex is not something to be ashamed of or be afraid to talk about.  For me, being single right now and getting back into the dating life, I think it is incredibly important to be able to talk to your partner about sex. It is not easy and I know I've stumbled along the way so far, but just trying to be open and making it a conversation before is something that I took from this workshop to try. I was raised in a place that had an incredibly high teen pregnancy rate because it was so against the culture to talk about sex or tell your kids how a baby was made. No one learned and when the sex ed classes came up in school, most kids skipped or were exempt for religious reasons and those are mostly the kids who wound up having kids at 16. And this is how I have viewed sex for the longest time. This workshop definitely made me feel like I can be vocal about it. That I can tell a new partner that I don't like something or want to to try things. That it is totally normal. I am so proud of myself for taking that step out of my safety bubble and going to this workshop in the first place, and learning so much about myself was a huge bonus. 

The second workshop I went to was Art Therapy. I was curious to see how art is used in therapy. Art in painting, colouring, music etc. The woman presenting talked about the differences in how a person who is left brained or right brained will present the art. Whether being more defined in lines and colours or being more abstract. She worked mostly with adults in Art Therapy which I didn't really think was a thing. I thought it was used with children and youth. It is very typical to use a form of talk therapy with adults, that it is wonderful to see that there are other options. It isn't always easy to put into words how you are feeling or thoughts. With art you can express so much more, through colours, shapes and designs. I was intrigued with learning more about Art Therapy. I have been interested in Play Therapy since I learned about it in my diploma program and it is something that I want to pursue once I get my Masters. But Art Therapy didn't even cross my mind. The presenter was great and it got me thinking about if I am more left brained or right brained or somewhere in the middle. 

I am so grateful for the opportunity to go to these workshops and learn about other counselling methods. Both of these workshops got me thinking about places to pursue as I work towards my Masters. It is interesting to me to see how much a workshop about counselling can get me to look so much at myself and things I do and things I want to incorporate into my life. 

With all that in mind, have a happy Monday and a wonderful week! I am enjoying the beautiful sunshine while it lasts here in Vancouver!

Song of the Day: Never Going Back Again by Fleetwood Mac (an oldie but a goodie!!)