Thank you John McLeod for outlining so clearly your vision for the future of counselling. A lot of your description articulated how I view my own practice and so I was taken aback when you surmised that 90 per cent of readers would disagree with you. I was fortunate to be trained on an integrative course and qualified 10 years ago. Since then I continue to study via private study and shorter courses and have added, among other things hypnotherapy and EFT to my repertoire. Most importantly I continue to learn from clients and collaborate with them. I believe it is crucial for counsellors to be open to finding the most helpful way to work with an individual rather than believing that one method will work for all.
 
My only disagreement was with your support for counsellors working as volunteers which I did myself to gain sufficient hours. We follow intense and demanding training and work with clients who have often had very damaging and distressing experiences. Why should we do this work for free?
 

Julie Perry