WHAT IS GROUP COUNSELING?  Group counseling involves a small group of people (usually 6-10) who meet together weekly, along with one or two trained members of the Counseling Center staff, to talk about their struggles and problems.  These groups can take a variety of forms.  Some focus on a specific topic or problem, while others address a number of different concerns.

WHAT MAKES GROUP COUNSELING WORK?  When people come into a group and interact freely with other group members, they tend to recreate those difficulties that brought them to counseling in the first place.  Under the skilled direction of the group facilitators, the group is able to give support, offer alternatives, or gently confront an individual.  In this way, the difficulty is resolved, alternative behaviors are learned, and the individual develops new social skills or ways of relating to people.  Group counseling has been found to be a very effective means of treatment and, in some cases, the best form of treatment for a particular individual or a particular type of concern. 

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF GROUP COUNSELING?  In a group, you can: 

Learn more about how you are perceived by others.

• Experience a sense of acceptance and belonging.
• Discover that you are not alone in the difficulties you are experiencing.
• Hear ideas from others which enhance your ability to make decisions and solve problems.
• Benefit from the experience of being helpful to others.
• Learn to constructively express your feelings and ideas to others.
• Gain encouragement by observing the successes of others.

WHAT ABOUT CONFIDENTIALITY?  The responsibility for confidentiality is shared among the group leader(s) and all group members.  Every member of each therapy group at the Center is required to sign an agreement to adhere to these rules of confidentiality.  In signing this agreement, group members make a personal pledge that nothing occurring in the group, including names of other group members, will be shared with anyone outside of the group.  These rules are critical to the development of a safe, respectful, and trusting atmosphere which allows individuals to openly share their feelings.

INTERESTED?  If you feel you could be helped by participating in a group, please call the Center at (202) 274-6000 or stop by our office to arrange an initial interview with a counselor who will place you in the most suitable group.