News

The Oregon Counseling Association stands with the Black community.

We stand with the Black Lives Matter movement and denounce the pervasive targeting and murder of Black people by police, as well as the systemic racism that condones such actions rather than condemning them.

We extend our deepest sympathies to the families of victims of police and racial violence, and our solidarity with those who fight against it.

We recognize the physical and psychological trauma perpetrated on the Black community by repeated acts of violence and the generations of oppression that continue to enable such acts. We are committed to fighting systemic oppression in Oregon and across the country. We recognize the physical and psychological trauma perpetrated on the Black community by repeated acts of violence and the generations of oppression that continue to enable such acts.

To our Black, Indigenous, and POC counselors and communities—we stand with you.

To our White counselors—we have work to do. It is not enough to say we support our colleagues, our friends, our clients, and our fellow humans in these times. It is imperative that we use our privilege to usher in real change.

The day we will not need riots to call attention to the system of inequality will be the day we are already listening, learning, and enacting our solidarity.

It is all of our work to undo anti-Blackness, dismantle White supremacy, and advance racial justice.

It is our deepest hope that all of us will recognize the unique position we hold as mental health professionals. We are the most qualified to help our clients, our neighbors, our friends, and ourselves deconstruct the narrative of hate that perpetuates this violence.

We urge White counselors and allies to explore these resources:

White Fragility by Robin DiAngelo
So You Want To Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
Me and White Supremacy by Layla F. Saad

103 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice
Resources for White People to Learn and Talk About Race and Racism

Please also consider exploring more resources at Anti-racism: Activism Resources, Education, and Stories by Minna Lee.

It is also imperative that government officials in Oregon understand the position they must take in response to these atrocities. Contacting your representatives to voice your concerns and to demand that the appropriate actions be taken is a vital part of this fight. Please visit Oregon Legislator Lookup and search with your home address to find your representatives’ contact information.

We at the Oregon Counseling Association want to express our deepest condolences to the community, families and friends of those killed in these horrendous shootings in El Paso, Texas and Dayton, Ohio.

As we move through the devastation of gun violence in our nation once again, it is inevitable that mental health and issues of access to mental health care will be drawn into the conversation. Often mental health is represented as the largest cause of such violence, when it is in fact often driven by racism, fear and hate. This violence has its roots in white nationalism and the divisiveness of white supremacy--not mental illness.

As mental health professionals, we cannot stand by and allow this to be misrepresented as an issue of mental health. We believe that it is important, especially in times of overwhelming tragedy, that we advocate for those with mental health needs. Individuals with mental illness cannot continue to be the scapegoat for these kinds of hateful acts. The characterization of this violence as a mental health issue will only further stigmatize mental health care and further discourage those who need resources to seek them out. While we recognize that there is a small percentage of violence that stems from issues of mental health, these were deliberate acts of hate and divisiveness. We are clear on where we stand. We must speak out against hate and stand in our determination to advocate for equity and justice.

One of our greatest strengths as a nation is our ability to unite in ways that show our hearts, our strengths, and our deep capacity for compassion. This requires us to have deep conversations about the reality of our country and the misinformation and fear that continues to drive the conversation around gun violence, immigration and terrorism. Such conversations require vulnerability, openness and a willingness to come to the table to discuss how to heal and create change. They require honesty about the roots of racism, white supremacy and fear. They require our best efforts in moving forward. We must take the values that help us in this field out into the world.

The Oregon Counseling Association seeks to support the communities impacted by these horrendous acts of hate and gun violence. For anyone affected by gun violence- we encourage you to seek help. The following resources are available:

https://everytown.org/momentsthatsurvive/resources/ 

https://everytownresearch.org/impact-gun-violence-american-children-teens/ 

https://www.counseling.org/knowledge-center/mental-health-resources/gun-violence-trauma-resources

Sincerely, on behalf of the ORCA board,

      Alana Ogilvie, president

I’m a Certified Grief Counselor (GC-C), and at any given time I have at least two clients who are experiencing grief. Loss can come in many forms: loss of a relationship, a family, a job, a home, a way of life, and, of course, loss through death. I support people on their journey through processing the losses in their lives. What happens, though, when the grief counselor is grieving? 

To read more, click here.

To be perfectly honest, the last few weeks have been difficult.  I’ve been edgy, agitated, grumpy, and just not myself.  I’ve mostly felt like a deflated balloon.  As the darkness has intensified so has my need to hibernate.  More accurately, isolate.  I’ve tried to use all of my coping tools, but nothing really worked.  There’s just been this underlying anxiety that has been vibrating at the core of my body.  I know a lot of you can relate to that feeling of anxiety that doesn’t really have a name or words, and yet it just doesn’t go away.  It’s real.  I kind of dropped off of social media, and I stopped spending time with my friends.

To read more, click here.

A lot of the time, this field is akin to detective work. We worry that our helpees are not being honest with us, or we wonder about which parts they’re hiding. “I’m smelling underlying trauma,” we say to one another, or, “Maybe a talk with the department head?” or, “I have to wonder if he’s using more often than he’s telling me.” This search for what’s real makes so much sense. We know how much of ourselves we’re concealing. We hide most of our unpleasant, nutso thoughts and our weird, compulsive behaviors because we know that if the world saw us as we really are, the world would reject us. We conceal ourselves in shawls of mindful, positive gratitude because the world is largely not a safe place. We strive to create a safe place in which our clients can actually access their experience and move toward ever-increasing congruence. We watch our clients for signs of dishonesty because we want to do all that we can to help them move into their authentic selves.

To read more, click here.

Recently I was asked to join a listserv debate about whether it is legal for anyone other than a licensed psychologist to use the title “psychotherapist.” There were some psychologists, LCSWs, LPCs and LMFTs on the listserv who were honestly confused because the psychology statute in Oregon explicitly states that only psychologists can use the term “psychotherapist.” This kind of thing pops up on the Oregon Psychological Association listserv every few years and typically a great deal of confusion and hurt feelings arise.

To read more, click here.

Given the developments we saw in the world of social media in 2018, it’s a wonder we’re still using the big networks like Facebook and Instagram. Not only are people all over the world just as active as ever in posting dinner pics and political memes, however, but more and more therapists are using social networks to enhance and assist their practices.

To read more, click here.

My father and stepmother sat at one end of the table, my grandma beside them and my siblings, our significant others and I had claimed the benches and nooks and crannies around the remaining edges of the dining room table. We had a pretty amazing feast laid out for Christmas dinner, everyone having done their part to ensure that all, including the gluten-intolerant, vegans and vegetarians among us, would not go unsatisfied over the holiday. We opened Christmas crackers and wore the paper crowns as we ate, shared stories, took jabs, and laughed at times gone by and exciting things for the future...

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It’s the New Year.  It’s a perfect time to reflect on events in the old year; what to let go of and what to bring forward into 2019...

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On Friday, January 18th, ORCA hosted the first ever Counselors of Color Reception. More than 50 counselors, social workers, psychologists, counseling students and counselor educators who identify as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) gathered for an evening of community, celebration, and support...

To read more about this event, click here.