The Merits of Peer Counseling

The best counselor for someone who needs a little help coping with, and eventually enjoying life, is someone who is going through the same experiences. Thankfully, there is an entire school of experts who actually align themselves with these ideas and can work with two people at the same time through a powerful, simplistic method. This unique method  of therapy is peer counseling. The expertise comes from experience.  

Peer counseling, also referred to as co-counseling, is the practice of two people counseling each other in which both people act as counselor for half of the session. Neither of these people need be qualified to be counselors in the sense that they have studied or have much experience in counseling, but both are very potent teachers and listeners as they relate to each other with the most effective teacher of all - similar experiences.

Although people who are trained in psychology and certified on paper to be therapists or counselors know much of the human mind , there is much more to truly effective counseling than this kind of factual knowledge. The key to catalyzing positive change in someone is through sincere empathy, which is achieved through similar experiences. Certified counselors often participate in peer counseling by acting as a referee of sorts.

Needless to say, a peer counseling session can offer many advantages over the traditional one-on-one or group therapy session. The exchange of roles and the mutual act of going through a healing process together diversifies and strengthens the experience of counseling immensely. 

The setting is also a very pivotal improvement from conventional therapy in a number of ways. As long as there is a genuine connection between the client and the counselor through experience, then the window to progress remains open. No one will ever know of what is divulged in peer counseling sessions other than the peers themselves, unless explicit permission is given. 

Everyone needs help at some point in their life. Peer counseling, especially with a trained psychologist on board, is a great way to seek solace and understanding in a non-traditional counseling session.

This post is brought to you by Argosy University. Drawing upon our more than 30-year history of granting degrees in professional psychology, Argosy University has developed a curriculum that focuses on interpersonal skills and practical experience alongside academic learning. Because getting a degree is one thing. Succeeding is quite another.