Introduction: What is a Counselling Psychologist?

Whenever the word 'Psychologist' or "Counsellor" is mentioned, people automatically picture a distressed patient lying on a couch while someone middle aged and bespectacled stands over them with a clipboard asking "And how does that make you feel?"
Contrary to this belief, Counselling Psychology i much more than that.
Counselling Psychology originally began as a result of World War II due to the demand for vocational placement and training.
It is a psychology speciality in which expertise in therapeutic healing through counselling and thorough knowledge of the client-counsellor relationship is required. Generally they deal with less serious issues than those dealt with by clinical psychologists, such as relationships or personal problems.
Most commonly they provide counselling to mentally healthy people who wish to improve their lives and relieve there stress by having someone to confide in, or to people coping with emotional problems due to events in their personal lives. They have many different methods of healing and talking with their clients without prescribing any medication.
Counselling Psychologists must work to accept and respect all clients without passing judgement, regardless of race, colour, gender, sexual orientation, religion,or age, though they ARE interested in these variables from a socio-cultural point of view.
Counselling Psychology is just one of many specialist areas of psychology.