Editor:
While I empathize with Janice Williams’ unfortunate experience with an evidently fake psychological therapist (“Crucial need revisited,” May 11, 2018), it is important to note that Registered Clinical Counsellors are a different category from those she collectively vilifies as “gurus, miracle workers, fairy godmothers, and New Age control freaks.” It is up to the individual to find out what they’re signing up for in seeking out one or the other (that said, anyone fraudulently posing as an RCC is definitely breaking the law).
For example, I teach meditation and other highly effective, do-it-yourself methods that work for people trying to cope with normal feelings of stress, tension, anger or anxiety. I have a master’s degree in the social sciences, but not as a psychologist: I do not purport to diagnose, treat or cure any diagnosed medical or psychological disorder. Practitioners like me are coaches, not counsellors or therapists, who hold certificates in various coaching modalities that we have found beneficial in terms of our own personal development. As with everything else in society, consumers need to use diligence in determining the authenticity and professionalism of any service provider.
Joanie Higgs, Roberts Creek
