Counseling involves working with a variety of individuals and their everyday problems in individual, family, or group settings.

CLINICAL AND COUNSELING PSYCHOLOGY are two of the largest and most popular fields in psychology. Clinical and counseling psychologists deal with the causes, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of individuals with psychological problems. These problems vary considerably as to their degree of severity. Although very similar, clinical and counseling psychologists differ with respect to the disorders of the patients they treat. Typically, clinical psychologists treat more severe disorders, such as phobias, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia. On the other hand, counseling psychologists work with patients suffering from everyday stresses, including career planning, academic performance, and marriage and family difficulties.

Clinical and counseling psychologists can be found working in individual practices, schools, colleges and universities, hospitals, and other mental health facilities. The particular method of therapy utilized by each clinical and counseling psychologist is often influenced by the theoretical orientation they adhere to. There are a total of over 200 theoretical orientations, each providing a different explanation behind the causes of psychological disorders and their appropriate treatments. Some orientations are more popular than others; however, most psychologists integrate two or more into their therapy. Furthermore, some theoretical orientations are better at explaining and treating certain disorders more than others. Regardless of their orientation preference, clinical and counseling psychologists are trained to assist a variety of individuals and their emotional difficulties.

Counseling in the areas of:

abuse (emotional/physical/sexual)

aging

blended families

chronic health

depression

first nations

life transitions

pet loss

retirement

stress

addiction

anxiety

career

conflict

divorce/separation

greif

parenting

post traumatic stress disorder