Counselling (Non-gambling)

Programme Areas

Self help/ helpline, Mental health, Smoking cessation

Programme Type

Helpline / self-help - mental health, Peer / advocacy / group / family whānau support, Community based support - mental health, Face to face smoking cessation, Refugee / migrant

Regions

South Auckland, East Auckland, Wellington, North Auckland, West Auckland, Waikato, Central Auckland

Age Groups

Youth / Rangatahi, Adult / Pakeke, Older adult / Kaumātua

Referral Types

Self referral, GP, DHB clinical services, Corrections

Referral Process

Call 0800 862 342 or click here if you would like to refer yourself or someone else to Asian Family Services.

Description

Asian Family Services understand that most migrant families from Asian countries experience a high level of stress in their migration process because of the lack of language proficiency and a different culture from the host society. This situation causes some families serious relationship issues. Some people develop mental health issues such as anxiety, depression and so on. AFS provides two free counselling sessions for those who experience such health issues to help them to manage their difficulties and to succeed in their migration. 

What is counselling?
The word, counselling, is a foreign term for many Asian countries. Being unfamiliar with counselling can make Asian people hesitant to seek counselling help. Thus it is important for Asians to know about what counselling is and how it works. Counselling is a private and confidential process. You talk in confidence with an experienced, qualified professional who will work with you to help you find ways of coping that are helpful and lasting.

All the clinical staff in our agency are tertiary qualified and maintain professional memberships.
If you’ve never been to counselling before, it’s not unusual to feel anxious before the first meeting.  You are welcome to bring a support person along with you to your counselling sessions. For many people, the most helpful thing about counselling is to have someone they can trust to talk to about things that concern them.

The first appointment is usually between 1 to 1 ½ hours. At this appointment you and your counsellor will talk confidentially and find out how you can best work together.
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At this appointment you will also be asked to fill out some questionnaires, which give the counsellor an idea of how things are going with you. The information from the questionnaires is confidential.

Later counselling session is generally once per week or fortnightly for 50 minutes, depending on your needs.
People often ask how long they will need to come to counselling but this varies from person to person. With regard to how many counselling sessions you could have, your counsellor will guide you with this decision.