The counseling process involves the sharing of very
personal
information.
People will not feel safe discussing their situations and
feelings with
a counselor unless they are confident that their privacy
will be
respected,
and their issues will not be casually spread around.
Nonetheless, there
are times when sharing such information is appropriate, or
even
necessary.
Here are some clear instances:
Here are some borderline situations. You should
discuss these
with your client before you share their story with
others.
Finally, there may come times when you are under legal
pressure
to break your client's confidence. It's very important
that you become
familiar with applicable law where you live. In
situations like these,
you must weigh all possible legal and karmic
consequences and make your
best conscientious decision: Our strong suggestion is that you ponder these situations, and any others that you can recall or imagine, before they arise. How do you think you would respond to them? As you understand your own reactions, you can let your clients know where your limits are. This allows them to decide how much personal information they can comfortably share with you. As a rule, before sharing anyone's private information, always ask first! |
for a much more detailed treatment of
confidentiality
issues,
see Judy's essay "'Tis
evil luck to speak of it: secrecy and the Craft"
go back to
The address of this page is http://proteuscoven.com/counsel/conflim.htm
Copyright 2001, 2012 by Judy Harrow