“I am not what happened to me, I am what I choose to become.”

— Carl Jung

Commitment, Participation and Continuity: The Anatomy of Effective Counselling

After weeks of mounting pressure - assignments piling up, sleepless nights, constant comparisons, and that quiet but familiar voice whispering, “You’re falling behind” - Elara finally paused. One evening, after another breakdown behind a closed door, she booked a counselling session. Not because she had a plan, but because she needed to breathe.

“Maybe just talking to someone will help,” she thought.

To her delight, the first session seemed to make a difference. There were tears. Long pauses. A lump in her throat that she hadn’t acknowledged in weeks. But when she walked out, the world still looked the same. Inside, she knew:

“This isn’t enough. I don’t just want to vent—I want to grow.”

That’s when her counsellor gently said:

“Talking is cathartic. Counselling begins when you participate.”

Elara was introduced to distress tolerance skills over the next few weeks. They were strategies that helped her manage storms without spiralling. These practices gave her the emotional breathing room she desperately needed. Slowly, as she began showing up more openly and consistently, she noticed something deeper unfolding:

The 3 Cs of Counselling Success + Takeaway that helped Elara grow were the following:

1. Client’s Commitment

Elara learned that change requires patience, practice and participation:

✍️ Active Participation: She started bringing reflections, not just emotions.
🎯 Goal Setting: “I want to stop overthinking before tests” became her first real goal.
🪞 Self-Reflection: She began noticing how her thoughts affected her mood.
🧠 Openness to Change: She embraced the discomfort that change brought. She gradually moved beyond her comfort zone in order to grow.
🛠 Practice: Mental health became her priority and mindful breathing, journaling, being aware and accepting her emotions, became a daily task
📣 Feedback: She spoke up about what worked and what didn't, openly sharing her objective feedback with the counsellor.

2. Collaboration

Elara and her counsellor worked together—not just to talk, but to identify thought patterns, emotional loops, and the goals she cared about.

3. Counsellor’s Role

The counsellor brought a toolbox: breathing techniques, grounding methods, and mindset reframes, but Elara had to try them out—off the couch, in real life.

In the process, She learnt that growth is not a Quick Fix:
Elara did not “graduate” from counselling after one revelation, but she became more grounded, more present, and far more kind to herself. And now, when she walks to class she finds herself smiling to herself frequently —not because everything is perfect, but because she has made a profound discovery. In her own words,

“I’m not rushing to be better—I’m learning to be real.”