Crisis counsellors are essential to supporting people in crisis, providing emotional and practical support for those dealing with trauma. This caring, therapeutic role is intended as an intervention to help those going through difficult times and requires compassion, empathy and knowledge of mental health. If this sounds like a career for you, then explore our career guide below to find out how to become a crisis counsellor in Ireland and make a difference in the lives of others.
What does a Crisis Counsellor do?
Crisis counsellors are a vital support line for people experiencing a crisis with their mental health. This can be due to a rapid mental health decline, domestic violence, addiction, trauma, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sexual assault or any number of factors that contribute to acute mental distress. As a crisis counsellor, you would meet with clients one-on-one, either in person, online or over the phone, help them work through their crisis and support them during recovery. This means providing a referral for specialist services, utilising cognitive behavioural therapy techniques or providing key advice and information.
Crisis counsellors will assess a client and their current mental state and develop a treatment plan to ensure they’re adequately supported. As a crisis is an acute situation, crisis counsellors will focus on the immediate situation and help the client work through the cause of the crisis. They will ensure the client’s safety, and help to meet the client’s immediate needs.
If the client then needs further support after the short-term support of a crisis counsellor, the crisis counsellor can then provide information or refer the client to additional services. Crisis counsellors often work with other professionals such as support workers, social services personnel and psychotherapists to ensure a client is supported after their initial crisis is worked through.
What qualifications are needed to become a Crisis Counsellor?
Crisis counselling takes a great degree of empathy and understanding of what others are going through and how to help them. Therefore, crisis counsellors often have a background in mental health, psychology, counselling or therapy.
There are a variety of online counselling courses that will help you develop the key skills and knowledge you need to thrive in a counselling career. From the fundamentals of psychology and mental health to key methodologies in crisis intervention, a counselling qualification will help demonstrate your knowledge to employers and give you the confidence and skills to support others.
There are a range of counselling courses available to provide you with the knowledge to work in a range of counselling environments. However, if you want to work in crisis counselling, the certificate in crisis counselling run by The Career Academy is ideal. Throughout this online crisis counselling course, you will learn about different types of crises that individuals experience, the root of these crises and how to help people experiencing them.
There are no entry requirements for crisis counsellor courses, and therefore you can enrol no matter what your background is. Due to the online nature of the course, you can also study flexibly and work around any current commitments such as work or family life. These counselling courses are delivered by recognised education providers and accredited by reputable crisis counselling professional bodies. You can complete your studies in your own time through a series of modules and assessments.
Please note that this can be a potentially distressing course, which covers topics such as PTSD, self-harm, addiction, violence and sexual assault.
What skills are needed to become a Crisis Counsellor?
There are several skills needed to become a successful crisis counsellor, and the importance of the role means that you will need to work to develop these skills either through qualifications, work experience or both.
- Empathy and understanding
- Excellent active listening skills
- Communication skills
- Ability to keep calm under pressure
- Problem-solving skills
- Interpersonal skills
- Self-awareness
- Knowledge of mental health and trauma
- Knowledge of psychotherapy and key crisis intervention methodologies
Does becoming a Crisis Counsellor need any work experience?
Having work experience in a relevant role is very useful when finding work as a crisis counsellor. Although it’s not always essential if you already have a crisis counselling qualification, work experience can show employers (and yourself) that you are practically and emotionally prepared for this career.
One of the best ways to gain experience in crisis counselling is by volunteering as a helpline volunteer, befriender or freephone crisis hotline helper at a charity. Charities are always in need of individuals who can volunteer to support you, and you’ll receive training before taking on your volunteer role. Having a crisis counselling qualification, or working towards one, is also a great way to secure a part-time or full-time volunteer role.
Other relevant experience for this role can include working in healthcare, mental health or with vulnerable people, for example as a carer or mental health nurse. There are many healthcare, charity and private practices in Ireland from Dublin to Cork that are in great need of staff who are keen to help people with mental health issues.
Career prospects for a Crisis Counsellor in Ireland
There are many career prospects and opportunities for professional development for a crisis counsellor in Ireland, both within the area of crisis counselling and in the broader area of mental health.
When you gain experience and further qualifications in crisis counselling, you can become a lead counsellor or specialist in specific areas of crisis e.g. working with young people or with those experiencing domestic violence. There are opportunities to work in several environments such as charities, women’s shelters, hospitals or clinics.
You can also become self-employed or even begin your own private crisis counselling service or charity for crisis intervention. Obtaining additional qualifications and pivoting into other mental health careers such as nursing, support work, and other areas of counselling and therapy is also an option.
Crisis counselling can be an emotionally difficult career, but it is also a lifeline for the people who use these services. If you have a lot of empathy, want to support people going through trauma and are keen to change lives, then this could be the career for you. From enrolling on crisis counselling courses in Ireland to building up your work experience, you can begin your career as a crisis counsellor today.
