This video segment is from Restoring Hope, a TV series hosted on WHMB40 and serving the Indianapolis area. Crosswinds Counseling offers counseling services throughout Indiana.
Curtis: Tonight we have a real treat for you. Typically while we introduce you to a new counselor each week in the Counseling Corner segment, we occasionally get to sit down with a counselor for an extended conversation and that is the case tonight. Kiara Williams, a counselor here in Indianapolis joins us. Kiara, thank you for being with us tonight on Restoring Hope with Crosswinds Counseling. You have been a Crosswinds counselor for about a year and a half or so?
Kiara: Yes.
Curtis: You started in the middle of a pandemic.
Kiara: Yes. I did. [laughs]
Curtis: That seems like a strange time to start a counseling job with a new company. What was that like? What has this first year and a half been like for you?
Kiara: Yes. So it was definitely a transition for sure. I started on the Lifeline side, and so then going from in-home to in-office was definitely a transition for sure. And then with going into the office it was really hard at first. Because during the first part of the pandemic we had the masks on and so talking with the mask on was really challenging. And making sure we wipe the room down and everything done afterward was also a really big hurdle. After a while, you get used to it. Even now it is still a challenge at times, but virtual has been really a big help. So it’s great to do virtual.
Curtis: In general, give me a sense of the kinds of things you’ve been working with as you meet with people and you help them through what they’re going through. What types of things are you most seeing – influenced by the pandemic or not – what types of things are you generally diving into?
Kiara: Yeah. So generally what I am seeing is a lot of anxiety. A lot of depression. And especially with the pandemic, it’s just stress on returning to work or returning to school for students and adolescents as well as the holidays are coming up. And the holidays last year. And just stress on spending time with family and the dynamics of ‘well how do I hug my grandmother this Christmas or Thanksgiving with the pandemic.’ And having masks on and those types of things in the home.
Curtis: We talk all the time and hear all the time of these numbers about the need for mental health going through the roof. It’s just doubled or tripled – depends exactly where you are, but the numbers are skyrocketing. As a counselor, have you seen that? Have you seen more people in need? Have you seen a deeper level of need here over this past year or so?
Kiara: I have seen more people in need which has been surprising. It has kind of been a transition of with more people being in need, how do we meet the needs? So being able to you know with virtual services see people in other areas of Indiana where they may not have been able to get to an in-office person as readily. So being able to meet the need through virtual services, and then also just some other programs that Crosswinds is able to offer in general, like our 5 sessions for our corporate wellness programs. Those types of things have been really awesome. So just being able to meet the need in a different way than previously.
Curtis: The other thing we hear about a lot is that inside the counseling world there is just such a high level of burnout, and doing this job takes such a toll. It’s so taxing on the people doing the work – the counselors, the therapists, the mental health providers. Being in the middle of that, how do you make sure that you stay charged up? That your bucket is full so that then you can pour into others.
Kiara: Yeah, that’s a great question. So for me, what I tend to do is I spend a lot of time with family. That’s how I fill myself up – with my family and friends. And then something else I do is I will go and visit friends who may not be in this state. Just self-care things. So painting something is something I really enjoy to do in my free time. Or listening to music. Or cooking. Those types of things. So I just try to make sure I spend time with people outside of work and then when I am spending time with people outside of work, I’m not talking about work because as much as I love my job, I have to make sure I’m separating so that I don’t burn out.
Curtis: Right. That is healthy probably for all of us to do. Kiara, there’s one other thing I want to ask you about is stigma. We hear about this a lot as well. If someone is watching tonight, and they’ve been thinking, ‘Maybe I should meet with a counselor. Maybe it would be helpful to me.’ You are disarming. You’re very relaxed and normal and I suspect that talking to you as a counselor is very comfortable. What would you say to someone who is maybe still struggling with some of the stigma, some of the discomfort of, ‘Should I go to a counselor? What would that look like? What would that feel like?’ What would you say to them to take that next step?
Kiara: So oftentimes what I say to people is, I try to make sure people know that my counseling room is a safe space. So anyone that comes into my room I let them know this is a safe space, This is non-judgemental, and I am here to walk alongside of you in your journey. A lot of times I think what happens is people feel like counseling is someone is going to tell me about my problems. Someone is going to tell me all these things I am doing wrong. My goal isn’t to tell you all the things you’re doing wrong. It’s to help you problem-solve. It’s to help you figure [things] out. If we know that something is not where you want to be, how can we work to get things where you want it to? I just try to let people know my job isn’t to judge you my job is to help you and facilitate a conversation that you may not get in family or that you may not get with your friends.
Curtis: Kiara. Thank you so much for being here with us tonight. Thank you for providing counseling corners for us as well. You’ve done that a couple of times and we appreciate your insight. We really appreciate you being with us tonight. If you want to connect with Kiara or any Crosswinds Counseling, visit us at crosswindscounseling.org