Beyond "Fixing" Things: Fostering Emotional Acceptance in School Counseling

What happens when we stop trying to "fix" things for our students and start showing them how to accept negative emotions? In this episode of the ​School for School Counselors Podcast​, we examine the surprisingly transformative power of acknowledging and accepting negative emotions.

School counselors can serve as advocates and allies, but we are not magicians. Not every issue can be "fixed," and sometimes, the healthiest way forward may involve experiencing and accepting the not-so-pleasant emotions.

In this pod, I talk about how we can guide students to understand that emotions, like all things in life, are temporary, and how accepting these emotions can pave the way for better psychological well-being in the long run.

I also talk through the limitations of prescriptive approaches in school counseling and the potential pitfalls of readily-available resources, emphasizing the need for thoughtful, quality approaches that recognize the importance of negative emotions.

It's an interesting conversation, to be sure, and one I can't to share with you.

Resource:
Ford, B. Q., Lam, P., John, O. P., & Mauss, I. B. (2018). The psychological health benefits of accepting negative emotions and thoughts: Laboratory, diary, and longitudinal evidence. Journal of personality and social psychology, 115(6), 1075–1092. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspp0000157

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