Sexual Dual Relationships in Counselling

Sexual Dual Relationships in Counselling Name Institution Abstract Counseling is a very beneficial process that helps clients get back to their normal functioning and thus making it possible to enjoy their lives. It is a process required for people who have lost interest in activities they were initially interested in, are depressed and anxious, or are unable to control their emotions among others. The aim is to make their lives worth living and restore hope to those who have lost it. However, this practice is challenged when dual relationships are developed since this changes the focus of the counseling. Instead of meeting and discussing more on how to address the identified issues, the focus is on how to continue with their sexual intimacy. In cases in which the encounter happens once, the relationship loses trust since the client sees the therapist from a negative perspective. It also becomes a great challenge to the therapist once he is reported in court. This essay will highlight further on the issue of sexual dual relationships in counseling. Sexual Dual Relationships in Counseling Each day, counselors/ mental health professionals interact with their clients in different therapy settings. In each of the closed context, the aim is to form a therapeutic alliance in order to help clients address their mental health concerns. Establishment of the primary relationship is very important because it determines how the recovery process would be. However, it is possible for different other relationships (apart from the therapeutic alliance) to emerge during the treatment process or immediately after termination. This can be considered in the case of clients and therapists, who share a church, have a common friend, live in the same neighborhood, or meet often at the shopping mall. These regular encounters outside the primary relationship lead to non-primary relationships that challenge daily practice of professionals ethically. The emerging relationships might make it impossible ensure confidentiality or even maintain professional distance. Definition of Dual Relationships According to Kitson and Serlinger (2017), dual relationships occur whenever therapists and/or the clients initiate relationships different from the preconditioned relationships within therapy settings. It is worth noting that dual relationships can occur during, prior, or after the therapy process begins. As explained by Pope, Sonne and Greene (2006) dual relationships have all along been associated with negative consequences such as sexual transgressions and client exploitation. However, currently, relationships outside the therapeutic relationships are wide. They include non-professional relationships such as having children in the same school to more serious issues such as having private relationships with patients, taking gifts, socializing with clients in their daily practices, and engaging in physical contact. With these types of relationships, mental health professionals cross the boundary thus adversely affecting clients’ rights and leading to unjust sexual contacts. Even with view as immoral and linked with harm and abuse of clients, dual relationships continue to exist in the counseling practice. This means that therapists who engage in such practice do not adhere to codes of conduct and ethical standards that are set to guide their practice. While there are numerous types of dual relationships, a common and the most harmful is sexual intimacy between a therapist and a client. This happens even with a clear statement in the American Counseling Association that therapists should never engage in sexual intimacies with their clients. It is further stated that sexual relationships between therapists and clients are unethical and thus should never happen. Nevertheless, Nigro (2004) notes that sexual intimacy between clients and therapists is among the two frequent violations in counseling practice; coming after misrepresentation of credentials. It is also the most frequency violated ethical standard for counselors. Prevalence/ Consequences of Sexual Dual Relationships in Counseling According to the study by Moleski and Kisicela (2005), it was reported that sexual contact between clients and male psychologies occurred at a rate of 9.4-12.1% while for female therapists, it was low at a rate of 2-3% of all addressed cases. However, the study by Afolabi (2015) reported declined rate of sexual engagement between therapists and clients. Nonetheless, this does not mean the rate has decreased for real but rather than the involved parties are reluctant from reporting because of the severity of the legal consequences. This is an indication that since the documented cases might be misleading, the issue is still a menace that should be addressed with urgency. As explained by Hoffman (1995), the negative effects of sexual relationships between therapists and clients for the case of the client are well documented. The study by Lazarus, Zur and Doverspike (2004) highlighted ten outcomes of the so-called therapist-patient sex syndrome which can be likened to battered spouse syndrome, rape response syndrome, post-traumatic stress disorder, reaction to incest, and response to child abuse. From the outlined syndrome, it was argued that the client as the victim can suffer from one or more of the following; ambivalence, cognitive dysfunction (in terms of concentration and attention usually associated with flashbacks, unbidden images, nightmares, and intrusive thoughts), a sense of guilt, increased suicidal thoughts or risk, feelings of isolation and emptiness, suppressed rage, sexual confusion, emotional liability (involving acute anxiety and/ or severe depression), reduced ability to trust, and role, identity, and boundary confusion. For the case of the client, Heuer and Holbrook (2015) note that most of them realize their mistakes way after they have started the relationships with therapists. This in turn makes them feel lost, guilt, and reduce ability of trusting. Even though they might have initiated the relationship, they feel that the therapist as their guide in the recovery process should have resisted. As explained to Koocher and Keith-Spiegel (2008), it leads to eroded therapeutic relationship and limits the therapy benefits. While the client initially entered into the therapeutic relationship to be helped out his or her difficulties, the focus of the therapy switches. Whenever the two meet, they are busy with sexual encounters such as cuddling, engaging in sexual talks, or even having sex. According to Sidell (2007), it is also possible for a client to be involved in a single sexual encounter with the therapist. While this might be terminated immediately the two realize their mistakes, it negatively impacts the therapy process thus reducing the benefits of the therapy. While the client might request for a change of therapist citing dishonest reasons for denying the previous therapist, it does not mean that the second therapeutic relationship would be easy to form. As earlier, noted, trust issues are among the major negative effects experienced by clients. As a result, the client’s ability to trust is diminished and this would mean difficulties in engaging in future successful and beneficial therapeutic alliances. For the few cases in which the client and the therapist fail to terminate their sexual relationships, Rest (2008) notes that the benefits of the therapy after it is terminated are ineffective. This is because the client gets to a point in which she feels that she totally depends on the therapist. She does not look forward to having a permanent solution to her problem but instead believes that her solution lies with the therapist. This way, the client does not expect to have a day in which the therapy would be terminated. Terminating it is noted by Pugh (2007) to either have the client get back to her initial mental situation or even have serious mental issues. ...