Developmental Counseling and Therapy

Normal Development

Basic to the DCT model is a Wellness approach and a search for what is right in client development. Counselors seek to help people grow in a positive manner over the life span. Changes and transitions are normal, yet even normal changes can create difficulties. People are often confused when a transition creates conflicting emotions such as joy and sadness. This is typical because with every transition, some new and desired things are gained, and some things are lost as well. For example, the birth of a new child is a joy to parents and a cause for celebration. The birth also brings a major change in the activities of each day. “Free” time may be lost as the needs of the child require the attention of parents.

Counselors help people sort through the conflicting emotions of normal transitions and work through them successfully. Success both requires and results from one's strengths. These strengths are defined in terms of Wellness, a holistic perspective that includes aspects of physical, emotional, social, intellectual, occupational, and spiritual health. Achieving Wellness in all of these areas requires that people make intentional choices on a daily basis. Healthy choices build additional strengths for responding to life challenges.

Developmental Challenges

The challenges of life create stresses. Sometimes stresses are severe, and environmental trauma or abuse is extreme. Traditional counseling approaches view these extremes as the basis of personality disorders. From a developmental perspective, responses to trauma are normal processes of trying to make sense of one's life experiences. Trauma threatens one's sense of safety and requires defenses that match the severity of the situation. Emotional and personality disorders are thus logical responses to extreme life circumstances. For the traumatized individual, these responses are “normal.”

Counselors need to understand how people make meaning of their world in order to help them grow and change. By viewing trauma responses as developmentally normal, counselors are able to focus on understanding the client rather than diagnosing a problem. This understanding is helpful for promoting a positive, proactive view of clients. It also frees clients to develop an awareness of their strengths, not just their limitations.

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