Search: Michael Liimatta

Issues of Personal Boundaries in Counseling - Part I
by Michael Liimatta, AGRM Director of Education 

What do you mean when you say that program staff members should practice "professional distance"?

Sooner or later, every rescue mission worker will face the fact that they are not able to help everyone who becomes involved with their program.  Recovery programs can have a very high turnover rate among their residents.  Among rescue mission workers, some have reacted to this situation by becoming discouraged, "burned out," or even skeptical about the chances of any homeless addict "making it."

1. Why Professional Distance is Needed - Often, when people first hear the term "professional distance", they think it means are to be cold, unloving and uninvolved with those we counsel.  Actually, it is just the opposite!  Over involvement on an emotional level causes counselors to lose their objectivity.  They cannot exercise proper judgment in their dealings with those with whom they are seeking to help.  Instead, counselors can practice favoritism toward some residents and even end up feeling rejected by them when they don't respond favorably to their attempts to help them. 
   
   Mostly, a lack of professional distance is manifested when workers have an improper sense of responsibility for the actions and decisions of their clients.  And, it is important to remember that, since so many of those we work with at rescue missions have a background of addiction and codependency, they know how to make others feel guilty about not "taking care of them."
   
   Mission workers must be committed to being part of the solution and not a part of the problem.  Their own unresolved issues will inevitably hinder their ability to minister effectively to others. 
   
2. Professional Distance is All About Boundaries - To be a successful counselor in a rescue mission setting, an individual needs good personal boundaries.  This means allowing residents to be responsible for their own decisions and actions - and allowing them to experience the consequences fully.  My job is not to fix you. My job is to share what I found out and you can either take it or leave it. Whatever you do with what I'm sharing with you is your choice. I'm not going to own any of that for myself.  It's being able to leave residents and their problems at the mission when we go home at night. 
   
3. Professional Distance Means Knowing When to "Let Go" - In over twenty years of ministry to troubled people, I have found that there are basically just two reasons:

Issues of Personal Boundaries in Counseling - Part III
by Michael Liimatta, AGRM Director of Education 

How should counselors respond to the client's boundaries?