Mr. Roger’s Long Walk Home

Abstract

Obese is a hot topic and has become problematic here in the United States. Obesity has taken the lives of many people; it can contribute to a person’s declining health, bring about deadly conditions such as diabetes and hyper-tension and high cholesterol. Obesity can lead to a critical mental state that may lead a person wanting to commit suicide or they lose all self-esteem to want to lose weight which can trigger depression. Counseling is for everyone; some people turn to counseling to help them overcome their personal problem, marriages, depression and gender issues to name a few. The purpose of the paper is to examine how counseling can help with people that are obese. It will also evaluate some of the theories that may contribute to helping a person regain their self-esteem, increase their spiritual awareness, religious beliefs or the motivation needed to put towards their weight loss goals and their overall state of mind.

Mr. Roger

Personal Information

 Mr. Roger is a forty year old client. He has never been married and has no kids. Throughout the years Roger has developed diabetes and hyper tension which is due to his obesity.
During the counseling session it is important to get background information from the client, by gaining information from the client the counselor can understand some of the clients past history, which direction the client wants to go and will be able to help them with their priorities related to their current state. The counselor will need to talk to Roger regarding his suicide attempt. He will need to gain Rogers trust, and get him medical care if needed. The counselor will need to help Roger believe that his life is important and that he has a reason to be here. If need he could include some of his family members into the session so Roger will see and hear for himself the care and love from his family and friends. Some of the information that the counselor will need from the client are; health history of him and his family, if obesity was due to a medical problem or depression, if hyper-tension and diabetes is a family trait, his past relationships with women and why is he having thoughts of suicide. Also the counselor will need to know what Roger has done in the pass to rectify his issues with obesity and the thoughts of men. Next the counselor will need to ask Roger about his religion or spiritual beliefs. By asking a client about their beliefs can help guide the counseling session. The counselor will learn the client’s worldviews and use them during the counseling session. The counselor is also need to ask Roger about his previous relationships with women. With the knowledge they can determine why Roger is struggling with homosexual thoughts and feelings, his relationships with women and his suicidal thoughts.
Theoretical Approach Mr. Roger has several concerns that will need to be addressed. To counsel Mr. Roger in the best way Behavioral Counseling Therapy will help suit most of his needs. With Behavioral counseling the counselor will be able to help Mr. Roger evaluate his behavior towards women and men, his health and life, define his obesity problem and select goals to help him in the process of healing. During his session Mr. Roger will have to put for effort, by participating in the exercise’s the counselor may suggest. Therapy often includes homework, behavioral experiments, role-playing, assertiveness training, and self-management training. Another approach is ACT, based on a philosophy of functional contextualism, offers the premise that avoiding unwanted thoughts, feelings, and physiological experiences is detrimental to psychological functioning (Hayes et al., 2012).

Goals The counselor and client should set certain goals in the