A Counselor’s First Encounter with Non-Death Loss: A Phenomenological Case Study on New Counselor Preparation and Experience in Working with Non-Death Loss

New counselors graduating from a CACREP master’s program are presumed to have competency to work with the common issues seen in clients. This study examined the lived experience and impact on new counselors when working with clients struggling with overt or covert non-death losses. Through qualitative case study of multiple (n=8) new counselors, the study presents the phenomenon of real-life experiences of counselors when first encountering clients with an issue of loss. Of primary interest was how new counselors identified loss in client’s issues, how they applied theory of interventions, the counselors level of confidence in training and preparedness to deal with loss, and how they were personally affected. Convergent themes as demonstrated by consensus coding are demonstrated in a between case display with interpretations supported by current literature in themes of loss, training, and impacts on counselors