Volume 65 December 2026-January 2026 : Social

When Ditshupo Samakabadi, a school teacher at New Look Primary School
in Lobatse, went for counselling, it was something many did not expect. Itisquitepossible that even Samakabadi herself never imagined that she could ever seek expert counselling, for many people regard teachers as model counsellors who do not need counseling.

Yet in 2005, just three months after welcoming her second child into the world,Samakabadi’slifewas such a devastation she had to seek professional counselling. “My joy of having a newly born child turned into anguish when my baby boy was diagnosed with a congenital heart disease,” she says in an interview with Kutlwano magazine.

A congenital heart disease is a chronic and potentially fatal condition.

“Having a new born baby naturally evokes emotions of joy -untold joy- but to eventually be dealt suchablow! The thought that Icould lose my baby was way too intense”, she notes.

In her darkest days, when the world seemed to be caving in on her, it gave her hope to look forward to tomorrow, yet she could not imagine herself seeking expert counselling.

Like many others, she was not too eager to get expert counselling because of the fear of entrusting strangers with her secrets. Many people consider counsellors as strangers who cannot be trusted with personal information.

Distrust aside, it became such
a serious concern when sharing her plight with her family and friends did not help dissolve her feelings. She was, therefore, impelled to turn to professional counselling services.

It had become clear that keeping her problem to herself or just within the family circle was not working. Regrettably, for some people still silence remains golden even when facedwithsuchlife-threatening experiences.

Prior to her son undergoing
his first operation, Samakabadi
had begun seeing a professional counsellorandonlythendidsheview her situation differently.

For many people professional counselling is a notion yet to be embraced because they still turn to friends or family members for counselling.

This category of people would rather keep their problems to themselves thansharewithanybody. Tothem,sharing their troubles with a stranger is more akin to washing their dirty linen in public.

As it is, expert counseling is essentially
a lifeline for many people who may be experiencing certain troubles in their life. It is able to bring hope where there was none or even stir up the desire and will power
to tackle life’s problems head-on instead
of passively letting life take its own course.

Further, counselling can help one regain orevendiscovertheirdirectioninlife. As such, Samakabadi has never grown weary of singing praises of professional counselling.

Instead of dwelling too much on
why such a calamity had befallen her, she gradually began to accept her situation, a move which gave her an understanding that it was not a matter of bad luck; in fact, it could have been anybody else.

During counselling sessions, the counsellor laid bare the possibilities that could arise out of Samakabadi’s child’s operation, which helped prepare her mentally for any eventuality.

Later, when her child developed some complications,shewasreadytohandlethe situation thanks to counseling.

After her experience with professional counselling, Samakabadi wishes Batswana would stop taking professional counselling forgranted. Toher,theadviceofferedby friends and family is not enough, particularly in grim situations such as hers.

The school teacher reckons that as a result of some people seeking advice from untrained people, some end up making wrong decisions, with others going as far as committing suicide.

“It’s a pity that in this age and era some people still take professional counselling for granted. Of course, this attitude is perpetuated by the stigma attached to professional counselling, so, to some people professional counselling is intrusive, encroaching deep into one’s privacy”, she quips.

Conversely, another Motswana, Masego Phokoje, speaks fondly of what great a service professional counselling is.

For Phokoje, who is a street vendor in Lobatse, professional counseling not only enhances one’s decision making and problem solving skills but also helps one to develop a positive outlook towards life.

“Ever since my experience with counselling,

I always anticipate good things out of every situation regardless of how gloomy a picture it may initially paint”, she explains.

It was in 2004 when she crossed paths with professional counselling. She was sick and the doctors had informed her that she would have to be operated for her ailment to be effectively dealt with.

With her emotional well-being already in bad shape due to her deteriorating health, her inner turmoil deepened. The mere contemplation of undergoing an operation was just too much for her.

The thought of a life-threatening operation tormented her so much that she preferred to live with her condition than face the possibility of cutting her life short through an operation.

She had heard stories of how operations went awfully wrong, leaving patients either dead or in worse conditions than before.

It was not until Phokoje was subjected to intensive counselling at the local hospital that she began to see things differently.

“Like with anything that you are not familiar with, you may become skeptical when you are asked to make use of a particular service for the very first time. That was the case with me when I had to undergo counselling, and the fact that a serious operation lay ahead did not make matters any easier for me. Initially, it was as if I was being coerced into coming face-to- face with my own death”, she says.

The fact that she was not forced into undergoing the procedure, but was simply given the facts that she needed to know and then allowed to make her own decision, made the whole process much easier for her.

Today, she advises whoever she comes across who appears to be in need of professional counselling to go for it.

The street vendor has a concern though. She is worried by the apparent lack of professional counsellors in villages and other remote areas.

She reckons that many people would turn to professional counseling if such services were available within their reach. It is her contention that some social workers seem not keen to provide ‘proper’ counselling when members of the public seek such services. According to a professional counsellor, Boitumelo Makunga, counselling is an interactive learning process which revolves around social, cultural, economic and emotional issues.

“It may be concerned with addressing and resolving specific problems, making decisions, coping with crisis, improving relationships, developmental issues, promoting and developing personal awareness, working with feelings, thoughts, perceptions and internal or external conflict,” she says.

Makunga, who is a counselling psychologist by profession, says besides counselling being a process of individual learning, it also has asocialmeaning. Shesayspeopleoftenturntocounsellingatapoint of transition - such as when they move from childhood to adulthood orfromastateofbeingmarriedtothatofbeingdivorced.

However, the counsellor is quick to note that for a long time Batswanadidnotendorseorappreciatecounsellingasamethodof ‘treatment’.

This, she attributes to the extended family system that used to be in place in our societies, where people could turn to each other in the family for support during trying times.

Then, according to Makunga, professional counselling was not asappreciatedasitistoday. However,shebelievesthatthereisstill room for the public to embrace professional counselling, particularly through sensitisation.

“To create awareness on the benefits of professional counselling, people need to be educated – there has to be an “aggressive” campaign focusing on the benefits of professional counselling. This will also help diminish any stigma associated with seeking counselling for social problems,” she explains.

Meanwhile, statistics from Sbrana Psychatric Hospital show that over 900 clients needing counselling services were attended to at the hospital’s psychology department last year.

VonileTladi,aclinicalpsychologistatthehospital,saysamajorityof clients who seek their services are referred from other health facilities. Mostclientsseekcounselling followingbereavementoracrisiswhile others seek addiction as well as family and marriage counselling.

Accordingto HYPERLINK“http://www.abc-counselling.com”www. abc-counselling.com, professional counselling is beneficial in many ways. For instance, it can help one become more aware of their thoughts and feelings which in turn will help them manage them better.

Further, professional counselling can also help one identify and change maladaptive or self-defeating behaviours.

Withtheemotionalturmoilthatmanypeoplehavetowade through during the course of their lives, one can only imagine the frequency of their visits to counselors Makunga, who runs a private counselling clinic, attends to clients from all walks of life who seek her services for diverse social problems such as relationships and addictions.

 Meanwhile, statistics from Sbrana Psychatric Hospital show that over 900 clients needing counselling services were attended to at the hospital’s psychology department last year.

VonileTladi,aclinicalpsychologistatthehospital,saysamajorityof clients who seek their services are referred from other health facilities. Mostclientsseekcounselling followingbereavementoracrisiswhile others seek addiction as well as family and marriage counselling.

Accordingto HYPERLINK“http://www.abc-counselling.com”www. abc-counselling.com, professional counselling is beneficial in many ways. For instance, it can help one become more aware of their thoughts and feelings which in turn will help them manage them better.

Further, professional counselling can also help one identify and change maladaptive or self-defeating behaviours.

Withtheemotionalturmoilthatmanypeoplehavetowade through during the course of their lives, one can only imagine the frequency of their visits to counselors.

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