In a small group, discuss experiences either you have had or that you have heard others have had with duty to report and duty to worn. With each of these real or imagined situations, answer three questions about the counseling:

1. How did I feel/what did I think when I realized I was in the situation?

2. How did I manage the stress of this situation?

3. If I could do it differently, how would I handle a similar situation now?

You have a client named Shelly who is the same age as you and is in a similar life situation as you in terms of partner, children, and living situation. Shelly is a recovering alcoholic. You have started to attend Al-Anon as a way of educating yourself about addiction, and as you attend, you discover some family issues that you had previously overlooked and been in denial about You have attended one Al-Anon group for about 3 months, and you feel very comfortable talking with the members about your personal issues. After 3 months of being in the group and 2 weeks of counseling Shelly, she shows up at your Al-Anon group. Discuss your reactions to her presence with the following five questions as a guide:

1. How would you greet Shelly?

2. How would you interact with her in the group?

3. How would you change your sharing in the group?

4. Would you give up this group so Shelly could go to it, would you insist Shelly not join the group, or would you continue to attend even though she is there?

5. How would Shelly’s presence at the meeting affect the focus of your next counseling session with her? Future sessions with her?