How to Coach Yourself and Others Empowering Coaching And Crisis Interventions | Page 42

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Velasquez (2002) offer this perspective on counsellor strategies for this stage: Clients in action may still have
some conflicting feelings about the change. They may miss their old lifestyle in some ways and be struggling to
fit into this new behaviour. Careful listening and affirming clients that they are doing the right thing are
important in this stage. It is also important to check with the client to see if he or she has discovered parts of the
change plan that need revision.
When clients encounter anticipated obstacles, counsellors can remind them of previously developed contingency
plans. If there are unanticipated obstacles, counsellors can assist with interventions to support clients as they
deal with these potential setbacks.
Maintenance Stage: “I’ve Done It. I Need to Keep Doing It” In the final stage the challenge for the client is
to maintain the changes that have been made and to deal with relapses, which may occur for a number of
reasons (e.g., unexpected temptation, personal stress, letting down one’s guard). Moreover, sometimes people
are “actively sabotaged by others in their lives who were threatened by the changes” (Kottler, 1993, p. 81).
Achievement of goals does not guarantee that there will be no relapse. “This is particularly true if the
environment is filled with cues that can trigger the problem behaviour. We all know [of situations] where an
individual who has stopped drinking relapses just when every