WHAT'S YOUR COUNSELLOR LIKE?

[LemonLegs]

Hi everyone,
Just wanted to ask you all what you think of your counsellor? What do you love about them (and what bugs you!)
When I was doing CD last year my counsellor didn't have much input, I weighed and measured myself religiously every week. He was quite old and in bad health and I did feel so sorry for him. Nevertheless I did reach my target in 8 weeks as my sisters wedding was just around the corner, so I gave it 110% and was amazed with the result. So much so I became a counsellor myself in July this year. I have such a great time being a counsellor as it fits in perfectly with family life etc.
All your thoughts on this would be most appreciated.
X Sam

 

[happygal]

Hi Ya

What bugs me about my CDC is that It took me 3 months to actually get on the stuff because she was never in when I rang!! lol She must be really busy. From the meeting last night she didnt actually look me in the eye very much. Maybe she is shy, I dont know. And when I told her what weight I was over the phone she went GOODNESS well I can see why your ringing me then. I wouldnt mind but I dont have much to lose compared to some of the people she was telling me about last night.

 

[HellyWelly]

Hi Sam

My counsellor, Amanda, is the best. I see her every week. She always makes the time to talk to me and calls me back whenever I have had to leave a message. Without her support I would not be where I am today (14 pounds lighter). It has not been an easy journey for me and I have nothing but praise for her.

Helen

 

[julesrush]

My counsellor is brilliant, she never made you feel bad if you had a rough week and was supporting me all the way through. She didnt measure me as i had already done that and she didnt take photos but she was an ear when i needed it and never made me feel like a schoolchild if i had a blip.

Im now a counsellor and make sure that i dont judge someone if they have a bad week as i know how hard this diet can be and someone making you feel like you are failing is the last thing you need. My third client is a friend of my hubbys and is a taxi driver. I saw him the other day and he got his shakes for the week and i said so you want me to measure you ect which i did, and later found out he went on the taxi circuit and told all the other men its worth doing the diet as rushies wife (me ) measures your inside thigh lol

julesrush

 

[Noo]

I have to say that mine is not the best....on 2 occasions she has said that she will phone me midweek to see how I'm doing and has not done this.
Also she always seems to be in a rush and does not have much time to stop and chat. In fact the only time that I've ever actually sat down with her is the first time that I saw her.
I feel that I have achieved results thorough my own determination and motivation and also knowing that I will be weighed each week.

 

[happygal]

Hi Julesrush

Im splitting my sides at the inside thigh thing!!! lol

Forgot to say. The thing I like most about my CD counsellor is that she can supply me with CD stuff. I am going to give her a chance to redeem herself though. She may turn out to just be a little nervous at first or something and then put her foot in her mouth.

 

[C.J.]

Hello..
Ive had 2 cdc's as i tried the diet last year, the cdc i ahd last year was a very overweight lady who i think was in her 70's, She came to my house, brought me the food packs, asked me to fill out the medical form, Never weighted me or measured me, and whenever she rang she went on and on about people on the diets who were very high up members of staff of the NHS, or how rich they were.. She was never interested in Mrs Average i need to loose weight, also had to keep telling me she had been selling the diet for 20 yrs and knew more than any other cdc out there..(I STUCK DIET FOR 1 WEEK)

NOW... I have a new cdc who is brilliant, she weighed and measured me, has rung every week, has also sent me extra soups to try..
She has made this time round a lot easier, But as she lives so far away from me i can only visit her once a month,
She is only a call away if i need to ask her something, but to be honest all the answers i need are here on this website.!!

DAY 26... 1 STONE 5LB GONE...

 

[happygal]

Your first one sounds like my one and Im getting a bit worried to be honest. My one isnt overweight or anything but she spent last night telling me about the other 2 CDCs in Northern Ireland and how they are hopeless etc. She weighed me but she never measured me and told me I should track my weight myself because hopefully she would only need to see me once a month because shes very busy.
She might be ok though. I will play it by ear.

 

[LemonLegs]

Thanks all for your replies, I think this may become quite a busy post with a lot of mixed feelings.
Yes I too am howling with laughter at Julesrush inside thigh quote. You can imagine them all having a good gossip at the taxi rank about the Cambridge Diet!
Sad to hear about Counsellors not really supporting people.
Keep them coming.
X Sam

 

[kati]

I've had 2 cdc's so far. the first to be honest I didn't feel was very helpful, she didnt weigh or measure me and I was pretty much left to it. I haven't been back and she's never bothered to try and find out why or anything. I thought of telling her I was changing counsellors then though well why bother.

My current counsellor is great I'm so glad I changed. I feel a lot more positve about the diet now. I can go there feeling a bit fed up with myself and come out thinking well I did ok after all.
Oh and I'd have said the same even if she couldn't read this

 

[slushy]

I am shortly due to meet my new CDC who will be my second one

My first was actually a lovely lady , she weighed and measured me, and was pleasant and chatty BUT she was 45 mins away and only really could see me on tues or weds mornings which made it very difficult for me. She also never gave me any of the literature i know most of you get when you start cd.

My new one is just 15 mins from where i work and will see me 24 hours a day 7 days a week which is lovely and really all i need now

as long as she can supply me with the packs etc i want, i am at teh stage where i feel i can come here and get all the answers/support i need, and i can weigh and measure myself.

I do have to say though that that is not how i felt at the start when i had hundreds of questions.

 

[snowyj]

Mine is quite over wieght - so not terribly inspiring...I couldn't do this without icemooses blog and this forum. Also, and I feel awful for saying this, but her house stinks of all the pets that she has. I'd quite like to change CDC but am not sure how to go about it, and also, I wouldn't like to hurt her feelings.

 

[kati]

snowy I felt like that at first about not wanting to hurt her feelings by changing but then I looked at it another way.

I'm losing weight for me and no one else, so if I don't feel I'm getting 100% what I think I should be getting from the person is supposed to be guiding me through the diet, then I owe it to myself to find someone who will give me that 100%. You too need to think about yourself first in this because you're not losing weight for your counsellor to make money you're losing it purely for you. If you can find someone you're happier with then you're more likely to stick to the diet.

 

[essexmum]

Ok so I haven;t been doing this for long (I'm on day 10) buy my CDC so far has been nothing but brilliant. When I was deciding between CD & LL she was always full of information. She never once put LL down (unlike the LLC - who put down the CD). I phoned her twice before making my mind up and each phone call alsted at least 30 minutes (if not longer!). The first time I met her she went though all the products and side effects, the prices and different plans and all the literature. She then let me go away to think about it without any pressure. My first day went really well, she didn;t judge me on the fact that I wanted to start a few days later than I thought (in fact she thought it was a good idea). She e-mailed me all the best links to forums (which is how I found this site ) and phoned me twice in the first week to make sure everything was ok.

At my first weigh-in (on Monday) she again spent 30 minutes with me, weighed me, measured me, let me waffle on and in (I'm good at that can't you tell LOL), so also e-mailed the next day to congratulate me on my weight loss. She also has told me that she's on the end of the phone whenever I need her, so thats good to know.

As I said before I know I'm still in early days, but she has been so supportive in the last 10 days and it's made me even more determined to continue.

 

[JustJo]

And when I told her what weight I was over the phone she went GOODNESS well I can see why your ringing me then. I wouldnt mind but I dont have much to lose compared to some of the people she was telling me about last night.

That's absolutely shocking! I can't believe she said that to you - how unprofessional! As a counsellor myself, I can certainly confirm that there are many people with a lot more weight to lose than you.


Jo x

 

[snowyj]

Thanks Kati...good words of wisdom....now just got to pluck up my courage!

 

[Brad0053]

It's an interesting thread, in a voyeuristic kind of way.

A couple of things which strikes me though. If I were paying 30-40 quid a week and getting nothing from the experience apart from the packs, I would think about going elsewhere. Now some people will no doubt want to drop in, pay, collect and go and that is fine - we are all busy people. However, if you feel you need support or would have benefited from some support, then you are being provided shopping service, not support and guidance from a Counsellor.

The second thing.........how do you know your Counsellor is not a member of minimins and reading these comments???? I'm not sure I would necessarily want some of the comments said about me - they might be considered by the individual to be a little hurtful - although I appreciate that would not have been the intension when posting.

Just a thought!

 

[cah-ching]

Actually Brad .... I've mentioned my CDC several times here and on DH. I'm well aware of the fact that my CDC may be a member here. However the comments aren't insulting of defamotary. If they lurk or post here, so much the better - my CDC may learn a thing or two and realise why I sometimes get upset - since my CDC doesn't listen and from what I've recently ascertained is ill-informed.
As for the

If I were paying 30-40 quid a week and getting nothing from the experience apart from the packs, I would think about going elsewhere

You are totally right and when you put it that way it really rings home. Alas I've tried another two counsellors and to be quite frank my current CDC is the best of the lot and that doesn't say much ................

 

[Brad0053]

Actually Brad .... I've mentioned my CDC several times here and on DH. I'm well aware of the fact that my CDC may be a member here. However the comments aren't insulting of defamotary. If they lurk or post here, so much the better - my CDC may learn a thing or two and realise why I sometimes get upset - since my CDC doesn't listen and from what I've recently ascertained is ill-informed.
As for the ....

You are totally right and when you put it that way it really rings home. Alas I've tried another two counsellors and to be quite frank my current CDC is the best of the lot and that doesn't say much ................

Cah-ching

I am not sure if I am familiar with the comments you have made regarding your CDC. However, my points were not directed at any one comment in particular, but deliberately kept general so not to appear to target or indeed offend anyone ~ which hopefully I haven't.

As an aspiring CDC, I of course get frustrated to see that some people are clearly not getting, in their opinion, a satisfactory service. However, more good would be done I suspect, if their concerns were reported privately to the company themselves in order that their CDCs may be counselled and if necessary corrected, rather than rather publicly shaming them over the net. A personal view which I sure will be supported by some and of course not others.

 

[IreneH]

I love my CDC and feel very privileged to have her. She is top class.
Irene xx