What is efc?

In June 2007 at their annual Intervoice meeting in Copenhagen, Denmark, an international group of experts on the topic of voice hearing agreed on a name for professional training in Germany - Experience Focussed Counselling (efc).

Experience Focussed Counselling (efc) is a counselling approach that goes back to the research by Romme & Escher. The professional approach that has come out of this research has been named Experience Focussed Counselling (efc) or Working With Voices. It describes an approach within which voice hearer and counsellor systematically work together on a better understanding of the voice hearing experience, in order to achieve a good way of approaching the experience.

It is the aim of efc to accompany a person, who has got experiences, which can be difficult to understand, such as voice hearing, visions, unusual beliefs, unusual perceptions, etc, in order to jointly work on finding ways and means to understand this experience and live with it. It thus offers a complementary understanding to traditional approaches in our societies, professional institutions, amongst professionals and carers, who might be involved with a person with such experiences.