The Skill of Self-Disclosure in Supervision

Self-disclosure is a powerful clinical and supervisory tool, but many clinicians feel trepidation about utilizing it because the risks can feel just as real as the potential benefits. What if I overshare, what if it doesn’t land well, or what if the moment shifts attention away from the client, supervisee, or the work that needs to happen?

This training offers clinical supervisors a thoughtful space to examine how self-disclosure can be used with greater clarity, purpose, and professional intention in both clinical practice and supervision. For supervisors who want to model appropriate use of self-disclosure while helping supervisees develop this skill in support of their own clinical growth, this course provides a practical place to begin.

Khara Croswaite Brindle, MA, LPC, ACS, CFT, is a Licensed Professional Counselor, Approved Clinical Supervisor, Certified Financial Therapist, professor, consultant, TEDx speaker, and 2x Amazon #1 best-selling author. Her experience as a clinician, supervisor, educator, and consultant positions her to help clinical supervisors think carefully about the risks, benefits, and appropriate use of self-disclosure within both clinical and supervisory relationships.

Khara’s approach centers on self-disclosure as a skill that can be assessed, practiced, modeled, and refined rather than avoided out of fear or used without reflection. She will guide participants through a simple framework for self-disclosure while identifying opportunities for supervisors and supervisees to use this tool in ways that support clinical development, strengthen the supervision alliance, and encourage professional growth.

This course will explore self-disclosure as a clinical tool, including the common concerns clinicians have about oversharing, timing, impact, and professional boundaries. Participants will examine the risks and benefits of self-disclosure in both client work and clinical supervision, consider how supervisors can model appropriate self-disclosure, and learn a framework that supports intentional use of this skill within professional supervisory relationships.

Key Takeaways:

• Greater confidence with self-disclosure: Learn how to assess when self-disclosure may be useful, when it may create risk, and how to approach it with more clinical intention.
• Clearer supervisory application: Understand how self-disclosure functions within the clinical supervision relationship and how it can support alliance, learning, and supervisee growth.
• A practical decision-making framework: Gain a simple structure that supervisors and supervisees can use to encourage appropriate, thoughtful, and professional use of self-disclosure.

Why This Course?

• Focused on a real supervisory challenge: Many supervisors know self-disclosure can be helpful, but they may not have a clear way to teach, model, or evaluate it in supervision.
• Taught by an experienced supervisor and educator: Khara Croswaite Brindle brings direct experience in clinical supervision, therapist development, teaching, writing, consultation, and professional growth.
• Aligned with TCI’s mission of practical, ethical continuing education: Telehealth Certification Institute provides training designed to equip behavioral health professionals with knowledge and strategies they can apply in real clinical and supervisory practice.

Learning Objectives:

• Assess the risks and benefits of self-disclosure as a supervisory tool.
• Identify the risks and benefits of self-disclosure within the clinical supervision relationship.
• Apply a self-disclosure framework to encourage the appropriate use of this tool by both supervisors and supervisees.

Self-disclosure does not have to be an uncertain or avoided part of supervision. With a clearer framework, supervisors can better understand how to use this tool professionally, model it appropriately, and help supervisees develop greater confidence in applying it with care.