As part of our 50th birthday celebrations we have been asking ASORC members to reflect on their experiences. This newsletter we are delighted to bring you a reflection from Karishma Chandiramini.
I still remember starting as a Rehabilitation Consultant in 2003. At the time, I didn’t fully realise that I was stepping into a profession that would shape not only my career, but also the way I see people, resilience, and human potential.
What drew me to rehabilitation counselling was simple - people. I have always been deeply curious about human behaviour, recovery, and what helps someone rebuild their confidence after life changes unexpectedly. Over the years, I have worked with people navigating injury, disability, trauma, workplace challenges, mental health concerns, and major life transitions. What has stayed constant is this: people want to feel seen, heard, and capable again.
Rehabilitation Counsellors play a unique role in helping people reconnect with themselves, their goals, and their future. We often meet people during some of the most difficult moments of their lives. Sometimes they feel overwhelmed, stuck, frightened, or uncertain about what comes next. Our role is not simply to “return someone to work.” It is to walk alongside them as they rediscover purpose, identity, confidence, and hope.
Over the past two decades, I have had the privilege of working across rehabilitation, community services, allied health leadership, and operational management. I have led teams, built services, developed referral networks, implemented governance frameworks, and supported organisational growth. While I am proud of the business outcomes and leadership achievements throughout my career, the moments that stay with me most are always human moments.
It is the client who believed their career was over after an injury, then returned to meaningful work with renewed confidence. It is the team member who felt burnt out and unsupported, but through coaching rediscovered their passion for helping others. It is the quiet victories that happen every day - the first phone call answered with hope instead of fear, the client who begins advocating for themselves again, or the moment someone realises they are more than their diagnosis or circumstance.
What keeps me in this profession after all these years is the impact. Rehabilitation counselling changes lives in ways that are often invisible to the public, yet deeply transformational for the people we support. We help people move from surviving to rebuilding. We create bridges between health, work, identity, and community. We advocate, coach, guide, mediate, and empower.
As our profession celebrates 50 years, I believe visibility has never been more important. Rehabilitation Counsellors bring together empathy, strategy, clinical skill, and practical problem-solving in a way few professions do. We are adaptable, people-focused, and future-focused. In a world where mental health, workplace wellbeing, disability inclusion, and recovery are more important than ever, our work matters deeply.
After more than 20 years in this profession, I can honestly say rehabilitation counselling has taught me as much about humanity as it has about leadership. It continues to remind me that even in the hardest moments, people are incredibly capable of growth, change, and transformation - especially when someone believes in them.