Online Therapy

What Areas & Concerns Can Be Addressed With Online Therapy?

Illustrated image of psychologist and client engaged in teletherapy

Benefits of Online Therapy

Flexibility & Time Savings ⌚

Easier scheduling (eliminates commute time and cost).

Privacy 🔒

No risk of bumping into neighbors or colleagues in a waiting room. The online counseling platform is completely secure (i.e., HIPAA-compliant) and confidential, and nothing is recorded or kept in any way. The video platform is also accessible on an app, so you can use your tablet or smartphone.

Comfort 🧸

Online therapy sessions can be attended from the comfort of your own home or room.

Greater Geographical Reach 🌎

You are able to work with a therapists who you may not have otherwise been access due to logistics / distance.

In sum, online therapy offers advantages such as allowing for greater geographical reach (e.g., perhaps you live in suburbs, rural areas, or have limited transportation) and increased flexibility in terms of scheduling (i.e., eliminating commute time and cost). With greater geographic reach, you have more therapist choices available to you. You also eliminate the risk of bumping into neighbors and colleagues, which function to maintain your privacy. Perhaps most importantly, research has demonstrated that online counseling can be as effective as in-person therapy. A recent study showed that online therapy was a cost-effective alternative to traditional in-person therapy services (Catarino et al., 2023).

Studies that have checked haven't found any reasons to avoid virtual therapy or think that it is inferior (Poletti et al., 2020). Clearly, there are some circumstances online counseling won't work well. But, if this doesn't work for you, I will refer you to someone in person.

Despite all the benefits of online counseling, there are some basic considerations to be aware of. The quality of the video session may depend on your internet speed, audio equipment, and lighting.

Here are some useful set-up tips for preparing for the first session:

  • Keep your camera at 👀 eye level.

  • Ideally, be in a well-lit room with the 💡 lighting in front of you.

  • For 1-on-1 appointments, use earbuds/earpieces (or a headset) to reduce audio feedback 🔊 and improve overall sound quality.