Does online counseling really work?
This is one of the most common questions I get. Online counseling absolutely does work and often times can be even more effective than doing in office counseling.
How online counseling works
Online counseling works much like in office counseling works only you meet with your therapist using a HIPAA compliant website or program (think Zoom) that allows you and your therapist to both see and hear each other.
The therapist is still able to read your emotions, make connections with you, and help you towards your therapy goal.
Sometimes online counseling can be more effective than in office therapy.
When doing couples therapy, it is not uncommon for couple’s to come into therapy having tried couples therapy once before only to have a bad experience that left them leaving the office and continuing to fight.
With online counseling you and your partner do not need to be in the same place. This sometimes can help to defuse the emotional tension and creates a break for the couple to work through any emotional and physiological arousal that may have occurred during the time of the session.
When doing in office couples work it can often feel like you need to respond to your emotions in the moment and continue to respond to them until you work them out with your partner. This is not always true. In fact if you or your partner is emotionally flooded it is necessary to take a break from the conversation for at least 30 minutes before coming back to it. Online counseling helps to create that space to allow you to take breaks, think about how you want to respond to your emotions, and to come back to the discussion with your partner once you are more clear on how you want to respond to your emotions.
Online counseling can be a great option for busy Bay Area couples. Let’s face it, the traffic in Berkeley, Oakland and surrounding areas is a nightmare. Online counseling provides the freedom to schedule your sessions during a lunch break, before or after working hours, in off hours time for example while you are doing your laundry.
If you have any questions about online therapy and how it works, feel free to reach out via email. In January of 2020 I will be opening my calendar again to phone consultations and new client’s.