The times sure have changed over the past fifteen years. Just about anything that you can imagine is online now. People shop, do their banking, even work from the internet. Did you know that professional counseling can also be found online? It may sound like a strange thing, but it actually has a lot of benefits:
Online therapy allows you to meet with a professional counselor right from the comfort of your own home. There’s something about going to a stuffy office that just feels uncomfortable. Being able to talk to someone without having to leave the house certainly is nice.
Online counseling has a great deal of flexibility. Remember, you aren’t actually meeting in a physical office, which means the therapist is talking from his or her home too, so it is not unusual to book an appointment for 11pm at night, if that’s when you want to meet.
One thing that really appeals to me about online therapy is the cost. It is a lot cheaper than your typical in-person session!
People tend to open up more quickly when meeting online. This seems to do with it being such a more friendly setting. Many people seeking therapy are shy, and not having to look at the person while you talk can be of great benefit.
Online therapy is very well documented. If you are engaging in chat or email therapy, the entire session can be saved as a text file, and reviewed whenever you like. This means that at the end of each session, you will have a written transcript containing every single word shared in the session!
There is often concern that online therapists are not professional, and this is certainly not true. It is not hard to find a professional licensed therapist who has their own actual office, but also sees people online because of the convenience it creates for them as well.
