Coronavirus is changing our lifestyle. It certainly has changed mine. My practice is now solely online therapy and telephone therapy.
Work, social gatherings, conferences, concerts and family time have all moved online. While some of the online activities are holding space for activities that are much better in person, some advantages exist to connecting online. Not only can working from home and seeing doctors online be more convenient, they save you time and money. The same holds true for online therapy and online counseling. Telehealth is here to stay.
I was an early adopter of online therapy. I started seeing clients online in January, 2018. Clients love the flexibility. We can meet online at times that you are not able to make the extra time commitment to travel to and from my office. If you and your spouse/partner are parents, you can schedule sessions on your lunch hour from separate locations while kids are in school and avoid the need for child care. You can schedule during nap time or when your kids are busy with an activity.
Teens and their parents also like online therapy. You can save time dropping off and picking up. Teens feel more independent and empowered, because they can set their own schedule with me and not have to rely on you to shuttle them around. Teens often feel more comfortable using technology in their own environment rather than sitting in an office.
I also work with clients who suffer from chronic illness. If you have a chronic illness, as I do, we both know that traveling around to appointments can be difficult. Having online sessions is a convenient solution that can keep you at home, where you are most comfortable
Online therapy also takes distance out of the equation. While I live in the Sierra Foothills of Northern California, many of my online clients have been in Southern California, Central California and The San Francisco Bay Area.
Online therapy is easy and incredibly flexible. You can schedule through my secure portal. You log into your HIPPA compliant Zoom “room” by just clicking a link that I send you securely. You can use your computer, tablet or smartphone. You can be anywhere with internet access and privacy. I see many clients in their cars, either in the parking lot at their work or in the driveway of their home. Teens are usually in their room, at a friend’s house or outside. You can choose wherever you feel most comfortable and secure for confidentiality.
Online therapy is pretty much the same as in person therapy. We talk about the same things. I am required to know your exact location and local numbers for your emergency response system. This is just a safety precaution. The biggest difference is that we only see each other from the shoulders up. It doesn’t take long to adjust to that.
Clients like to introduce me to their pets at some point if they are at home, which is something that never happened in my office. I might ask questions about your environment that I would never be aware of in my office. There are also technical issues from time to time. The connection can cut out occasionally. When that happens, we usually just pick up where we left off. It’s usually a very short break and no big deal.
Since COVID, I have also added phone therapy. Some of my clients do not have access to good internet in rural areas. Phone can be more reliable. I call at appointment time and we talk the same way we would in my office.