How effective is online therapy? - Online psychological therapy to help with mental disorders/illness

How Effective is Online Therapy?

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Psychological therapy for cases like depression is generally given face to face. However, as technology develops, lifestyle changes, and there seem to be more needs in our society, currently, online psychological therapy in various countries has become one of the most widely used alternatives for treating stress and mental illness. Overcoming the difficulty of access to mental health services is one of the advantages of online therapy because as long as an internet connection is available, the therapy can be accessed from anywhere. However, how effective is online therapy in overcoming psychological problems? Find out the answer through the following review.

How Effective Is Online Therapy?

In this age of sophistication, everything is accessible online. Starting from monitoring the latest news around the world, shopping, to buy medicines online. In fact, now psychological therapy can be done online. Yes, you only have to click once and connect directly to the online therapy site and get access to talk to mental health experts.

What do we do during online therapy?

Online therapy, also known as e-therapy, e-counseling, telepsychology, or cyber-counseling, is a therapeutic method that connects counselors with their patients through cyberspace. Here, counselors can only provide psychological support through the internet, either through instant messaging applications, email, or video calls.

Sometimes, online therapy is still underestimated by a number of mental health experts in the world. In fact, according to a study published in the World Journal of Psychiatry, patients who receive mental health services through video calls experience psychological changes that are better than before.

The development of telepsychology

Benefits of online therapy for mental disorder

Psychologists generally refer to any therapy assisted by telecommunications devices or devices as telepsychology β€” telephone therapy, text therapy, or online therapy.

Whenever and wherever, we can chat with psychologists via websites, cellphones, or mobile applications, we can participate in telepsychology services.

Researchers have a great interest in telepsychology and telehealth, evaluating how well it works, especially compared to conventional psychotherapy sessions.

 

Various benefits of online therapy to overcome psychological problems

Online counseling offers a lot of benefits

Many people are interested in cyberspace-based therapy because it is practical, economical, and can be accessed anywhere. Especially for those who experience iatrophobia, aka afraid to meet with a doctor, this will certainly make it easier for them to get medical advice from health experts without having to meet in person.

Although this is not the first choice, online therapy has proven to be effective in treating depression and anxiety, eating disorders, ADHD, ASD support, and reducing stress.

According to Dawn Kingston Ph.D., a professor, and practitioner of psychology, online therapy support many things:

1. Easy access

As long as we have internet access, we can do online therapy from home and do not have to take much more time to travel.

Also, not all regions have access to adequate mental health services. So, here is the role of online therapy that can make it easier for people with mental disorders in remote areas to get therapy that suits their needs – without having to bother going out of town.

2. As effective as conventional therapy

This is known from the review of experiments or studies conducted over the past 20 years on guided e-therapy.

3. Affordable

Online therapy is an affordable choice for those of us who need it when compared to conventional therapy. It’s usually a fraction of the cost of face-to-face therapy sessions.

4. Not limited to insurance plans

Online therapy is not limited to insurance plans, so we can extend it indefinitely.

5. Information is more accessible

When accessing the internet, people will find all the information needed easily, including the ins and outs of information about mental health. Sometimes, people with mental disorders tend to feel uncomfortable discussing the problem with friends or family. In the end, they sought information and help through available online therapy to overcome their psychological problems.

6. Make it easy for people with disabilities

People with disabilities have challenges and higher levels of stress making it more likely to be depressed. The reason is, they tend to experience limited movement, an unsupportive social environment, and difficulty finding work. As a result, they become insecure about just leaving the house and interacting with others.

Well, the presence of this online therapy can be a breath of fresh air for people with disabilities. They can still get psychological counseling without bothering to leave the house or think of other people’s views of it.

 

Online-therapy.com
Click HERE to Get Help!

 

Still, online therapy cannot replace face-to-face therapy

Mental disorder face-to-face therapy

Basically, online therapy cannot be considered the best psychotherapy that can replace traditional or face-to-face therapy. When patients come in person, counselors can more easily diagnose mental health problems experienced by patients. The counselor can see the patient’s facial expressions, body language, and voice to make diagnosis easier. Because, these things can provide a clearer picture of the feelings, thoughts, moods, and behavior of patients with counselors.

However, online therapy can still be done to help solve the problems of life, work, and romance that have a negative impact on a person’s psychological condition. As a patient, you may not have time to see the counselor directly, but you still need an immediate solution for your condition. And even more so nowadays with the COVID-19 pandemic quarantine and social distance order, this could be just a solution you need.

Through online therapy, you’ll be able to get a personal licensed therapist and do your counseling via video calls, phone calls, and texts.

 

Bottom Line

Online therapy can be a great solution to help you with your conditions especially when you have busy schedules or when you don’t feel comfortable talking to doctors face-to-face. Plus, it’s much cheaper compared to the in-office sessions.

Is it effective? Yes, it is. There are many studies being done on different mental disorders. Through the online sessions, you can still get the awareness you need towards your conditions.

The choice is yours to make. Do your research first if you really want to try online therapy. Before you decide to go online, consider secrecy, ethical and legal issues, and the therapist’s qualifications. As much as possible try to always consult face to face with counselors to get more satisfying results.

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Stay safe, happy, and healthy! πŸ™‚

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We Stress Free does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. However, if you need someone to talk to and want to make friends, please feel free to reach me at ferra@westressfree.com. If you would like to REDUCE your STRESS and are interested to do an ONLINE THERAPY, you can do so here.

Click here to try Online therapy to help with stress, etc

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Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.

 

Thank you for reading today’s topic: How Effective is Online Therapy?

 

12 thoughts on “How Effective is Online Therapy?

  1. Great article, especially in these crazy times of COVID-19 . The lockdown is causing a lot of emotional stress to many people. And with the social distancing it’s hard for people to visit a psychologist, coach, therapist or other mental health specialist to get some help so indeed online therapy can be a good alternative.

    1. Hi Angelique,

      Thank you for visiting my site, reading the article, and leaving a kind comment.

      Glad you found this article helpful. Hope it is helpful to others as well. πŸ™‚

      Stay safe, happy and healthy!

      Ferra

  2. Very interesting article and have actually made a note of it, keep up the good work and im sure things will work out good πŸ™‚
    The size and structure to this article I do love.
    Jason πŸ™‚

    1. Hi Jason,

      Thank you for visiting my site, reading the article, and leaving a kind comment.

      Glad you found this article helpful. Hope it is helpful to others as well.

      Stay safe, happy and healthy!

      Ferra πŸ™‚

  3. Hello,
    Thank you for this great article. You have made me to have a choice and that choice is online therapy. I have many reasons for this, but all i want to say is thank you for this article and keep up the good work.

    1. Hello Morgan,

      Thank you for visiting my site, reading the article, and leaving a kind comment.

      Glad you found this article helpful. Hope it is helpful to others as well.

      Stay safe, happy and healthy!

      Ferra πŸ™‚

  4. I personally have no problems whatsoever with the isolation aspect of the virus outbreak, but I can understand why some people would need help from a professional therapist given the circumstances.

    1. Hi Simon,

      I am glad that the isolation doesn’t bother you and you can cope with it well. There are many people out there especially ones who have difficulties with their mental health, they do need constant supports. This social distancing is tough on them. So, online therapy can be an alternative to keep them getting help they need.

      Thank you for visiting my site,reading the article, and leaving a kind comment.

      Ferra

  5. Hey Ferra,

    Great article. I can totally imagine why someone would like to do online therapy. Sometimes just going to see a doctor, taking an appointment, travelling, waiting,….. can add to the stress.
    But i think the main disadvantage would be as you said, doctors can not really see the behavior and the body language of the patient which might be extremely important. But of course, online counseling could be a starting point and face to face could be the second step.

    Thank you for a good read.
    Rajith

    1. Hello Rajith,

      I totally agree with you. Sometimes all the hassle of having an in-office therapy session would add our stress, luckily we have another option like online therapy that can be a good alternative to still get help from licensed counselors.
      Thank you for visiting my site, reading the article, and leaving a kind comment.

      Glad you found this article a good read. Hope others find it helpful and they’ll enjoy reading it too.

      Stay safe, happy and healthy!

      Ferra πŸ™‚

  6. Hi Ferra,

    Thank you very much fro your article. I agree with you , online therapy can be very effective and due to Covid 19 people should replace the face-to -face therapy with online therapy.
    From all the form of online therapy , I prefer Skype video call as it develops a better connection between the patient and the therapist.

    Kind regards,
    Yoana

    1. Hello Yoanna,

      Yes, you’re right. I also think video calls through Skype or other apps is a better option when it comes to online therapy because the therapist will not only able to talk with us, they will also be able to see the body language, facial expressions, etc that help the session to be much more fruitful.

      Thank you for visiting my site, reading the article, and leaving a kind comment.

      Glad you found this article a good read. Hope others find it helpful and they’ll enjoy reading it too.

      Stay safe, happy and healthy!

      Ferra πŸ™‚

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