'Synchronous' - 'real-time' but not necessarily instantaneous e.g. video-conference, text-chat, telephone / voice only or a mix of these
'Asynchronous' - 'not real-time' e.g. e-mail correspondence, text messages
Online counselling provides us with an opportunity to explore a personal difficulty in a confidential and supportive environment. We will have a look at your current situation, your thoughts about it, your worries and your concerns and the feelings that are arising from all of these things. It may be that some of these feelings are frustrating or upsetting or painful and have lingered for a long time, like a heaviness or undercurrent underneath everything else, making it more difficult to stay buoyant and positive and cope easily with everyday life.
The benefits to you of online counselling
The convenience of not having to commute
The convenience of not having to worry about the timings of public transport or finding parking
The convenience of flexibility, fitting counselling sessions around other things going on in your life
Support in a time and place that is convenient to you (we can discuss how to find and maintain a confidential space if this is problematic to you)
Geographical remoteness is not a problem
Physical mobility issues are not a problem
Scheduled at a choice of times that suit you
You have the autonomy to choose which technology you think will work best for you e.g. you have the option to write your thoughts and feelings down to share what is going on in your mind, if you think that way will work better for you
You can get the support you need whilst practicing physical distancing
No worry about any sense of stigma from others, you don’t have to go somewhere public to receive online this service
Things to think about if doing online counselling
Are you comfortable using internet technology?
Can you access a smartphone or laptop privately and without interruption, from home, car or elsewhere?
Is your phone signal strong enough or internet connection stable enough to work in this way?
Does your problem feel too complex to work through online?
Would you really prefer to work face to face?
Do you have any sight problems that could make it more difficult to see things on-screen?
Do you have any hearing problems that could make it difficult working via video-conference or phone?
Do you have dyslexia, in which case would working in a text-based way may be more challenging for you?
Stability of internet connection and/or strength of phone signal where you are
Not being able to see the whole of each other, so not being able to see much body language from the shoulders downwards
• Tiring sooner, as it may be that you find working together online or via telephone quite a demanding experience, especially for those using computer screens in everyday life at the moment.
We may spend some of our time building resources and developing a self-care plan to support you.
I hope you have found this helpful and that you can see that in different ways workong online can be as good as working face-to-face.
Benefits and Challenges of Online Therapy
Benefits and Challenges of Online Therapy
Online counselling can be split into 2 types:
Online counselling provides us with an opportunity to explore a personal difficulty in a confidential and supportive environment. We will have a look at your current situation, your thoughts about it, your worries and your concerns and the feelings that are arising from all of these things. It may be that some of these feelings are frustrating or upsetting or painful and have lingered for a long time, like a heaviness or undercurrent underneath everything else, making it more difficult to stay buoyant and positive and cope easily with everyday life.
The benefits to you of online counselling
Things to think about if doing online counselling
We may spend some of our time building resources and developing a self-care plan to support you.
I hope you have found this helpful and that you can see that in different ways workong online can be as good as working face-to-face.
Best wishes,
Emma