What is the online guidance and counseling service?

Psychology is not simply a science dedicated to studying the human mind in an abstract sense, simply by accumulating information. It also has the objective of applying that knowledge to all kinds of problems and specific needs, putting into practice what we know about human behavior.

This is how psychotherapy was born, for example: it is what comes to mind when we think of a psychologist helping specific people who have real problems. However, applied psychology can take other forms that go beyond this working model.

In this article we will talk about one of those alternative ways of helping people: the online psychological counseling service.

• Related article: "The 8 benefits of going to psychological therapy"

What are the characteristics of online counseling?

Online psychological counseling is a way through which psychologists offer help to people who may or may not be going through a difficult time in their lives and who need help to deal with specific, daily and very various, all this without the need to meet in person with the professional.

Normally, these sessions are carried out through video calling platforms, which allows there to be a fluent and real-time communication with the professional, while the ability to perceive language is not lost non verbal. On the other hand, information shared with psychologists is treated as confidential.

Some examples of reasons that may lead to use these services are: seeking help to prepare for a competitive examination, needing support to manage the anxiety always being at home due to a health emergency (such as the coronavirus pandemic), requiring the help of a professional to learn to meditate with Mindfulness exercises, have psychological guidance to raise a child or daughter, etc.

In short, the online advice that some psychology centers offer is a more flexible and open way of dealing with people's problems, going to the practical and proposing solutions that can be applied in the short term, even on the same day.

Differences with online therapy

As we have seen, online psychological counseling has a series of its own characteristics based on professional help for people with certain needs. However, That does not mean that it is online psychotherapy; technically, they are two different things.

There are three main differences between online therapy and online counseling.

The first is the type of problem to be treated: in psychotherapy, these are usually very implanted in the way of life of people, and have to do with their habits, in their way of managing emotions in a wide variety of situations, in the way of managing a relationship, in the way of living with an illness, etc. On the other hand, in online advice, the objective is usually to solve more specific and everyday problems: planning the day-to-day time, facing a new work project, etc.

The second difference is the duration of the sessions. While online therapy sessions generally last between 50 and 60 minutes, online counseling sessions can be shorter, half an hour.

The third difference is continuity. Psychotherapy is a series of sessions structured one after another and organized in several clear phases of problem solving, so that the The patient progresses as he passes through them, and in the first hours with the psychologist he already asks in advance what will be the approximate number of sessions. Instead, psychological counseling is more flexible in this regard.

Advantages of the online advisory service

The main advantages of online counseling are as follows.

1. Lets ask for help for what concerns us most

As we have seen, online counseling proposes to obtain help with specific problems, typical of everyday life. In other words, helps to focus on these problems, so that time is not invested in working on other needs that the person feels are less of a priority.

2. Get help from experts

The number of problems that can lead us to resort to the psychological counseling service are very varied, and for this reason it sometimes seems that no one has ever faced challenges of this kind, but in all these cases we have an experienced professional who can help us know what to do and put our ideas in order.

3. It is cheaper

Another important advantage of online psychological counseling is that it is cheaper than online therapy. This, coupled with the fact that it is not necessary to go to the psychotherapist's office, makes this service very accessible.

4. It is easy to include it in the schedule

The sessions are rather short, so it is easy to match the schedules and not miss the appointment.

Looking for help? Think UPAD Psychology and Coaching

On UPAD Psychology and Coaching, a psychological assistance center located in Madrid, we offer an online counseling service with 30-minute sessions. We can help you deal with a wide variety of problems, be they emotional, relational or otherwise. On the other hand, we also carry out psychotherapy services online and in person. To see our contact details, click click here.