Remote or face-to-face? The advantages of online therapy

When a person decides to go through a process of psychotherapy in her life, one of the first decisions he has to make is whether the sessions are going to be online or face-to-face. It is not just a technical issue: as we will see, it can make a big difference.

Both online and face-to-face sessions have their advantages and disadvantages. At the same time, there is a lot of information about the face-to-face sessions, but very little about the online sessions. And that is exactly what this article is about.

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Online or face-to-face therapy? Reasons for choosing the remote modality

As in so many topics related to Psychology, we will see that there are a lot of prejudices and wrong ideas, mostly spread by movies and series. That is why we are going to clarify a series of ideas.

Online therapies are on the rise, especially since the pandemic; although there are still many people who are reluctant to do so, more out of ignorance than for any other reason. But there is no doubt that much of the future of psychotherapy is going to happen virtually. And as we are going to see, that can be good news.

Online therapy can be done by computer, tablet or mobile phone. All you need is a stable connection. Computer skills are not necessary and the applications used guarantee confidentiality. It is actually a very simple process, which can be carried out from anywhere: from home, while traveling, from the company...

On the other hand, conducting sessions online has a series of advantages that people often do not realize. Let's see them.

1. Time saving

It is not necessary to go to the psychologist's office. The connection is made immediately from the place where we are and we save all the trips.

2. Economy

Online sessions are usually cheaper than face-to-face sessions, in part due to their convenience and the fact that they involve less wear and tear. Suppose, therefore, a reduction in the total cost of the therapy process.

• You may be interested: "The 10 benefits of going to psychological therapy"

3. comfort and safety

It is always more comfortable to do the sessions from a known place. Also, it is very important to note that when a person performs the session from their own "territory", they always feel saferwith a greater sense of control. And that helps to feel more confident.

4. Health

In times of pandemic, in which we always have to control everything related to infections, the online option allows us to forget about social distance, disinfection, masks and screens. In addition to comfort, that reduces the level of stress and worry, which is always beneficial to the process.

• Related article: "5 signs of poor mental health that you should not overlook"

5. Accessibility

It allows people who live in remote or isolated environments, without access to psychologists, to access the therapy they need. Therefore, anyone, from anywhere, can access quality psychotherapy, as long as you have an Internet connection.

6. More flexibility at the organization level

At a business level, it represents enormous savings, since can improve the quality of life of workers by accessing an experienced professional that manages to reduce the usual problems in work environments, such as stress, anxiety...

• You may be interested: "Psychology of work and organizations: a profession with a future"

7. freedom of choice

Doing online therapies, clients they can choose the psychologist they like the most, even if they reside in another province or even in another country. It is common for an online psychologist to have clients from different countries. The contact is immediate and the cost and effectiveness are the same.

A form of therapy on the rise

And now that we have seen the advantages of online therapy, it is time to choose and take into account what is wants, what is needed, economic factors, time, distance and so many other elements important. Y we must not forget personal preferences either, which is a very valuable element when choosing a therapist.

It is also very important to take into account the degree of trust that the psychologist awakens, as a person and as a professional. That is why it is always recommended that the psychologist is a qualified person, collegiate and experienced.

As you can see, there are many aspects of online therapy that are unknown to the great public, but there is no doubt that this way of doing therapy is clearly growing and in the future nearby will be as common or more than face-to-face therapy.

When people are in doubt, they are often advised to try a session. When tested, it is usually decided to continue this way.

And now that we know the subject better, we can ask ourselves the question: Face-to-face or online?