Lorena González: "We women are in a difficult time"

Online therapy is something increasingly popular and normalized; If it was already gaining visibility year after year before the coronavirus pandemic, now a large number of professionals have adapted to this new format of patient support.

Partly due to this consolidation of online psychotherapy, it has been able to specialize and diversify. That is why there are proposals such as Serena Psicología, an online therapy center aimed especially at women. Today we speak with its founder, Lorena González.

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Interview with Lorena González: psychology by videoconference

Lorena González is a psychologist and founder of Serena Psicología, an online therapy center by video call that has the particularity of being focused on women who need professional psychological assistance. In this interview we will talk about his proposal for remote psychological care.

What is the main idea behind the opening of the Serena Psychology Online clinic?

Serena's objective is to bring psychology closer to women to accompany her in the difficulties that she may encounter on a day-to-day basis.

We wanted to create a space where they can meet us and can benefit from psychology guidelines in those moments where they may need it through different online formats, from general content to training sessions. psychology.

Why did you set yourself the goal of orienting your work specifically to women?

Women today carry an extra load in our day to day that makes us experience more stress and anxiety than the man, (we are speaking in general, of course there are men who also have a bad time and we also have male patients). But women experience exclusive stages in women, such as pregnancy, childbirth, lactation, the weight of parenting... where professional guidance comes in handy. And we also look for more spaces where we can express our emotions.

We women are in a difficult moment since we cover masculine and feminine roles, and the hours of the day do not allow us to take a space to connect with ourselves. This space is what Serena wants to offer to all women who need it.

Considering that there is still social pressure to keep women from giving up housework even if they have careers professionals, is this a factor of psychological exhaustion and lack of time that makes them benefit more from therapy on-line?

Of course. We are advancing a lot in equality but we are at a critical moment where we are making a hole in the world of work but still with the weight of home and upbringing.

Let's say that the woman has gone out of the house to work but few men have entered it yet to share the tasks. It is true that men perform more visual tasks, that is, they look a lot, such as cooking or baking. But what is the coordination of the home, that everything is in order, the mental weight, we women continue to carry.

And that job is the least recognized and the one that causes the most mental load. For this reason we have less time, and saving you transportation or being able to connect with your psychologist from your car or work at any given time is a great advantage for us.

Beyond the impact that the coronavirus pandemic has had, have you noticed if in recent years online psychology has rapidly gained popularity among the population?

Yeah. Serena Psicología has recently reinvented itself, we started ten years ago providing sessions by videoconference. In these ten years videoconferences have increased a lot, there are thousands of studies that certify the effectiveness of online therapy (always by videoconference). When we started, people doubted the effectiveness. Now we all know that it is the same as face-to-face therapy. Better, because you can meet your psychologist beforehand and it is easier for you to access therapy.

The pandemic, of course, has made it clear that many jobs can be done online, and many people have been forced to become familiar with new technologies, with which we already know how much time we can save by connecting from wherever we are with our psychologist.

Has online psychology contributed to normalizing the fact of "going to the psychologist" by making these services more accessible?

Of course. And the good thing about online therapy is that you no longer have to go to a cold door without knowing who you are going to find...for example, in Serena Psychology all patients can meet their future psychologist beforehand, reading their articles, seeing their photos, listening to their podcast. It is essential for psychology that the person feels comfortable with their therapist.

Having the therapy so close and easy to access, people are more encouraged to try it. In addition, the first session is free, which makes it easier for people to start.

Also, little by little, the idea that the person who goes to the psychologist is because he is very ill is being lost. People also come because they are looking for guidance, support on day-to-day issues, advice on what to do with their children at a particular stage. They already see us as a companion who guides and guides, not just as a professional who treats only serious cases. Much progress has been made on this.

What are the next professional challenges that you have set yourself and towards which you will direct Serena Psicología Online?

We have many ideas to bring psychology closer. We are open to any possible demand or proposal that may arise. We have just opened a YouTube channel, a podcast, we want to carry out online courses and group sessions for women. We have lots of ideas.

We want people to experience what it is to do therapy, what changes your life, and also as a society we want to raise awareness of the importance of psychology in everyday life.

We are living through difficult times, and we are all, to a greater or lesser extent, being emotionally affected. For this reason, I believe that psychologists have a great task to do so that this stage does not mark us excessively for the future.