Online Therapy Is Here To Stay
Woman on her laptop in bed next to dog during an online therapy session.
Online therapy has been around for many years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the pandemic has changed our lives in unimaginable ways. Never have we needed more support and human connection than we do now. It’s been an overwhelming year for many of us since the pandemic hit and stay at home orders were introduced.
We have been reminded that our survival is based on our connection to one another. Social connection improves our physical and emotional well-being. What is social connection? Social connection is the experience of feeling close and a sense of belonging with others. Because of the stay at home order, many of our social connections disappeared whether you started working from home, stopped attending school/college, stopped seeing your loved ones. Our isolation has increased while our social connections plummeted leading to an increase in symptoms of depression, anxiety, loneliness and fatigue. Our usual coping skills were not working like before and it was all getting to be too much to manage.
To say the least, our mental health has truly been challenged this last year. None of us have ever coped with a pandemic before, no wonder it’s been so hard! One way that many of us received additional support has been by seeking mental health services online. Parents working from home, not working at all, virtually teaching their children, job loss, COVID-19 health challenges, separation, closures, isolation, grief and loss are just some examples of what our community has experienced. How have they survived? Many sought out online therapy. Access has drastically improved and many are understanding the value of online therapy and how vital our mental health is, just like our physical health. How has online therapy helped us ride the waves of this pandemic? How have we coped with these extreme changes? What have we learned about ourselves? We know the importance of prioritizing our self-care, we have leaned on our community, we have implemented boundaries, understanding how much we have to give, knowing when we need to ask for help and truly paying attention to what we need.
At some point in time the pandemic will be over; however online therapy will continue and being able to get care anywhere will be our new reality. As we adjust to our post-pandemic life, we may still need additional support during the transition. Online therapy will continue to open doors for clients who wouldn’t otherwise seek help, particularly clients or communities who feel stigmatized by therapy or intimidated by a stranger sitting across the room from them. Gone are the days of having to drive to your appointment, look for parking, arrange for childcare, and block out more than one hour for your appointment. Online therapy will come to you, to support you when you need it the most.
If you have any questions or are wondering if Online Therapy is right for you, schedule a free consultation with me. I’d be happy to answer any questions.
