How can online and phone counselling work for you?
What does it include?
‘Online counselling’ includes different types of remote therapy, which simply means that it isn’t in person.
It includes counselling that takes place through:
Phone ☎📱
Video call 💻📱
Online chat (in real time)💬💻📱
Email / chat (not in real time) 📩💬
Why is online / phone counselling helpful?
It can be easier to meet your counsellor at a time that fits into your schedule, and in a place that you have chosen to be in for your session.
Working with a counsellor online or remotely can give you more choice about who you work with and the counselling style that you use together, as you are not limited to who is available locally to work with you in person. This means that you can choose someone who is the best fit for you, and for what it is that you would like to bring to counselling.
Phone counselling
Working with a counsellor over the telephone can be powerful because it’s all about the voice to voice contact and two people listening to each other. Some people find this process can be especially supportive because the focus is all on what is being shared and responded to, and it can feel liberating to not have to consider how you are presenting yourself to another person (even when you know they are fully accepting of you) and to instead focus on what you are experiencing, processing, and communicating with them.
Video call counselling
Video call counselling allows for visual, spoken, and written communication, and it also offers a lot of scope to work collaboratively with your counsellor when all of the features of the chosen platform are used in the sessions. Video call counselling can be especially effective for working creatively, or with chosen resources, as it is possible to mutually share, view, read, edit, and respond to things together in real time. Some people also find it really accessible to have the choice to opt in or out of video, and to be able to have the option to speak or type, depending on their preferences at the time.
How does it compare to meeting face-to-face?
Is online / phone counselling for you?
If you are open minded about working with a counsellor online or remotely, and you would value more choice and flexibility around how and when you access your counselling sessions, it’s likely that online / remote counselling could be really supportive to you, provided your chosen counsellor values working in this way and is confident in doing so.
Online / phone counselling may also feel more accessible to you depending on your preferences and needs, and it may be especially suited to you if you would benefit from accessing counselling from a space that allows you to feel safe and comfortable on your own terms.
Whatever your overall preferences are for how you access counselling, the key factor in the effectiveness of your sessions is the strength of your relationship with your counsellor and how you work together to address what you are bringing to counselling. This is why it is important that you look for a counsellor with whom you can build a good rapport and a supportive connection in your sessions.
