- Is online and telephone counselling effective? There is mounting evidence to suggest that the outcome of these methods is at least equal to the effects of traditional counselling. Leading medical journal The Lancet, previously published a study validating claims that online cognitive behavioural therapy is just as effective in treating depression as traditional therapy. In addition, telephone counselling has also been recognised an effective treatment for depression.
- Talking to a therapist either over the phone or online with Skype, Zoom or Facetime is an increasingly attractive option for those seeking therapy.
- For those with busy lives, living abroad, or in locations where therapy services are unavailable it offers the option of sessions from your own home at convenient times.
- Online sessions require a broadband internet connection and a computer or tablet. Some people even find a smartphone is enough. (You would either need to download the Skype or Zoom application if you don’t already have these or check the Facetime function on your ipad or iphone).
- It works best if the online sessions mirror a face to face session as much as possible. This would ideally involve a regular weekly time and finding a comfortable and confidential space which you can use to have your sessions free from interruption. This is in an ideal world, however, and one of the pluses of this way of working is that online meetings can be extremely flexible.
- If you are not used to talking online it might take a little getting used to but most people adapt to it incredibly quickly.
- If you want to arrange an appointment the first thing is to contact me via email or phone to fix a day and time to meet. I will then give you my online details for you to call me on that day. My Skype contact is philip.ruhemann and I can be reached on Facetime via my email address.
- The first meeting is what is usually called an “assessment” where we would discuss the issues that brought you to therapy, how I might be able to help and what would be involved in the process. I will also ask you a little about yourself, your family history and wider biography. You can also ask me any questions at all that you might have. From there we would both decide the best way forward, the frequency of sessions and agree a fee. Sessions usually last for 50 minutes and are scheduled once weekly but frequency, times and amount of sessions can be decided upon depending on people’s particular circumstances and needs.