Therapy is growing in popularity as more people realize how helpful it can be for boosting mental well-being. There used to be a stigma surrounding mental health care, with those who received it often being regarded as “crazy” or “unstable” by their peers. Fortunately, that stigma is now largely a thing of the past.
Thanks to widespread efforts to shed light on mental illness and its prevalence, therapy is becoming more mainstream. It’s growing in popularity as more people learn to see it for the valuable healthcare service it is. If you’re thinking about scheduling your first therapy appointment but aren’t sure whether to see a therapist in person or online, both options are good. However, online therapy is skyrocketing in popularity for many reasons. Here’s what to know about online therapy and how it improves mental health outcomes.
What Is Online Therapy?
Online therapy refers to mental health services that are offered remotely instead of in person. An online therapist may offer their services via telephone calls, online chats, video conferencing sessions, or text messaging. This flexibility makes it possible for patients to get the mental healthcare they need from practically any location with internet service.
How Online Therapy Improves Mental Health Outcomes
Online therapy makes it easier for the average person to seek and receive mental health care. From improving accessibility for people in remote locations to offering enhanced privacy and discreet care, online therapy offers many unique benefits. Here are a few ways this valuable service is improving mental health outcomes for today’s generations.
Accessibility
The Bowman Family Foundation recently released a report illustrating a disturbing trend in mental health care. The report revealed that 57% of people were unable to access mental health or substance use care when they needed it. The numbers were even worse for adolescents who sought mental health or substance use care.
The rapid rise of online therapy is disrupting the trend of inadequate mental healthcare by increasing accessibility. Now, people can still get the care they need from online providers, even if there are no available therapists in their immediate area. Getting therapy online removes accessibility barriers that previously prevented many people from getting mental healthcare.
Effectiveness
Studies comparing telehealth to in-person mental health care reveal that meeting with a remote therapist is just as effective as meeting with an in-person therapist. Outcomes measured depressive symptoms, as well as quality of life and satisfaction questionnaires. These revealed no significant differences in outcome between those who met with a therapist in person and those who engaged in remote therapy sessions.
In some cases, patients were even more likely to continue meeting with a therapist remotely than in person. This illustrates how important it is for some people to have access to convenient and effective remote mental healthcare services.
Affordability
Remote therapy is often more affordable than in-person therapy. This is because therapists who meet with patients digitally typically have lower overhead costs than therapists who offer in-person care. In many cases, therapists with fewer overhead costs pass some of those savings on to their patients in the form of cheaper sessions.
Online therapy can also save patients money on gas or transportation costs. Being able to meet with a therapist from any location with an internet connection removes the need to commute to your appointments. Whether you’re living on a fixed budget or simply looking for ways to save money, getting therapy online may be more affordable than in-person therapy.
Flexibility
Some people prefer to communicate with a therapist through text, while others like the ease of engaging in therapy sessions by phone call. One of the most convenient aspects of online therapy is that you can often choose your preferred communication method. Many therapists give patients multiple communication options to optimize their comfort.
Online therapy is also known for scheduling flexibility. In-person therapists may require patients to stick with pre-determined time slots for the duration of care. However, online therapists tend to be more accommodating. Patients receiving digital therapy may find it easier to switch the timing of their appointments around to accommodate meetings and other commitments.
Privacy
Even though mental healthcare is no longer stigmatized like it once was, many patients still don’t want others to know they’re seeing a therapist. The thought of meeting with a mental health professional in person, where others might see them, could cause significant anxiety.
When you meet with a therapist online, there’s no need to worry about running into a friend or neighbor in the waiting room. You also don’t have to wonder if someone you know saw you pull up to your therapist’s office in your car. You get to choose the location of your remote appointments to ensure total privacy and discreet care.
See if Online Therapy Is a Good Fit for You
Some people prefer the intimacy of meeting with a therapist in person. However, many others are discovering that online therapy offers unsurpassed convenience, flexibility, and effectiveness. Online therapy is improving mental health outcomes by making mental health services easier to access than ever before. If you’re struggling to find a good therapist near you with the right availability for your needs, consider trying online therapy. You may discover that it’s the perfect fit for your lifestyle.
