It is often said that online therapy eliminates face-to-face contact, which is said to hinder the therapy process. Should this be the case, efficacy of treatment could be negatively impacted. There are two points to consider in this argument. This first is that with video-conferencing face-to-face contact is restored. The second point, looking back at Sigmund Freud, he did not sit with the client face-to-face–he sat behind the client, so as to minimize the potential of projection. There are some therapists who believe that physical contact or presence is necessary in some cases, and certainly in those cases the therapist should consider and act upon what is consistent with the best interests of the client. (The AAMFT, Family Therapy Magazine, pp. 25-26)
Would you consider receiving therapy online? Why or why not?
Rhett, I believe with the tools available with webcams, mics, Skype, etc should open up a new avenue for web counseling. It could also open new doors for recording approved sessions for review. With schedules getting busier it would be a lot easier to get home, get online and do a Skype session with someone and go over the same issues that you would face to face…oh wait, Skype let’s you do it face to face so that solves that.
However, I do feel that unless you are in a situation where you can see their facial expressions, it would be difficult to fully analyze a situation. But you are the one with the degree and I am not; but I would jump at the chance to do counseling online if it was with the right person and the right setup.
While I would say that my clients and I prefer face-to-face contact, we have also found other means quite effective, useful, meaningful, and convenient. We use written forms of interaction such as email, text and chat. We also use phone and video chat (the quality keeps getting better). Because of that we’ve been able to continue our work and that all important therapeutic relationship even when someone moves. For example, one of my clients moved to Europe and we still meet regularly via Skype. It has worked quite well. Also, a clergy colleauge of mine who lives in a rural area a few states away and has no access to qualified and needed professional help refers his congregants to me and we do our work over the phone–most of them I’ve never met and it works out fine. We just discuss the differences, pros/cons of working this way instead of the traditional face-to-face method with a local provider. One of the key benefits is choice–the freedom to access the best for your needs instead of just taking what’s available and hoping for the best.