Online Counseling

Online Counseling is the provision of professional mental health services with the internet. It is done by video conferencing, e-mail and real-time chat. In 1972, computers from Stanford and UCLA conducted the first psychotherapy session, at the time the internet went public. Some people who have tried online counselling said that online therapy is much like keeping a journal. You can write at length, explore your thoughts and feelings at depth which is helpful. We all agree but journals won’t talk back or understand your concern, neither do they have empathy about your situation nor they provide an analysis of your thoughts and nightmares. Online therapists will work with you with therapeutic alliances and work on goals, challenges and problems you define. Online counselling is meeting the requirement of rural psychological distrust which was traditionally under-served by traditional practitioners and priests. Online counselling made it possible for individuals fixing up appointments, with busy schedules and has seen a decreasing number of missed sessions. “Why to follow the 19th century approach in the 21st century, Switch to online counselling !!!” Research from G.S Stoffle and J Sueler suggest that online counselling would benefit people functioning at moderately higher level, and those who are with artistic influence and intellectuals are well suited for this service. Their privacy will be maintained and less physical interference with people will help save them from public exposure. If there’s anything that this COVID situation has taught us, is without physically meeting, numerous things and work can be done and it could be done in a more efficient way. The cultural shift is also taking a toll on an individual’s relationship, like earlier an individual person meets on an average of 50 persons and exchanges a series of thoughts and information which let them socially talk and eases the tension. A research says that “ a person who doesn’t talk or interact for a whole day, their stress level would be equivalent to smoking 50 cigerattes a day”. Having a conflict within yourself will ultimately find its way to your personal life, so stop avoiding and seek a professional’s advice. There are many reasons individuals might be hesitant of face-to-face counselling, particularly in Asian societies, stigma associated with mental health problems deter many from seeking professional help. Studies have also found that Indians are generally not as comfortable with self-disclosure and are less likely to psychologize their problems compared to those from Western Societies. The qualities inherent with Online Counseling such as relative anonymity and physical distance have given strength to such cultural barriers and make it an attractive option for many who otherwise remain untreated. Cohen and Kerr conducted a study on the effectiveness of online counseling with anxiety disorders in students and found that there is no difference in both the approaches. As the main concern is to alleviate distress, anxiety or concerns experienced by clients when he or she enters therapy, online counselling has strong efficacy. A Client satisfaction survey conducted by NCBI( National Council of Biotechnology Information) of 700 students showed a high level of satisfaction with online counselling. Approximately 35% say that they would like to utilize an online counseling service but would be unlikely to participate in face-to-face counselling. Most people, at some point in their lives, face adjustment difficulties or other mental health challenges. Studies in India showed that it could benefit between 9.6-24% of the population, around 28-40 crore individuals, but currently are not receiving any mental health support. Similarly, the World Health Organisation estimates that 14% of the global population suffers from some form of mental, neurological or substance abuse disorder, and 75% of those in need do not receive any treatment. Despite on-Campus support at most institutions, usage of mental health services among university students appears to be comparably low for eg- 70% of university students who could be benefitted from mental health counselling did not utilize available services. Online Counselling is clearly a substitute for traditional psychotherapy. If you could visit a therapist in person and do the course efficiently, you should, but the results are otherwise much different, you could end up spending more, using more resources, time and it’s highly likely your privacy would compromise. Online Counselling is a helpful and effective alternative for plethora of reasons like- Maybe you are nervous or embarrassed about counselling, many people are. Maybe your schedule is keeping you from getting help in person. Maybe you don’t have access to a physical therapist nearby. If so, maybe Online Counselling can be helpful. Online Counselling might not be appropriate for everyone, maybe they are not comfortable with technology yet, but one day or other they will have to evolve and start trusting robust and new solutions. Everyday our responsible, competent, ethical mental health professionals are forming effective helping relationships via the Internet. “Psychotherapist can help you and now some of them can help you over the internet”