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Online and Telephone Counseling
is offered as an alternative to people who find in difficult
to make face to face appointments, those that are physically
disabled, or simply people that are more comfortable speaking
with a therapist in the comfort of their home.
REASONS TO USE ONLINE AND
TELEPHONE COUNSELING
- You have a very busy schedule and have
difficulty making a face-to-face appointment.
- You have a fear of going out into public
and would be more comfortable receiving counseling online.
- You have privacy concerns and are
uncomfortable that someone might see you at a therapist's
office.
- You want access to a therapeutic medium
(such as email counseling) 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week.
- You are disabled (such as hearing impaired)
or physically incapacitated, and making the trip to a
therapy office is limiting your ability to get counseling
services.
- You feel you would have a greater degree of
privacy and safety by engaging with a therapist from the
comfort of your own home or office.
- You want to have the option of a single
session or an ongoing therapeutic relationship.
- You live in an area where there are few or
no therapists available to address your particular
concern.
- You are concerned that talking about your
issues face to face could be embarrassing or intimidating
REASONS ONLINE
& TELEPHONE
COUNSLING IS NOT ADVISED
-
You have severe mental health issues that
would be best addressed in a face-to-face therapeutic
relationship rather than online or by phone .
-
You are attempting to avoid your real
issues impeding your happiness by "hiding" behind the
screen.
-
You are under the age of 18.
-
You are currently experiencing a crisis
that needs immediate attention such as rape, physical or
sexual abuse, child abuse, elder abuse, or other forms of
domestic violence.
-
You are actively considering suicide
or physically harming another person.
-
You want to address health or medical
issues without seeking medical attention from a physician
-
You need extensive in-depth counseling
for severe mental illness or intensive psychiatric
care.
-
You want to pay for your therapy with
insurance (at present, most insurance companies do not pay
for online or telephone counseling services).
-
You are unmotivated to change or to take
an active part in making things in your life
different
Other limitations to online and
phone therapy include my inability to see and respond to your
body language or facial expressions. This can sometimes limit
the ability to respond as effectively as I would in person.
There is also the possibility of technical barriers that might
interfere such as power outages, technical issues with
computers, and phone interruptions. If any of these
limitations are of concern to you, feel free to discuss how
these potential problems can be addressed.
IMPORTANT
NOTE: Online and telephone
counseling are NOT for everyone and
are not appropriate resources for issues regarding child abuse
or domestic violence, or for addressing suicidal or homicidal
plans. If you are actively suicidal (that you
intend to physically harm yourself in some way) or homicidal
(that you intend to physically harm another person in some
way), please seek IMMEDIATE help by calling 9-1-1 or
contacting the National Suicide Hotline at 1 – 800 – 784 –
2433.
Some additional
resources that might be of help include:
- Child Abuse
Hotline 1–800–422–4453
- National Domestic Violence
Hotline 1–800–799–7233
- Rape, Abuse & Incest National
Network 1–800–656–HOPE
- National Suicide
Hotline 1–800–784–2433
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