Online Therapy

Online therapy has the advantage of being able to have your session where ever you are. Like face to face therapy the timing and method of contact needs to be agreed. There are different options for online therapy, including: live video sessions and emails.

Email Therapy

The advantage of email therapy is that you can keep the exchange to look back on at a later date. Emails can be exchanged in real time (provided a time has been arranged) or you could chose to email at any time within the week. We would agree a time frame for my response and also agree an approximate upper limit to the length of your emails.

The disadvantage of email exchange is the increased opportunity for misunderstandings. In a face to face exchange we use many non-verbal cues, (such as tone of voice, speed of speech and posture) to gauge how what we are saying is being received.  This is not available when therapy is taking place via email, however for people who struggle with face-to-face contact, email therapy can be extremely useful.

what’s online therapy like?

Actually making the decision to ask for help is probably the hardest thing. Fundamentally, the objective of online therapy is the same as in person therapy: to understand the current issues and the context of their onset.  Then to provide a space where difficulties can be understood so that gently your child and your family are able to overcome these challenges.When you make an initial contact with me, I will arrange a time for a brief telephone discussion in which I will ask for a few more details. From this we will decide whether I’m able to offer psychotherapy to your child or family. We would then arrange a further consultation either by phone or online.

The purpose of the consultation is for me to get an idea around the context and onset of the problems. It is also a time for you to ask questions and have a chance to find out a little about me and the way I work. We would also think about the best way forward for your child and family. It may be that our first session would be with your child and a trusted adult member of the family together. This can help an anxious child to feel safe enough to move towards individual sessions. 

Wondering what to talk about can feel quite daunting. However once you start this isn’t usually too much of a problem. With younger children it’s helpful if you can supply creative art/craft materials because it is through play that children often give an insight into their inner feelings,  The process is similar with adolescents . Some feel comfortable talking, while others may also want to scribble and doodle or find a different way of communicating their feelings.  

Working online feels different to seeing someone in the flesh. In many ways, it is more intense. Turning away from a camera feels different to glancing away across a room. Being able to doodle or find another way of expressing oneself can be helpful way of pacing a session and managing silences.

Finally it’s important to remember that it can take time to see results. Our use of social media and online shopping has made us become accustomed to instant gratification. However we start developing a sense of self from infancy and changing our behaviour and our feelings takes time. I can offer you and your child patient and sensitive understanding and we will review how things are going every 6 to 8 weeks.