How Can Online Therapy Help Me?

'tIt’s no secret that in the aftermath of a worldwide pandemic, many things have changed.

  With the increase in the need for mental health care, many people have wondered if therapy is right for them. If you’re like many of us, the need to speak to someone about our struggles often takes the backseat to the dozens of other things we need to accomplish in a week. But what if there were a way to make it more convenient for you? What if you weren’t limited by location, time constraints, needing to find childcare, needing to leave your place of work, or even your home? If eliminating those hurdles would make finding a therapist easier for you, then you might want to consider online therapy.

While online therapy has always been an option at most practices, the pandemic made it more well-known.

In fact, many in-person providers and patients have even discovered they prefer it to traditional, in-person therapy. Online therapy can provide support for someone struggling with anxiety. It provides the chance to speak to a licensed clinician from the privacy of your own home. Online therapy is for busy parents. The ones who can't keep their kiddos occupied long enough to speak privately for an hour. Yet they might not be able to find childcare. Especially for the time it would take to drive to, attend, and drive home from your appointment. Telehealth can be a game changer. It is also for the dedicated professional who doesn’t have time to squeeze in a therapy session before or after work. But who can find an hour over their lunch. They can then log onto a video session, a whole new world of mental health help is suddenly available at your fingertips.

Understanding the Benefits of Online Therapy in Florida

Online therapy has proven to be especially beneficial for teens. Ones who are so comfortable with online platforms that they’re sometimes more likely to open up than they are in a clinical setting, in person with their therapist. While some people may feel like online therapy is too impersonal, or not as effective, a study done by the National Council on Aging shows that telehealth appointments for those on Medicare increased from 5 million in 2019 to more than 53 million in 2020. You can see more about that study here. According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectal Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and even eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy (EMDR) are all just as effective virtually as they are in person.

One of the biggest benefits people find with virtual telehealth is the ability to hold a session from a place they feel most comfortable.

It may be from home, in their office at work, in their car, or even while out hiking their favorite trail. Regardless, eliminating the need to go into the therapist's office can provide a more relaxing, freeing experience for many patients. It also means you can look for a specialist outside of your city, or even your state, now that PSYPACT has passed here in Florida. The biggest “con” tends to be patients feeling like it takes longer to connect with a therapist over virtual sessions than in person, but many patients find that it’s worth the wait to be able to expand their search for the best fit from who is locally available, to who is available in the state.

Another exciting development in Florida is that a new law just passed that makes Florida part of PSYPACT.

What that means is that psychologists who register to be licensed under psypact can now see clients virtually who live in any other state that participates in psypact. As noted in the image below, most states are now participating in psypact. This means for many individuals who travel or live or work frequently, who live in different states in different parts of the year there is not improved flexibility to see the same provider you always see virtually. This is a huge benefit allowing for continuity of care virtually in the future. Florida psychologists can now start seeing clients who live in Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Ohio and the list goes on and on. So also if a client lives in another state and wants to see someone in our group virtually because they are uniquely specialized in the area they are wanting treatment, they now have the option and flexibility to see that provider as long as they are Psypact certified.  In our blog later this month, we’ll share even more about why PSYPACT is and what it can mean for you in your search for a therapist who’s a great fit for you!

Begin Online Therapy in Florida

To learn more about the benefits of virtual therapy, check out our blog archive here. Or, call our admin team today to set up your free phone consult with one of our virtual therapists! Our team of caring therapists would be honored to support you on your mental health journey from the comfort of your home. You can receive the support you deserve from our Tampa, FL-based practice by following these simple steps:

1. Contact Wellness Psychological Services 
2. Meet with a caring therapist 
3. Start finding joy in life again!

Other Services Offered by Wellness Psychological Services

Wellness Psychological Services is proud to offer both in-person and online therapy for the residents of Florida. Our team also offers couples counseling, divorce discernment counseling, support through a divorce, and mediation for couples. We also offer mental health support services including anxiety treatment, trauma therapy, depression counseling, OCD treatment, stress management, and testing and evaluation services for individuals as well! Additionally, we are happy to offer eating disorder treatment,  PCIT therapy, DBT, child therapy, therapy for professionals, and health psychology. Feel free to learn more by visiting our blog page or FAQ today!