I am wondering what are your thoughts of psychotherapy online? There are therapists that you can email back and forth at a prorated rate. You have the option of setting your own frequency of times you want to email/correspond with the therapist. I believe some are even covered by insurance.
I ask because I have in the past year become reluctant to meet anyone new. I don't want to be around anyone for any length of time. I defiantly don't want to see or be seen by a member of the mental health profession. I am becoming more and more afraid of people in general and feel if they "only knew me they'd stay away from me". I do get out to run errands by myself usually once a week - I learned long ago how to "function" outside my comfort zone for a few hours. But something has changed. I'm very paranoid. I only need to correct this problem for one reason - I want to work from home. I would need to interview with a person and actually say something about myself. And I don't want to talk to anyone about myself in person. ( I know - you're thinking "what the hell are you doing here?!") Most of you I know from my old board.
A therapist online would not be able to see me which would put me more at ease. I tend to have more thoughts late at night. So, what are your thoughts?
1) On the one hand I personally think that in some ways I may be even more open, honest and forthcoming with a therapist online than I can face to face.
I wouldn't have the male/female issues (if they didn't disclose) which may lead to some interesting discoveries
I am very articulate when I write so I may find it easier to get my point across
I think it would be easier to say things that are or that I am ashamed about
I would be able to leave the emotional aspects of the message behind and get to the meaning (i.e. I wouldn't spend 1/2 the session crying
It would be so convenient
the therapist would have a harder time having preconceived notions about you based on your appearance...(for example, I think part of the reason my depression was ignored for so long by my past family doctors was that I was always well dressed, well spoken, I laughed when I wanted to cry, was bubbly when I wanted to die, I always looked and sounded like I had it all together...so they had a hard time believing I was not well)
Flip side:
I believe in many ways in therapy it is the relationship between the therapist and the patient that helps the latter heal. I think it would be hard to develop a relationship that is as intense as required for this
Transference is a big thing for me, and has helped me recognize and deal with many patterns I have in my life...not sure how you would identify patterns of behaviour in an online therapist that represented relationships in your real life, or your past
You mention you are increasingly "afraid of people in general"...to feed into this anxiety, by giving into it and not meeting anyone will not help the anxiety go away, it will not help you learn to get through that anxiety. My worry here is that this fear may begin to encompass other people, places etc...suddenly your world shrinks, and shrinks and you are held captive by your fears. Getting out to meet a new therapist, taking that risk....may lead you to take other risks, and then it may lead you to meet more people and suddenly your world expands
Hi Aqua, As you see it is late. I'm listening to the radio - The Beatles singing "Hey Jude". The dogs, cats asleep and my husband. Life is good.
Therapy on line: First a little about me. I have a low trust for people in the mental health field. Misdiagnosed too many times. Part of the defense I have created is a highly effective strategy for preserving my integrity in the face of what I perceive as threatening - therapist. Putting the bipolar disorder aside, with MPD, my "survival strategy" creates more problems than I have time to sit through a session.
Pros. :
I wouldn't have to "test" therapist. I wouldn't know who really was reading the email on a weekly basis.
I would be able to write when I was comfortable and address the issues that I felt were important and effected my daily life.
I am disciplined and would follow the therapists instructions.
I would be able to record my moods. In traditional therapy I was unable to disclose all of my feelings during the past week. I was very self conscious and very worried of being hospitalized.
I would remain anonymous. This is a very important issue for me.
Flip Side:
Relationship: I had one with my DID/MPD, BP therapist for years. I don't care to replace him. I also don't want a therapist trying to "read" me. I am paranoid with this species ;)
Anxiety: I'm not troubled by it. As long as it is not accompanied with a depressed mood . Talking to a therapist in person would not alleviate this.
My weight issues. I do lose a lot of weight when things are out of kilter. A therapist would notice this and persist. But when this happened previously, she only aggravated the situation.
So, I don't know how to proceed. I would like an initial meeting. I did call my insurance company and they will pay. I can ask for an evaluation here and fax it over to an online company. Just how would a person evaluate a reputable company? I'm still not ready to make a decision.
I'm late chiming into this discussion by about 2 years...
Had a thought tho. I go to talk therapy face-to-face twice weekly. In fact, I am going to a session tomorrow afternoon. For me, the value of in-person talk therapy has to do with seeing the immediate response of another human being. And, a professional psychology human being.
Sometimes during a session, I've sat there looking out the window with my therapist sitting across from me gently looking at me. Most times I do most of the talking, and I have a lot to say. However, I can think of 2 or 3 times when all that I did during the 45 minutes was cry.
To sit face-to-face with another person is scary sometimes, but for therapy especially, I find it not only worthwhile and preferable to online/phone,--but completely necessary for me to get anywhere with the clarification of my pathology, thoughts, feelings, and memories.
-EA
But it's my heart that's beggin' down this long distance line tonight... (Missing You, Tyler Hilton version)
Psychotherapy Online
Posted - 06/01/2005 : 11:45:33
