The Wall Street Journal recently printed an article on the effectiveness of online mental-health therapy. Acknowledging that vaccines have allowed many patients and therapists to again meet in person, author Andrea Petersen highlighted that video therapy still has benefits. Point to research on the subject, Petersen wrote that “some studies have found that video mental-health therapy can be as effective as in-person treatment.”
The Brain Health Clinic offers video therapy sessions. This method of meeting for therapy is extremely helpful for those with compromised immune systems or underlying health conditions that make them wary of traveling away from home during the ongoing pandemic. We also have the capability to conduct distance neurofeedback.
For younger clients, in-person therapy visits may still work best. And initial office visits are helpful to establish a rapport by seeing each other face to face (or “mask to mask”). But online therapy and distance neurotherapy are especially helpful for clients that often need to travel or college students who study away from home.
Combining in-person and online therapy may also enable patients to reduce the amount of time necessary to meet their personal mental-health goals, according to Jay Shore, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Colorado and the chair of the American Psychiatric Association’s telepsychiatry committee. Some therapists especially appreciate the opportunity to see their patient’s home environment. Clearly visualizing where their clients live can lead to important therapy insights and prescriptions for improvement.
Greater Patient Choice with Teletherapy
Whether a patient chooses in-person therapy or online therapy, having the option of one or the other gives each person the opportunity to continue attending their sessions even when circumstances might otherwise lead them to cancel. One client interviewed for the article indicated that attending therapy sessions in-person when she wasn’t feeling well would leave her feeling “wiped out afterwards.” By exercising the option to meet virtually, this individual was able to keep attending her appointments whether she had the strength to travel or not.
The Brain Health Clinic offers a variety of therapy options for our clients, including online neurofeedback and online therapy sessions. For more information about how you can include telepsychiatry in your treatment options, please speak to your therapist or contact us online or by phone.