Online therapy simply involves your traditional face to face session but over a video platform like Zoom or Teams in the comfort of your own home (or workplace). Research comparing face to face to online treatment has shown that not only is online CBT therapy at least as effective as face to face in adults (Fernandez et al, 2021, Luo et al, 2020, Germain et al 2009), but also that online CBT is effective in the older-adult population (Ando et al, 2023) and with young people (Howes, Gorey and Charron, 2023).
Working face-to-face I often find clients have to take 2-3hrs out of their day to get ready, drive to the clinic, attend, drive home etc. With today’s busy lives, this is sometimes not practical. The ease and practical nature of a video call means no journey times to a clinic. For children, in-person sessions often mean they can end up missing school lessons. However, without the travel time, online sessions can slot into free periods or straight after school. Finally, with online appointments, adolescents moving to university do not need stop sessions but can continue, even if they move to other parts of the UK (or abroad...).
One of the things I love about online sessions are their interactive nature. The use of screen sharing means you and your psychologist can work easily together to build a diagrammatic understanding of negative cycles and traps occurring for you. It’s then also easy for you to take away the materials created so you can reflect on them afterwards.
A number of different therapies are covered by associates of My Online Psychologist. These include:
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
- Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
- Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
- Compassion Focused Therapy (CfT)
- Cognitive Analytic Therapy (CAT)
- Dialectual Behavioural Therapy (DBT)
- Eye-Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
- Exposure Response Prevention (ERP)
- Narrative Therapy
- Schema Therapy
- Person centred-counselling
- Family Therapy
- Couples Therapy
How I can help
Although there is research showing all of the above are effective, many people understandably do not which would be right for them. When we speak on the phone, I'll aim to work out which therapy would likely best suit you or your child. I'll then link you up with a private online psychologist who is very experienced in that therapeutic approach. I will speak to them and ensure they can help with your difficulties and that they have space to see you at the time that would work best for you.
I do not charge you for my time in finding your the right psychologist. For treatment appointments, fees vary between psychologists, but typically this is between £90-£140 per appointment. If you wish, all my associates will be happy to speak to you briefly on the phone prior to the first appointment (for no charge).
What is CBT?
Cognitive behavioural Therapy (CBT) is recognised the world over as the go-to treatment for depression, anxiety disorders and stress. There is a wealth of gold standard research spanning decades to back this up. As such, it is the government’s NICE guidelines most recommended treatment for psychological difficulties. Further information about CBT can be found here but please do not hesitate to call me if you would simply like to find out more.
What is ACT?
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is a ‘Third wave’ CBT therapy. Many of the principles are based on CBT research. However, there are some key differences from CBT. ACT draws a lot from mindfulness. Some may say it is mindfulness but with a commitment to make a behavioural change – with this commitment key towards helping you move towards the life you wish to have. Like CBT, there is a large amount of research showing its effectiveness.
Contact Me
I’ve tried to include the most common questions on my FAQ page. However, any questions, whether about therapy, how online treatment works, or anything else, please feel free to contact me.