We sometimes find ourselves so oppressed by problems in our lives and by the emotional pain that often accompanies them that we feel a desperate need for some support or even professional help.
The situation becomes especially problematic if we also happen to lack necessary social resources at the time. Besides, professional psychological services might not be available in the area.
That’s when online therapy becomes particularly convenient. In this article, we’ll discuss situations when you might want to seek online therapy services. And then, we’ll briefly review therapy platforms and their advantages over traditional visits to offices.
Mental Health Problems and Emotional Pain
Most people feel healthy and happy while everything in their lives is going more or less all right. But when they have to face some challenges or live through stressful events, many people begin to experience mental and emotional problems.
Your happiness can become seriously impaired, and you may find yourself unable to enjoy life. Alternatively, you may begin to crumble under severe emotional pressure. Your healthy eating and sleeping patterns become disrupted, and you begin to have interpersonal problems, too.
Your friends and family can offer you some emotional support and sound advice while the situation is still manageable. Unfortunately, many people live lonely lives or lack the necessary social resources.
Besides, if it’s about mental health illness, a friendly chat isn’t enough, and it’s the professional mental health support you need.
You understand you should go to a therapist, but you don’t know where to find one, or you might not have enough time or money to do it. Fortunately, there’re online therapy platforms, such as Calmerry, that can offer you the support and guidance you desperately need at such times.
All you have to have is a secure Internet connection, and you’ll get affordable access to mental health services provided by licensed and experienced professionals through online text chat and even video session formats.
Reasons to Seek Online Therapy
In simple terms, you should start seriously considering the possibility of getting professional mental health support if you answer yes to one or more of the following statements:
- Your mental or emotional problems distress you so much that you can’t concentrate on the tasks at hand or enjoy your favourite activities anymore.
- You suspect that you may be the cause of your troubles or that recent stressful events can’t fully explain the scale of your suffering.
- Your mental or emotional condition has begun to disrupt your relationships with significant people in your life.
- Your occupational functioning has begun to deteriorate as a result.
- You exhibit more than two formally recognized symptoms of a mental health disorder.
(You can read about them in professional literature or make an appointment with a qualified therapist for a diagnostic session. Alternatively, several online therapy platforms offer free self-assessment tools.)
- The symptoms have been present for six months or longer, or you experience them more than 50% of the time.
- You find it extremely difficult or impossible to force yourself to perform usual daily activities, such as housework, shopping, and personal hygienic practices.
(Incidentally, the last statement is so significant that should you have answered yes to it, you might as well think of it as a red flag.)
Online Therapy Platforms
Modern advances in computer technology have created additional options in many professional fields, including the mental health industry. You can find professional mental health help from any location anytime, provided you have access to the Internet.
There’re numerous support services, crisis intervention hotlines, and private therapists available online nowadays.
The advantages of online platforms include:
- their continuous and immediate accessibility from the comfort of your home,
- significantly lower service fees and no commuting costs,
- greater privacy these formats offer you.
The e-counseling provides you with opportunities to speak to qualified professionals about whatever may be bothering you at the moment. You can also ask them for any information you need. It’s even possible to take part in online group therapy sessions.
Besides offering treatment and interventions, these online platforms provide additional services, such as:
- telephone hotlines,
- real-time video sessions,
- educational webpages,
- e-forums with people in similar situations,
- interactive toolkits that you can download and use for your self-therapy,
- one-to-one or group therapy chats,
- mental health mobile applications.
Summary
Anybody may need to see a mental health professional one day. It helps to know that we no longer have to be restricted by the physical availability of mental health resources or our financial situation. All we need in such circumstances is only a click away from us anytime.