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The Future of Mental Health: Exploring Online Psychological Counselling

Before the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, most psychologists preferred meeting their patients face-to-face for counselling sessions. People knew about virtual therapy, but it was only an option. The year 2020 changed everything.

Suddenly, doctors started advising people to stay indoors. So, even breathing in public places became dangerous. This was followed by layoffs, isolation, disrupted routines, etc. All these made psychological counselling even more crucial than the time before. Online counselling was the only way to deal with the situation.

Now, the pandemic is gone. Still, online mental health counselling seems to remain the favourite of both psychologists and patients. Moreover, experts believe that it is the future. The following pointers will help you discover the reasons behind such a prediction.

It Saves Patients from the Stigma Associated with Mental Health Therapy

A large share of people requiring counselling don’t admit that they are facing mental health issues. Out of the ones, who are ready to undergo counselling, most don’t want the world to know about it.

Online counselling helps patients to get the required treatment without making the event public. In other words, online therapy beats the biggest hurdle people with mental health issues face when seeking treatment, i.e., stigma.

It’s a Time Saver

Individuals, who have undergone psychological counselling, know that the process tends to take a lot of time. So, if it’s a traditional session, the patient will need additional hours to travel to and from the counsellor’s office. As each session takes so much time, patients often miss their therapies. This is more common among working individuals.

Online counselling is the best solution to this problem. You will only need to make time for the therapy. There will be no travelling involved. Moreover, you will get to undergo counselling anywhere in the world.

Online Counselling Guarantees Confidentiality

There’s no need to worry about privacy even when meeting the best psychologist in Gurgaon for a face-to-face counselling session. Your secrets will never be revealed even to the closest family member you have. Data shared during online counselling will remain equally secure. All the information you provide to your therapist and your entire conversation with him/her will be kept 100% secure using the following:

  • Data encryption
  • Cloud computing
  • Secure servers
  • In-transit encryption for data shared through emails

It Lets Patients Stay Comfortable During Therapies

Studies have proven that psychological counselling shows the best results when patients remain at ease during sessions. Patients always choose places they feel most comfortable in when undergoing online therapies. Examples include their home, private chambers in their office, hotel rooms when on a trip, etc. It makes the sessions more productive, and patients often start seeing results faster.

Online Counselling Is Often More Cost-effective

A top mental health clinic in a plush city like Gurgaon doesn’t only get patients from Delhi NCR and its surrounding territories. Even people from remote corners of the country visit these clinics. The hitch here is that individuals who need counselling are required to visit the clinics frequently irrespective of the distance they need to cover.

The high travel expenses often stop patients living in remote locations from meeting the best psychologist in Gurgaon. Instead, they settle for inexperienced practitioners in their respective hometowns. Online counselling eliminates the need for travelling and thereby also removes the travelling costs, which makes the process more cost-effective.

These Sessions Are Often More Resourceful

During a recent study, researchers found that at-home or online counselling sessions are not only more effective clinically but are also more resourceful. That’s because today’s patients tend to feel more comfortable when speaking through a smartphone or computer screen. In-person conversations seem to make them apprehensive. As a result, when therapists meet patients for online counselling, the session results in more useful revelations.

Online Counselling Doesn’t Impose Any Travel Restriction

The efficacy of psychological counselling is often low among individuals who need to travel frequently for work. It happens because these people keep missing scheduled counselling sessions due to sudden business tours. Online counselling is the biggest saviour.

If you have an online counselling session scheduled, you will not reschedule it even if you are travelling. All you need to do is take time off from work and sit for the online session in a secluded place. Ideally, you should attend the session from the hotel room.

Conclusion

The section above must have helped you to understand how online mental health counselling has become the solution to multiple modern-day problems. According to experts, with advancements in technology, the efficacy of these online therapies will grow even further in the coming days. All these prove that online counselling is the future of mental health management.

About Author

The author leads the team of clinical psychologists at Muskan Wellness (a trusted mental wellness centre located in Gurugram, Haryana, India). She has been working as a psychologist for more than a decade and has experience in treating patients of different age groups. She specialises in couple therapy and group therapy.

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