Tips For The Best Online Therapy

Guaranteed Anonymity And Maximum Flexibility

Anonymity is likely to motivate those who, until then, hesitated to take the plunge for fear of the gaze of others. For Jean-Pierre Begue, online psychoanalyst, online therapy is not intended to replace practice in an office but constitutes a complimentary offer for people who cannot travel or who are more comfortable in this mode of exchange.

Most sites offer unstoppable responsiveness to requests: there or for a classic interview, you sometimes have to wait several weeks, you get an appointment for a phone conversation or a chat within 24 hours, an answer to emails during the day... This means saving time, but also saving money because travel is avoided.

End Of Frustration

Therapists working in practice express doubts about these new practices. For Michel Botbol, ​​psychoanalyst and secretary-general of the Psychiatry Association, “ online therapy only has meaning in a relationship already established through a prior meeting. In the case of a move, for example, continuing remote therapy is better than ending work that has started. "

Above all, the fluidity and spontaneity of a direct relationship disappear. No more room for slips revealing unconscious thoughts or feelings which gave depth to the dialectic with the therapist.

On the contrary, writing can hinder understanding. A part of the implicit remains, greater than when spoken, which can be a source of misunderstanding. Inaccurate interpretations, such as straightforward humor, risk misleading the client and undermining the therapeutic relationship, which is primarily based on trust.

A Comfort Solution For The Analyst

While comfort for the patient is far from assured - mishaps can occur. Both parties, for example, have the possibility of concealing their true identity. If a minor patient can claim to be of age and override parental authorization to consult, above all, on the other side of the screen, the guarantee on the practitioner's identity is light. There is a great risk of being satisfied with encouraging answers without taking the step of verifying whether the interlocutor is really a therapist trained for this task.