Our mental health has a huge effect on our lives—so why don’t we do a better job of prioritizing it? Most people would agree that a healthy state of mind helps us cope with stress, handle our emotions, and interact with the people around us in positive ways . . . but prioritizing our own emotional health takes time, money, and effort, so it often seems cheaper, faster, and easier to just push it aside.
One way mental health care providers are making it cheaper, faster, and easier to care for your mental health is by providing telehealth counseling, aka telecounseling. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at counseling in general, then telehealth counseling specifically, to see what mental health care professionals have to offer—particularly in the virtual space.
Why we don’t seek out mental health care—and why we should
Here are the top 5 reasons Americans don’t seek help for their mental health issues. See if you can relate to any of these:
- “Therapy is too expensive—and somebody has to pay for it.” Fair enough. Health care is expensive and insurance is complicated. Counseling is an excellent long-term investment in yourself, so it’s worth the effort to find solutions within your budget. Also consider that some mental health issues can improve with just a handful of counseling sessions, especially if your counselor or therapist can set you up with exercises that you can do on your own and point you to resources that go hand-in-hand with what you learn during your sessions.
- “Therapy? No thanks. Too many unknowns.” Will a therapist uncover a mental illness? Will they make me relive my past trauma? These are real possibilities—and that’s why taking that first step of reaching out for help takes strength. We can’t improve our well-being if we keep doing the same old things. Improving our behaviors and attitudes does take work, including the internal work required to face our fears.
- “I’m not going through that again.” When we seek help, we make ourselves vulnerable, so if we have a bad experience, we tend to retreat—fast. Don’t let a bad experience rob you of the progress you can make with a counselor or therapist who understands what you are facing and can help you through it. Get recommendations, do some shopping, and enter into your first session understanding that it may not be a perfect fit—and that’s ok.
- “Seeking help is a sign of weakness.” We can thank society for teaching us (incorrectly) that relying on others means you’ve failed. But we’re not meant to handle all of life’s tasks on our own. Think of other health aspects you can’t take care of alone: managing your blood pressure or blood sugar, performing surgery, or taking an x-ray. Now add “take care of your mental health” to that list.
- “I’m doing just fine.” Some signs of poor emotional health are clear: excessive sadness or intense anger, suicidal thoughts, or loved ones expressing their concern for you. But sometimes the signs are more subtle: you’re not sleeping well, you can’t quiet your thoughts, or you’re drinking alcohol or using drugs to cope with stress. The sooner you identify that you need some help, the sooner a counselor or therapist can guide you back on track.
Help is out there—and it’s OK to ask for it
According to the CDC, 20% of Americans seek out mental health care . . . but is everyone who needs mental health treatment receiving it?
One barrier to counseling that people often face is easy access to a counselor. And that’s why counseling and technology have been brought together to create telecounseling.
What is telecounseling?
Telecounseling means receiving therapy from a mental health professional virtually. That could be on your phone, laptop, tablet, or desktop—which means you get to decide where the session takes place. Telecounseling is also referred to as telemental health, telepsychology, teletherapy, online therapy, or online counseling.
Why try telecounseling?
If you feel that the people around you don’t understand what you’re going through, talking about it with a therapist may provide the acceptance and validation you need to overcome struggles you’re facing:
- When you realize someone out there knows what you’re talking about and acknowledges your thoughts and feelings—that is a huge stress reliever in itself
- When you know everything you say is confidential and that you won’t be judged for expressing your emotions or behavior—that provides the environment you need to start healing
- When someone knowledgeable offers ideas on how to help you reach your goals—that becomes your path to overcoming challenges
The power of strong mental health
Telecounseling can benefit your mind—and your body. That’s because your mental state affects your entire being.
Ongoing, increased stress or anxiety will cause your body to seek an outlet, and that often means aches, pains, and even risky behaviors. And this can take a long-term toll on your physical health.
Achieving a healthy mental state as a baseline is key to preventing many health problems.
Is telehealth counseling better than in-person counseling?
A recent nation-wide study of people receiving psychological treatment found that telecounseling was just as effective as in-person counseling for reducing negative symptoms and improving quality of life. A recent meta-analysis study suggested that in-person and virtual telehealth counseling were equal in reducing depressive symptoms. Couples teletherapy, too, has been studied and found to be equally effective as in-person therapy regarding therapy outcomes and patient satisfaction.
And many people find that telecounseling sessions work even better than in-person therapy. Here are a few reasons why:
- Total privacy. No one sees you enter or exit a therapist’s office. No awkward time spent in a waiting room with other patients.
- Virtual advantage. Studies have revealed that patients find that having physical distance between them and their counselor makes discussing particularly difficult or sensitive topics easier.
- Time savings. A 30-minute session takes exactly 30 minutes of your time, because instead of walking, driving, riding, or catching a bus across town, you just log in. And this also means less time off work.
- A relaxed environment. You decide what your surroundings will be during your session, and being in your own space usually means feeling more at ease.
- Wide choice of providers. Some patients feel most comfortable speaking with a counselor who shares their cultural, religious, or ethnic background. Telecounseling puts more providers within reach so you can find the best fit, even if they’re far away.
Most patients find very few, if any, downsides to telecounseling. But there are a few factors to consider that could affect your telecounseling sessions:
- Internet connection and speed. Because every minute of counseling counts, you want to make sure that you have working and reliable internet access.
- Access to a quiet space. Working out issues during a counseling session requires your undivided attention—so make sure you’ve got a peaceful area where you won’t be disturbed.
- Switching from in-person counseling. If you’re making the switch from in-person to virtual therapy, getting comfortable with the feel of your sessions may require a short adjustment period.
What are the requirements to be a telehealth counselor?
In order to provide clinical services, mental health professionals must be licensed by the state they practice in (and for telehealth, that also means the state the patient is located in). Since there isn’t just one standard federal license for mental healthcare providers, there are many different abbreviations that may come after their names..
Psychiatrist vs. psychologist vs. counselor/therapist vs. social worker
Mental health is a complex web of personal, social, mental, emotional, and physical factors. As a result, there are many types of mental health professionals. For this article, we are focusing on mental health professionals who are trained in providing psychotherapy (talk therapy). One way to categorize these professionals is by type of education and treatment focus:
| Title | Type/level of education | Treatment focus/methods |
| Psychiatrist | Doctorate: MD or DO | Biology of mental illness; medication management; talk therapy |
| Psychologist | Doctorate: PhD or PsyD | Talk therapy; behavioral therapy; emotion/thought |
| Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner | Master’s or Doctorate | Therapy and medication management |
| Physician Assistant | Master’s Degree | Mental and physical health; supervised by a psychiatrist |
| Counselor/Therapist | Master’s Degree | Behavioral therapy, building coping skills; talk therapy |
| Social Worker | Master’s Degree (MSW and LCSW) | Connect with resources and support services; talk therapy |
How to choose a telehealth counselor: 5 factors to consider
Insurance coverage. If you’d like to use insurance, first see if the telehealth provider accepts insurance. If so, contact your insurance provider to ensure the therapist you are interested in is in-network and that your insurance will specifically cover telehealth services offered by that therapist.
Cost of services. Always insist on transparent, up-front pricing—there should be no guesswork or hidden costs when it comes to teletherapy. Consider if the provider offers subscriptions or “bundles” with a monthly fee, or if they charge per-session pricing. You don’t want to be financially obligated to one person before you’ve decided if the provider is a good fit.
Most in-person counseling prices you see will be for a 50-minute psychotherapy session, and usually fall between $150-$250 per in-person weekly session. But telecounseling often costs less than in-person counseling, and you can find excellent services for under $100 per week.
Therapy doesn’t have to be expensive
QuickMD offers 30-minute virtual sessions for just per session.
You can learn more about our services on the QuickMD Telecounseling page.
A good fit, professionally. Knowing that your counselor has met basic training requirements and credentialing will give you peace of mind—but you should also find out how much experience (and success!) the counselor has had helping people with your specific concerns.
A good fit, personally. First, do your personalities match and does conversation flow well? You should feel as though you can trust your counselor and talk openly with them. And second, you and your counselor should be on the same page with your treatment goals—and you can only do that by setting those goals together.
The right tech. Check out what platform or mobile app is used. Is it a secure platform that is HIPAA compliant and does not share info with third parties? If this info isn’t clearly stated on the website, then you’ve got some questions to ask.
Who should (and should not) use telehealth counseling?
According to a report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), everyone can benefit from telecounseling. That includes people with conditions traditionally only treated in-person, such as severe mental illnesses (including major depressive disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder) and substance use disorders (including opioid use disorder). And evidence also shows that patients of all ages can benefit from telecounseling.
So who should not be using telecounseling for mental health treatment?
There are times when a counselor will decide that telehealth is not the right mode of service for certain patients. These situations are unique to each patient/provider relationship, and sometimes it can’t be predicted if telecounseling isn’t the best option. Perhaps most importantly, if a patient does not wish to use a telehealth mode to receive care or if they aren’t comfortable with the technology or the experience, their preference for in-person care should take precedence.
What will I actually do during telecounseling?
Under the broad umbrella of “telecounseling,” just as with in-person counseling, there are all sorts of specialties. According to the American Psychological Association (APA), these specialties all come from 4 main types of psychotherapy:
- In behavioral therapy, you learn how to modify unwanted behaviors or replace them with healthy ones.
- Through cognitive therapy, you identify the thoughts that are leading to negative emotions and actions, then learn how to change the way you think (and in turn, the way you behave).
- With psychodynamic/psychoanalytic therapy, you dig deep to uncover problems that are held within your unconscious mind and deal with those issues head-on. This is an in-depth process that may take several months or even several years.
- During humanistic therapy, you learn to become more self-aware and accepting of yourself through encouragement from your counselor to discover your own potential.
Some counselors have a go-to therapy type that they believe in strongly and specialize in, whereas others use techniques from any or all 4 types. For example, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is one of the most popular forms of psychotherapy, and it combines techniques from cognitive therapy and behavioral therapy.
The Society of Clinical Society provides an extensive list of specific types of psychological treatments with an overview of each therapy plus helpful links. If you are interested in receiving a certain kind of therapy, be sure to ask your potential counselor if they have experience with it.
What if I need a prescription?
While many patients benefit from talk therapy without medication, sometimes a combination of the two is what’s best.
Psychiatrists (therapists who are medical doctors) can prescribe any medication for their patients. And, depending on the state you live in and your medication needs, certain nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and psychologists can also prescribe drugs.
But even if your counselor is not authorized to prescribe medications, if it is clear to them that you might benefit from medication, they can always refer you to a trusted specialist who can.
What about support groups and community connection?
Along with therapy, many people find it helpful to connect with other people who are having similar experiences. Here are a few ways to do that:
- Local support groups. There are non-profit organizations across the country that offer support groups. Check out the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) website to find an affiliate in your community and see what resources, peer-to-peer support, and classes they have to offer.
- Online communities. In the virtual space, there are lots of active online communities. One example is the Anxiety & Depression Association of America. Millions of people use resources like these to connect with others who are grappling with similar mental health issues.
- e-Newsletters. For a less involved way of supporting your mental health, sign up for a good mental wellness email newsletter. They come in all types—from general mental health to ADHD, anxiety, and more.
Ready to experience all the benefits of telecounseling?
If you’d like to try virtual therapy, contact QuickMD to be connected to a licensed counselor. Our telehealth platform is private, secure, and fully HIPAA-compliant. And at QuickMD, our telecounseling services are paid for on a per-session basis, so you can try it out with no obligation.
