Online counselling provides a different experience to face to face counselling and also has the benefit of being more easily accessible if you have difficulties accessing face to face therapy. There are many advantages to online counselling such as accessibility, cost, time and location but there are also some risks that you need to be aware of:
• It is important that your computer/tablet/phone that you are using for online counselling allows for you to be in a safe and private environment so that our work together remains confidential.
• If you are feeling suicidal or in extreme distress then online counselling is not recommended. If you need urgent help and are in crisis now please contact either www.befrienders.org or www.samaritans.org. If you are in the UK you can call Samaritans for free on 116123.
How to access online counselling
1. For your safety and confidentiality I use a secure encrypted platform called ‘VSee‘ for my online counselling which is free to download and use.
2. Prior to starting our work together you are required to read and agree to the Online Counselling Agreement and complete the Confidentiality Agreement and the New Client Questionnaire that will be sent to you.
3. After I have received your New Client Questionnaire I will be able to assess your suitability for working online and my ability to be able to work with your issues. This is to help ensure we can work together in a safe and ethical way.
4. You will need to create a free client account with VSee which is easily set up but if you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me. We will use VSee for all of our communication for our online work.
5. You can use VSee for any communication with me if you need to change or amend an appointment.
Online therapy…making therapy accessible
