Online counselling, therapy, and telehealth sessions
Contacting your therapist online can be a very convenient way to access sessions while overcoming the restrictions of travel time, distance, busy lifestyles, or limited choice between counsellors and therapists if you live in a rural or remote area.
Online counselling and therapy can be as effective as seeing someone face-to-face. From a therapeutic perspective, it is governed by the same principles. I aim to facilitate an evidence-based relationship between us that is genuine, safe, trusting, confiding and confidential so that it meets your needs and goals.
However, online counselling, therapy and telehealth sessions also differ from face-to-face sessions in that we cannot fully see each other, and some of the visual cues that we each might use in our relationship together may be harder to gauge until we get to know each other.
Online sessions work best when you:
- have a safe, private and confidential area to call from,
- have a good internet connection and preferably a laptop or tablet because they have a larger screen, though a phone can work too, and
- are familiar with apps like Zoom, Skype or FaceTime.
When it is better to work face-to-face
People who work with my online have done so over many weeks, months or years depending upon their issues. Some need a little support and others need longer-term support.
It is important to realise that I do not offer a crisis service for people who may also be at risk of harming themselves. While I am trained in risk assessment, and indeed, train and supervise others, if you are feeling vulnerable and may be at serious or urgent risk, it would be better to seek face-to-face support or contact one of the many agencies that provide these services. You can access some of them here through these online links.
Working online between us, step by step
- Part of our working together means I need to assess your suitability for working online with me in a therapeutic relationship, just as you will wish to assess whether I seem to be the right therapist for you.
- To get started with this we will start with a phone call. Please ring me on 0412 518 024. If I am not available, please leave me a message. In our conversation, we will talk about what you are seeking and what has happened in the lead up to your enquiry and I will address your questions about how I might approach our work together and clarify fees and possible appointment times.
- Next, I will send you a document that talks about online therapy and some of the things about how it works, measures I take to guard privacy and confidentiality for you, what you will need to have in place before we can start, how to make contact for your session, what to do if the technology plays up, and how to make payment. If you are happy to proceed, I ask you to sign and return this to me. It is not a complicated process, but rather, experience teaches me it is best to think ahead and be clear.
- Then, we will book a session at a mutually agreeable time and begin.
- During sessions, we talk, and just as in face-to-face sessions, I am guided by your story, goals and needs. Together we try and make sense of things in a way that is useful to you. Session by session we piece things together towards your goals so that you can learn, grow, develop and increase your options to live more fully
- After the session, I will email you an account. My trading terms are 7 days for payment.
Please note, as part of managing your privacy, I do not provide counselling or therapy via sms/text, chat, messaging services or email and only use sms/text and email to manage administration around appointments and billing.
Online reflective supervision for counsellors, therapists and health professionals
Online supervision is convenient, accessible and increases access to the supervisor of your choice. I provide:
- clinical supervision for counsellors, psychotherapists, counselling educators and students
- reflective supervision for health professionals including psychologists, doctors, nurses and allied health professionals
- reflective supervision for pastoral supervisors
- supervision of supervision
- My research topic investigated therapists’ sense and use of self when they lived with a life-threatening illness. Online sessions provide ease of connection for therapists and other health professionals who may wish to access supervision during a health issue.
I have worked online as a supervisor for many years and also access my own supervision online. Each of the above types of supervision can be conducted online when we have a well thought out supervision contract.
Getting started with online supervision
Just as there are similarities and differences between face-to-face and online therapy, so there are some similarities and differences between face-to-face and online supervision. While we may miss some visual cues until we learn to work with each other, it is also remarkably effective, safe and supportive. When using break out rooms in Zoom it also affords groups of health professionals to meet online and still discuss the material in small or large groups.
To get started please contact me on 0412 518 024 to discuss your supervision needs and see if I might be the right supervisor for you.
Next, I will send you a document that talks about online supervision and some of the things about how it works, measures I take to guard privacy and confidentiality for you and your clients, what you will need to have in place before we can start, how to make contact for your session, what to do if the technology plays up, how to make payment. This document also includes some topics for conversation as part of clarifying your supervision needs and how we could work together. If you are happy to proceed, I ask you to sign and return this to me.
Then, we will arrange a mutually agreeable time to begin working towards your needs and goals for supervision.
Between sessions, I am available to all my supervisees for brief support and consultation in an emergency though it is usually better to book a full session.
