



Who Can Benefit From Counseling Services





Busy Professionals

Working a 9-5 job can be exhausting. By the time you’re done with work, all you want to do is go home and decompress. The last thing someone wants to do after work is to run errands or go to appointments. Additionally, many counselors close their doors after 5pm as well so it can often be hard to find the right counselor that also fits in with your schedule. Counseling Services Near Me can help alleviate this by showing you the availability of the counselors that we match you with.

Stay At Home Parents

Having kids to take care of can be a handful. Especially when you have to watch younger children, leaving the house is a near impossible task. Counseling Services Near Me can help pair you with counseling services or therapists so you are able to still get the counseling you deserve, but from the comfort of your own home. Therapy is becoming an increasingly popular service amongst stay at home parents, and Counseling Services Near Me can pair you with an in-person, local or online therapist based on the condition you are seeking treatment for.

Those Who Value Comfort

Expressing your deepest darkest secrets to a complete stranger face-to-face can be an extremely intimidating process for those who are already hesitant about seeking counseling. To make matters worse, you’re in an unfamiliar environment. Counseling near me can match you with certified online therapists to help alleviate the onset anxiety that is associated with seeing a new counseling face to face.













How Counseling Near Me Works





On our homepage or in the sidebar, enter your location by zip code and click enter. You will then be taken to a Counseling Services Near Me results page with all of the available counselors in your area, including online counselors. Next you will review all of the available options to find the counselor best suited for you. Some Once you find a counselor you would like to work with, their contact information will be available to you. You will be able to either send them a message right through the Counseling Near Me platform, or in some cases with online counselors, you will be able to sign up and begin counseling immediately.









Should You Choose In-Person Counseling and Online Counseling Services?



For decades, in-person counseling was the only psychotherapy approach available. You would have to find a therapist, schedule your sessions and travel to your therapist’s office for every appointment. Thanks to the modern technology, more and more people choose online therapy over the traditional, in-person therapy nowadays. Some of the obvious benefits of online counseling for many people include its convenience, the range of choices, and the cost.



Some studies show that the frequency of the dropouts is higher in traditional, office-based therapy than in online or phone therapy, especially in the first few weeks of the treatment. In one study, 225 adults diagnosed with clinical depression attended 18 weeks long cognitive-behavioral therapy, some of them with the therapist over the phone and others with an in-person counselor. The study demonstrated that phone therapy helped reduce dropout from the treatment. Namely, four people out of five who were assigned therapy over the phone were able to complete full 18 weeks of treatment, while only two out of three of those who went through in-person therapy could complete their treatment.





Online Counseling Services Advantages





Convenience



With our busy lives and hectic schedules, the option of online therapy is simply convenient. Long working hours, schools schedules, and the challenges of the child-care make it hard for people in need to schedule office-based counseling appointments and stay committed to their treatment. Online counseling appears as a suitable therapy option for our demanding everyday lives. There is no need to commute. You don’t have to leave your work early in order to get on time to your counselor’s office. Moreover, online counseling can be as easy as sending a text – so you don’t even have to schedule your appointment. Also, online therapy offers a range of choices when it comes to expressing your thoughts and feelings. You can talk or write, send pictures or communicate with your counselor in real time, whatever works for you.





The Cost



The cost of the office-based, in-person therapy usually goes very high, an average $80-150 per 45-60 minutes session, plus commuting costs. Additionally, in many cases, the health insurance plans do not cover this type of therapy thus making psychotherapy simply unaffordable for a lot of people. The price range of online therapy varies. However, the cost of online therapy is generally much lower when compared to in-person therapy. Moreover, many online counseling services such as different crisis phone services, for example, can be obtained for free. With the rising number of people seeking mental health counseling today, this is an obvious advantage of online therapy.



Easy Access and Constant Support



Frequent communication and continual support from the therapist are some of the major pros of online counseling. Online therapy allows you to text or chat with your therapist many times a day, whenever you need support. This is a huge advantage for people who need frequent care while experiencing the symptoms of severe anxiety or depression, for example. Furthermore, your search for the matching therapist online should be short and convenient. Online counseling services use professionals and algorithms to pair you with the counselor who matches your requirements. Also, with online counseling, you can usually start your therapy right away, especially if it doesn’t require health insurance.



Geographical Distance



Online therapy may be very beneficial for people who live in distant or rural areas. For these people, obtaining mental health assistance may be very challenging as a mental health provider may not be available within a close geographical distance. Thus, the online therapy comes up as the perfect solution.



Confidentiality and Anonymity



While the therapeutic relationship is a highly confidential relationship, some people simply don’t feel comfortable opening up in-person, even in front of a professional mental health provider. For these people, online counseling may be very helpful, since it allows for more anonymity.



The Length



In-person therapy normally requires you to come for scheduled sessions once a week over the course of several weeks, months, or even years. If you are not willing to commit to counseling for that long, you might want to consider available online therapy options. Even if your online therapy lasts for months, it is still much faster, easier, and more convenient than commuting to your therapist’s office.





In-Person Counseling Services Advantages



In-Person Interaction



The lack of in-person interaction in online therapy may be an important disadvantage for people who find face-to-face contact with the therapist very important. Thus some individuals benefit more from office-based interaction with the therapist. Also, if you tend to rely on a non-verbal communication in your interpersonal relations, you might prefer in-person therapy where your therapist will use their body language and voice tone to communicate with you. Nevertheless, some experts believe that online therapy doesn’t cover the most important therapeutic aspect of counseling – the therapeutic relationship. Still, online therapists argue that they are able to establish a trusting, healing relationship with their clients despite the lack of in-person contact. Finally, some forms of therapy, such as EMDR, drama therapy, or play therapy are very difficult or impossible to provide online.



Severe Mental Health Conditions



Severe mental health conditions require in-person care from mental health professionals and facilities. In this case, online therapy may be a good complementary therapy source but is generally not enough on its own. Many studies and real-life experiences show that both online and in-person therapy can foster a deep connection between a client and his/her therapist. It seems to be a matter of preference, after all. Some people prefer in-person interaction while others find online communication with the therapist liberating – online-therapy users sometimes say that online therapy makes it easier to open up and form a stronger connection with their counselor. To end with, many people find combining online and in-person therapy approach the best way to combat their mental health issues.













Counseling Services Near Me Testimonials





“I recently moved to a new city, where I had to sadly say goodbye to a local counselor I was seeing for 3 years. I was extremely nervous about having to go to a new counselor, and to make matters worse, I had zero clue where to find a good counselor. I tried to do some research online for good local counselors that specialize in what I needed, but I had little luck. A few weeks later, a friend told me about Counseling Near Me and within a few hours I was able to find the perfect counselor. Fast forward a few weeks and I couldn’t be happier with my online counselor Sam. Counseling Near Me has been tremendously helpful and I’m very grateful I found this website. After doing both in person and online counseling, I will never go back to traditional in person counseling.”

-Emily S.

“I will never go back to traditional in person counseling after giving online therapy a try. Online therapy is way easier because I am in a comfortable environment (my bedroom), so it makes talking with a stranger a lot less stressful. I’m really happy I came across counseling near me, as they provide great resources for me to compare and contrast the different online therapy services. I eventually ended up going with the counselor that was recommended to me via the counseling near me search tool, and I could not be happier”

-Jasalene Y.

“Having a full time job makes it extremely difficult for me to see a therapist. I was unaware that online therapists even existed, but once I did a bit more research on the benefits of online therapy it was a no brainer decision. I thought finding an online therapist would be a battle on its own, but counseling near me was able to match me up with an extremely professional therapist within a few hours.”

-Bernard S.





“I have no doubt that counseling near me will become the Zoc Doc of counseling and therapy. Using this platform is a breeze, and best of all is completely free. For anyone looking for resources about online counseling, and even those looking to pick the right therapist, this website is for you”

-Amir A.



