Even the wisest, most experienced, and open-minded experts in the field of psychotherapy can sometimes view new developments in psychotherapy with a degree of skepticism. A few years ago, the founders of the online platform Talkspace invited Dr. Irvin D. Yalom, a world-renowned existential psychotherapist and author of many bestselling books in the field of psychotherapy, to collaborate with them. His initial reaction to online psychotherapy was far from positive.

Dr. Yalom, as a therapist and professor, had worked with clients for decades as a "traditional" psychotherapist (in person, in his office). He was a critic of therapies that did not involve face-to-face interaction. His concerns primarily revolved around the therapist's limited ability to perceive the client. He wondered how, through phone calls or video calls on a computer screen, he could clearly read facial expressions, smiles, glances, and other crucial nonverbal communication that is key to understanding the client and developing an intimate therapeutic relationship.

A few years later, one of his clients moved far to the north, where she had no access to any therapist for miles. Dr. Yalom was soon asked if they could conduct therapy via Skype. He agreed and eventually began to recognize the benefits of remote (online) psychotherapy. He started accepting clients from around the world and became enthusiastic about the benefits technology offered for the development of psychotherapy.

As we know, the most important part of psychotherapy is the relationship between the client and the psychotherapist. Researchers from the Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare (Urness, Wass, Gordon, Tian, Bulger, 2006) found that this relationship was not diminished with online therapy. Clients who participated in the study expressed the same level of satisfaction with remote therapy as with in-person therapy. They reported being able to talk and share the same amount of information as they would in person. Overall, they were satisfied with the service delivery and the progress of their psychotherapy sessions. The only difference noted was a slightly reduced feeling of support in online therapy compared to in-person therapy.



All therapists on our website are aware of the limitations of online therapy and strive to be mindful of them at all times. With appropriate focus from the therapist, online psychotherapy can be a very good approximation of in-person therapy. If after the initial meeting or the first few sessions the therapist assesses that in-person meetings would be more appropriate, they will suggest this to the client and further psychotherapy sessions will be conducted in person at the therapist’s office.