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Telehealth therapy has become a necessity rather than an option for many over the last few months, and the benefits of this emerging form of therapy are becoming more and more apparent. But while telehealth might make attending therapy sessions easier (now and in the future), it’s still an unfamiliar platform for many.

As we enter a world where telehealth therapy is the new norm, here are some tips on how to use telehealth so you can make the most out of your virtual sessions.

Telehealth Might Be Awkward at First (And That’s Ok)

If you have never used telehealth therapy before, it can feel strange at first. This awkwardness might make it feel like it’s not working. But don’t let that initial strangeness get you down. Communicating with a therapist virtually rather than in person may feel unfamiliar, so take that into account when you first start teletherapy.

To get past the discomfort, you might need to give it a little time. You’ll also need to make sure you’re being honest with your therapist about how you’re feeling. After a few sessions, you’ll know if teletherapy is suitable or if you need to look for other options.

Set An Intentional Space and Time for Teletherapy

Just like when you attend an in-person session in your therapist’s office, you should make sure the time you choose for your telehealth session is completely devoted to the conversation between you and your therapist.

When you’re at home, it’s easy to let distractions interrupt your time. You might be tempted to answer a question from your kids or get other stuff done while you’re in session. But telehealth therapy is still therapy and should be given the same considerations as an in-person session.

• Choose a time that lets you offer complete focus. Try nap time, or ask your partner to watch the kids.
• Find a quiet space, away from distractions; your office might make you feel like working, so try your bedroom.
• Make the space relaxing. Light a candle, diffuse some lavender oil.

However you go about choosing your space and time for teletherapy, make sure you can be relaxed, open, and honest.

Use a Secure Telehealth Platform

At Therapy Today, we use Doxy.me for our telehealth therapy sessions. This platform doesn’t require any downloads and is HIPAA, GDPR, PHIPA/PIPEDA, and HITECH-compliant, meaning it meets medical and safety regulations. We care about your privacy and safety and want you to feel comfortable with the platform you use, so we encourage you to ask as many questions as you need before your first session.

Telehealth Therapy Tips

Here are some more tips on how to have a successful telehealth therapy session.

• Don’t have too many browsers open.
• Don’t let anyone else on your network stream movies or games during your session.
• Log on just a little early to make sure everything is working right.
• Eliminate all distractions.
• Work on naming your feelings; bodily cues aren’t as easy to read on camera.
• Be honest about how teletherapy is going and how you feel about it.

With teletherapy, you can continue to work on your wellbeing without leaving your home. If you’re feeling stressed or anxious right now, Therapy Today has same-day teletherapy appointments available. Reach out today for an appointment, and use these tips to build familiarity with teletherapy.

Family counseling can be a great way to help families get through difficult times together and help break down relationship barriers by learning communication skills for when life becomes challenging. The benefits presented by telehealth family counseling can present a new way for families to reconnect and receive counseling in a way that works for everyone.

Be More Comfortable With Telehealth

The National Alliance on Mental Illness reported: “Studies consistently reveal high satisfaction rates for children, adolescents and parents, often reaching above 90%. In fact, a 2013 study determined that telebehavioral health might be better than in-person care for children and adolescents because this age group often expresses an unwillingness or reluctance to participate in traditional therapy sessions.”

One of the biggest benefits of telehealth counseling is that it allows families to receive counseling in an environment where everyone is comfortable. Teens are more willing to open up in their own environment rather than an office or an unfamiliar setting. At home, they have access to the comforts that make them feel at ease.

Telehealth Allows for Natural Interactions

Since an office visit can be an intimidating setting for some, it only makes sense that a family’s interaction may not be as natural as it is in their home. If families are experiencing trouble interacting with each other due to behavioral issues, that behavior may not appear in an office as it might in their own environment. Both children and parents have the opportunity to act more natural at home, engaging in behaviors they might withhold in an office visit.

By observing clients at home, therapists can witness the behaviors that might be impacting the family’s relationship and then work to correct those behaviors within the setting where they are taking place.

Connect From a Distance With Telehealth

For families that need to heal together but aren’t physically together, telehealth can present new opportunities for connecting from a distance. Whether children are away at school, have moved out of the home, or are living with another parent, telehealth makes it easier for families living in separate households to receive counseling without the added stress of planning time to connect in one physical location.

Telehealth offers a unique opportunity for families dealing with co-parenting while divorced or families who have introduced step-parents or siblings. While these new family units may not feel comfortable gathering in the same space, telehealth can give them the chance to connect with a counselor in order to adapt and make the most of their arrangement.

Telehealth Allows for Privacy

Therapy can be an important part of facing the challenges of growing up but some kids still find it embarrassing. For kids who might be reluctant to leave school for counseling or are worried they will run into a friend in the office or on the way, telehealth can create a new level of privacy. When children have the ability to meet with a counselor or therapist in the comfort of their own home and on their terms, they are much more likely to participate in family therapy sessions.

Therapy Today’s telehealth sessions are HIPAA-compliant and secure so families can be confident that their privacy is secure when participating in telehealth.

Easier Scheduling

Telehealth makes it easier to schedule sessions at times that work for you and your family. Therapy Today offers same-day appointments so no matter when you need a little extra help connecting, we can help. If your family is interested in learning more or scheduling an appointment, reach out today and let’s get started.

When you have anxiety, even the simplest of tasks can seem monumental. You may know when it is time to seek help but it can become more difficult if you are experiencing symptoms. Telehealth can be a great way to break through stressful barriers and help you find treatment quickly, while in the comfort of your own home.

How Telehealth Breaks Down Barriers

For those who have never sought treatment for their anxiety, telehealth can be a great starting point and a great way to ease into in-person appointments.

Anxiety is the most common mental health disorder and, left untreated, can have a significant impact on the lives of those who deal with it. Roughly 3% of the adult population suffers from generalized anxiety disorder—many of those same people will not seek treatment because of stressful barriers.

Here are a few ways telehealth therapy can help patients who experience anxiety move past barriers in order to get treatment where and when they need it.

Telehealth:

• Eases the initial uncertainty that comes from talking to a therapist for the first time.
• Eliminates stressful obstacles like traffic, parking, and crowded waiting rooms.
• Provides options for those in rural areas who may not have access to mental healthcare.

Telehealth Therapy: An Effective Option

While the practice of telehealth is still relatively new and has recently peaked in popularity due to COVID-19 and the subsequent stay-at-home orders, researchers have been studying its benefits for a few years. In 2017, Researchers from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded Reduce Limitations from Anxiety (RELAX) found telehealth to be effective in treating patients with panic and anxiety disorders.

The study used mainly telephone-delivered care and focused on 329 total participants, 250 were classified as “highly anxious” and further split into one group that received the telehealth service or visited their primary care physicians. After 12 months, researchers concluded that the telehealth services were more effective in treating anxiety than visiting the physician. Of the telehealth patients, 53% experienced reduced anxiety symptoms compared to 32% of patients in the control group.

This is not to say that office visits are ineffective, but shows that, for many with anxiety, the ability to receive treatment without leaving a place of comfort can be beneficial.

How Telehealth Helps Anxiety

For those that feel stress at the thought of leaving their homes and entering into an unfamiliar environment, virtual counseling can help them feel less isolated. If getting to a therapist’s office presents a challenge, telehealth is a great way to meet that challenge head-on. Through virtual counseling, therapists can help clients set goals, learn coping skills, and create healthy routines.

The idea that you can pick up your phone or go to your computer when you need to talk to someone can be comforting. This comfort can act as a treatment in and of itself. Patients in familiar surroundings are also more willing to open up and are therefore more welcoming to treatment. The time flexibility also reduces the level of stress that comes with trying to book appointments.

Therapy Today is now offering telehealth options using a HIPAA compliant and secure platform.  If you’d like to book a telehealth appointment, reach out today. Same-day appointments are available.

If you are in crisis, please call The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or text the Crisis Text Line: Text “TALK” to 741741

Reid is a therapist and the Clinical Development Coordinator at Therapy Today, as well as the President of the Michigan Board of Directors for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). She has volunteered for the AFSP in many forms over the last 5 years and is passionate about advocating for, and practicing suicide prevention both in her personal and professional life. 

So many of us are struggling to maintain our mental health amidst the COVID-19 outbreak and the painful and angering deaths due to police brutality and racism. For those experiencing hopelessness and/or suicidal ideation, it can be difficult to know how to manage these thoughts during this time. Having suicidal thoughts can be an extremely isolating and overwhelming experience. My hope for this post is to give you some tools for managing these thoughts and caring for yourself if you experience them, or to share with your loved ones who do. It’s important to note that while these are helpful tools, they are best used in-conjunction with seeing a licensed mental health therapist. A therapist can provide a supportive, non-judgmental space to process the sources of stress contributing to these thoughts, as well as help personalize these tools (and others) to best fit your needs and find ways to help keep yourself safe as you navigate these challenging times.

Before we jump in, I want to acknowledge the stigma surrounding suicidal thoughts. Our society is slowly overcoming the false belief that suicidal thoughts are somehow selfish, or that they are “just a cry for attention.” What we know is that those suffering from suicidal thoughts are desperate to end the stress and pain they are experiencing, and often believe they are burdening others by being in pain with seemingly no good options to help. It is undoubtedly true that it can be scary and hard to support someone experiencing suicidal thoughts, and the complex emotions one feels upon losing someone to suicide are completely valid. It is also important to know that checking-in on your loved ones and talking about suicide does not increase the likelihood of them attempting suicide – in fact, it decreases it, as it provides a sense of relief to know that someone is willing to hear and hold their pain with them, as we know social support is one of the leading protective factors for preventing suicide. Although this conversation is hard, it is an important one for saving lives. I have included resources for those supporting a loved one who struggles, and for those impacted by suicide loss at the end of this post.

Suicidal thoughts are produced by a combination of risk factors (such as mental health conditions or substance use disorders, chronic illness, trauma) and ongoing stressors (unexpected lifestyle changes such as a divorce, loss of a job, and of course, a global pandemic). While not everyone responds the same way to similar risk factors and stressors, this can give some insight into why one may experience them, and I find in my practice that understanding the sources of these thoughts can be empowering for finding a way through.

For my clients experiencing suicidal ideation, we develop a safety plan, which is basically a guide created ahead of time for moments when these thoughts intensify. I’ve included the template I use with clients developed by Gregory Brown, Ph.D., and Barbara Stanley, Ph.D. from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

As you can see, it includes all of the information one would need to know if they were to find themselves in a crisis. In other words, it basically does the thinking for you, which is why safety plans are so effective at preventing people from attempting suicide. When we are in crisis, our brain does not think as clearly, and we can’t think of all the options to help ourselves. If you find yourself in a crisis and experiencing suicidal thoughts, a safety plan provides you important ways to care for yourself.

For the purposes of this post, we will focus on coping skills and what contacts to have ready should you need them.

Coping skills are activities you do, or tools you use to manage stress and tolerate difficult emotion. Let’s start by engaging our five senses:

Touch – Take a warm bath or shower, pet an animal, put on comfortable clothes, go outside to feel grass and plants, or stretch

Smell – Light a candle, put on scented lotion or perfume/cologne, or make an aromatic food or drink (make coffee or tea, bake cookies)

Hear – Put on your favorite song, listen to a podcast, step outside to notice sounds around you

Taste – Chew gum, eat a piece of candy, make yourself a yummy drink such as hot cocoa or coffee, or eat a snack

See – Watch the sky, look at pictures of you with loved ones or memories, search images of places you would like to visit, or watch a funny movie

Other coping skills could include ideas such as:

• Talk to yourself in a soothing, compassionate way, like you would to a friend. Try using phrases such as: “It’s okay to feel this way, it makes sense to me.” “This is a difficult time, I’m sorry you’re going through this.”

In response to stress you may feel due to the COVID-19 outbreak, you can practice thinking statements that reflect two truths, such as: “I can both understand the importance of social distancing, and still be sad about things I am missing out on.”

Preventing ourselves from viewing things in extremes helps prevent us from becoming emotionally   overwhelmed, and helps us see situations more realistically

• Do something creative, such as paint, draw, color, or cook
• Take a walk

People to call:

As mentioned earlier, social support is vital for our mental health. When creating your list of contacts, consider two different categories of loved ones: 1) who would be a good resource to have light-hearted, distracting conversation with, and 2) who would be a good resource to tell how you’re really feeling. This will help you know your reason for calling, which will then help you get your needs met.

For the first category, who in your life is funny, interesting, and relatable? Write their names and numbers on the sheet. Some phrases to contact them while keeping it light could be:

• “Hey! I miss you – how are you doing today?” or “I’m thinking about you. What’s up?”

For the second category, who in your life do you call when things are hard? Who has helped you through some of your most difficult moments? Write their names and numbers in the next section on the sheet. Some phrases to contact them could be:

• “Hey, I’m having a hard day today, and I was wondering if I could talk things through with you?” or “Hey, I’m trying my best to work through some negative thoughts I’m having, but I’m still having a hard time shaking them, and I just need some support. Could we talk it out?”

While it’s important to have our close contacts ready-to-call in your safety plan, there may be times when they are unavailable, or you realize you are in need of more formal support. There are two important numbers you can save ahead of time in your phone to use in an emergency:

• The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
• The Crisis Text Line: Text “TALK” to 741741

While we may not be able to change or control some of the stressors that impact our mental health, we can find ways to help ourselves through. My hope is that this post provided you some options for how to respond to thoughts of suicide or a sense of hopelessness.

If you are in need of mental health care support, we have several compassionate, experienced therapists that can help at Therapy Today. You can call our office at 517-481-2133 to schedule an appointment.

The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention offers several resources for people touched by suicide in different ways:

• Click here for resources if you have survived a suicide attempt
• Click here for resources if you have lost someone
• Click here for information if you are worried about someone

Other resources you could consider exploring:

• PsychologyToday.com – this website helps you find mental health care and offers various articles on mental health.
• TherapyForBlackGirls.com — also offers a podcast and regular blog 
• Ethel’s Club – they create healing spaces that center and celebrate people of color through conversation, wellness and creativity.
• National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) – a national non-profit that promotes the destigmatization of mental health, with local chapters and support groups running throughout the country
• The Trevor Project – a national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & questioning (LGBTQ) young people under 25.
• Ele’s Place – a healing center for grieving children, teens, young adults, and their families, with four locations around the State of Michigan.
• JED Foundation – a national nonprofit that aims to protect teens and young adults’ emotional health and prevent suicide. They equip teens and young adults with the skills and knowledge to help themselves and each other

Emily is a licensed clinical social worker and a therapist at Therapy Today. She has extensive experience in the field of grief: she worked in hospice and end-of-life care for nearly 10 years and has provided home-based care on a multi-disciplinary team providing support to those who were aging or with chronic illness. She now provides outpatient therapy and among other specialties, provides grief counseling with a passion for helping her clients build resiliency and develop meaningful coping mechanisms in response to difficult situations and losses.

All of us have had to transition to a new normal since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, and like many of you reading this, I too had difficulty adjusting. At the beginning of the quarantine I saw an article on social media titled, “That Discomfort You’re Feeling is Grief” by Scott Berinato. His words rang true for this collective experience we are all experiencing as individuals. The article references David Kessler, a grief expert, who co-wrote “On Death and Dying: Finding the Meaning of Grief Through the Five Stages of Loss” along with Elisabeth Kubler-Ross. I highly recommend everyone read this article. Mr. Kessler provides helpful observations and recommendations on this time of quarantine and ways to cope. I realize we traditionally think of grief as the intense sorrow from losing someone significant in our lives, however there are many other ways grief is present in our lives besides the death of ones we love, especially now.

As a reminder, Kubler-Ross’s stages of grief are: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. As Mr. Kessler reminds us in this interview, the stages of grief are not sequential, nor are they feelings we experience for one period of time. They are not things to be completed or mastered before moving onto the next.

Denial

As I reflect on my own experience in March, I see now that parts of my thinking could be labeled as denial. I thought, “This doesn’t really need to affect our family. We are young. We have kids,” who at that point, weren’t known to be affected by the virus. “We can still go on Spring Break!” “We know how to be careful and wash our hands!” I even thought, “I don’t need a mask! That’s a little too over the top!” I was finding ways that this virus would not affect my life. When I picked my kids up from school that Friday in March, I never imagined that they would not be returning to school to finish their school years. Experiencing denial is our first way of protecting ourselves against a shocking loss, and it is normal.

Bargaining

Another element of my own life that stood out as grieving after reading this article was bargaining. I found myself thinking, “I will do this quarantine until the end of April, but then I want to know I’m done!” Or, “I will homeschool my kids this year, but I better be able to send them back to school in the fall!” and, “I will quarantine in the spring, but when summer comes, I will go through with all of my plans and traditions as I usually do!” It is normal to attempt to set limits on our suffering.

Depression

While we know these current changes are temporary, many of us experience depression from feeling that our intense pain and sadness has no foreseeable end. We cannot “bring back” our old, normal lives, similarly to how we cannot bring back loved ones who we so dearly miss and long for. My own sadness often shows up as grief for my kids. They are now missing a part of their social lives and their identities apart from our family. They are missing the end of their academic and athletic years. They are losing valuable opportunities to make memories. Everyone has lost some part of their life to this quarantine, whether it was a vacation they were really looking forward to, a job they enjoyed that they have lost or that has transformed to a new entity, an event they have worked hard to organize, and so many others. Many in our country have lost loved ones during this time, as well as their ability to memorialize them through valued end-of-life traditions, such as funeral services, or celebrations of life. Each of us have had losses that affect our lives, and we are sad as we mourn together.

Anger

As the pandemic has progressed, I can see more ways the phases of grief have emerged. I see it in a variety of ways with my clients’ lives. I have clients who were anticipating celebrating a large achievement such as graduating from MSU, obtaining their Ph.D., or completing law school. They are now grieving and observing the loss of celebration or the ability to mark this achievement as they were anticipating. Anger is another feeling that is appropriate. We are angry that we don’t have control over all of these changes, and that these experiences were “taken away” from us. Many people’s professions and vocations as they once knew them have been so drastically changed as they have transitioned to online platforms, which have created new challenges, and these can be very frustrating. We can also be angry and easily irritable about the smaller, daily losses we accumulate in quarantine. We can be easily angered by a small change to our day to day, but that small change is on top of many changes and adjustments we’ve been making over the past 8-9 weeks. We are allowed to have our anger, and it is important that we give ourselves permission to experience it.

Acceptance

The final phase of grief, according to the model by Kubler-Ross, is “acceptance.” I’m not really sure what acceptance looks like today. Maybe it’s because the word seems to imply, “I condone these changes.” In its most basic form, acceptance may be simply acknowledging that a global pandemic is happening; that people in this world are responding to it in a variety of ways, and we cannot change it. In the article, Kessler talks about the importance of finding meaning following acceptance. I enjoy hearing how my clients are finding meaning in their daily lives now. I think it’s important to remember that finding meaning is not a state that people arrive and stay in. It seems to be more of a fluid ability to notice moments that bring meaning. The inability to maintain a state of noticing meaning and acceptance is not failure; it is a hallmark of the human experience. Life is changing. Living is grieving. And like every grief wave, no matter how tall, powerful, or overwhelming – it will recede, and we will get through this.

Resources:

• Coronavirus and Grief: Everything You Need to Know – A compilation of resources available for managing grief during this time
• Ele’s Place: A healing center for grieving children, teens, young adults, and their families, with four locations around the State of Michigan
• GriefShare.org: A website to find grief support groups near you – a healing center for grieving children, teens, young adults, and their families, with four locations around the State of Michigan
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: 1-800-273-TALK (8255)
• Crisis Text Line: Text “TALK” to 741741

That Discomfort You’re Feeling is Grief:

• https://hbr.org/2020/03/that-discomfort-youre-feeling-is-grief