What is the online guidance and counseling service?

A more flexible way of dealing with concrete problems in people's daily lives.

Psychology is not simply a science dedicated to studying the human mind in an abstract sense, for the simple fact of accumulating information. It also aims to apply this knowledge to all kinds of problems and concrete needs, to put into practice what we know about human behavior.

Thus is born, for example, psychotherapy: it is what comes to mind when we think of a psychologist helping specific people with real problems. However, applied psychology can take other forms that go beyond this model of work.

In this article we will talk about one of those alternative ways of helping people: the online psychological counseling service..

What are the characteristics of online counseling?

The online psychological counseling is a way through which psychologists offer help to people who may or may not be going through a difficult time in their lives and who need help to deal with specific, everyday and very diverse problems, all this without the need to meet face-to-face with the professional..

Normally, these sessions are conducted through video-call platforms, which allows for fluid, real-time communication with the professional, while not losing the ability to perceive non-verbal language. On the other hand, information shared with psychologists is treated as confidential..

Some examples of reasons that may lead to use these services are: seeking help to prepare for a competitive examination, needing support to manage the anxiety of always being at home due to a health emergency (such as the coronavirus pandemic), requiring the help of a professional to learn to meditate with Mindfulness exercises, having psychological guidance for raising a son or daughter, etc.

In short, the online counseling offered by some psychology centers is is a more flexible and open way of dealing with people's problems, going to the practical and proposingWe offer a more flexible and open way of dealing with people's problems, going to the practical and proposing solutions that can be applied in the short term, even on the same day.

Differences with online therapy

As we have seen, online psychological counseling has a number of its own characteristics based on professional help for people with certain needs. However, that does not mean that it is online psychotherapy; technically, they are two different things..

There are three main differences between online therapy and online counseling.

The first is the type of problem to be treated: in psychotherapy, these are usually very much implanted in people's way of living, and they have to be treated in a different way.In psychotherapy, these are usually deeply implanted in people's way of living, and have to do with their habits, the way they manage their emotions in a wide variety of situations, the way they handle a relationship, the way they live with an illness, etc. On the other hand, in online counseling, the objective is usually to provide solutions to more specific and everyday problems: planning the time of the day to day, facing a new work project, etc.

The second difference is the duration of the sessions. While online therapy sessions generally last between 50 and 60 minutes, online counseling sessions can be shorter, about half an hour.

The third difference is continuity.. Psychotherapy is a series of sessions structured one after the other and organized in several clear phases of problem resolution, so that the patient progresses through them, and in the first hours with the psychologist the approximate number of sessions is already planned beforehand. On the other hand, psychological counseling is more flexible in this sense.

Advantages of the online counseling service

The main advantages of online counseling are the following.

1. It allows us to ask for help for what worries us most.

As we have seen, online counseling proposes to get help for specific, everyday problems. In other words, it helps to concentrate the focus on these problemsThis means that no time is spent working on other needs that the person feels are less of a priority.

2. It allows to obtain help from the hand of experts

The number of problems that can lead us to resort to the psychological counseling service are very varied, and therefore sometimes it may seem that no one has ever faced such challenges, but in all these cases an experienced professional can help us to know what to do and to put our ideas in order..

3. It is more economical

Another important advantage of online counseling is that it is cheaper than online therapy. This, together with the fact that it is not necessary to go to the psychotherapist's office, makes this service very accessible, makes this service very accessible..

4. It is easy to fit into your schedule

The sessions are rather short, so it's easy to fit it into your schedule and not miss an appointment.

Looking for help? Think UPAD Psychology and Coaching

At UPAD Psychology and Coachinga psychological assistance center located in Madrid, we offer an online counseling service with 30-minute sessions. We can help you deal with a wide variety of problems, whether emotional, relational or other types of problems. On the other hand, we also offer online and face-to-face psychotherapy services. To see our contact details, click here.