Today’s column:
Online Therapy: Like a Diary That Writes Back
Earlier this year, I became so mired in personal crisis I couldn’t see any way out. I struggled against depression and desperation and barely managed to produce columns, much less keep up with my day job or my book.My distress peaked one night and I found myself frantically searching the web for some kind of drop-in crisis counseling chat. I wasn’t suicidal, so I didn’t want to call a suicide hotline and tie up a volunteer who could be helping someone on the verge of ultimate despair. Yet I felt I would implode if I didn’t immediately talk to someone neutral and anonymous.
You know how you can be ensnared by inertia? I’m not sure why I didn’t call a counselor during regular business hours; it wasn’t as if the trouble happened only that one night, without warning. Yet there I was, staring at Samaritans, a U.K. site, wondering if they would talk to me if I used Skype and pretended I was in England — and still not clicking the number.
About as naked as it gets.
2 responses so far ↓
1 cyberkyst // Jul 27, 2007 at 1:57 pm
I really appreciate how far therapy, in general, has come, how we’re slowly evolving into the idea that ‘normal’ people occasionally need a completely objective, unbiased person to bounce off the insanity in their lives. That said, it was only a matter of time before the format changed. I like the idea that, if I’m in crisis, I can grab a buoy until I’m able to see my regular therapist.
And thank you for sharing this with us. I’ve been in your shoes, and it took a lot of courage to open that can of worms. This is why I keep reading you. (Well, other than the s-e-x ;-))
2 Peregrine // Jul 27, 2007 at 4:04 pm
If it’s available for people who need it, that’s great. But for my part, there are many things I just can’t get comfortable doing online. I’m still way more open with my wife, and my meatspace friends than I suspect I ever will be with forum mates. Even hiding behind a pseudonym doesn’t really help. I don’t think I could do counseling online.