Benefits of Telehealth

Kate Hanley, LCPC

Telehealth, or accessing sessions with your therapist remotely, has been around for several decades, and increased significantly during and following the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Telehealth allows you to meet with your therapist from the comfort and convenience of your own home, along with many additional benefits:

Ease of Access:

By meeting virtually, there is no commute time, additional time away from work, or additional childcare needs. You can meet anywhere you are – such as your own home, office, or even your car.

Comfort:

Seeking therapy can take courage. Some people might feel more at ease being in their own environment or a familiar space while seeking support.

Effectiveness:

Research has shown that telehealth can be just as effective as in person therapy.

Privacy

A HIPAA secure audio/video platform will be used to remain compliant.

Continuity of Care:

If you move to a different city within the same state, you can continue to see the same provider; this can be particularly beneficial for college students who travel between campus and home. If you are ill and unable to come to an office for in-person therapy, you can still meet with your therapist virtually if you feel well enough. If you need to reschedule for any reason, you are not limited by office space availability and can meet with your therapist at a new time.

Telehealth can be a safe, reliable and effective treatment option for many mental health concerns. If you think you could benefit from telehealth therapy, your therapist can assess whether telehealth is appropriate for the support you need.

Perfectly Imperfect

Kyle McGuinness, LPC

No wonder we look up to superheroes. What’s not to like about them? Between their incredible abilities and perfect judgment, it’s hard not to admire them. We learn to look up to superheroes, and strive to be extraordinary, but we forget one important thing: they’re not perfect and neither are we.

Perfectionism is a word that gets tossed around without much second thought – but what exactly do people mean when they say they are perfectionists? Some think being a perfectionist is being without flaws and others might say it means having unrealistically high expectations. Perfectionism can manifest in a variety of ways – it could be directed towards oneself and their own goals or it could be the opposite and placing those high expectations on others or even society. Often, focusing too much on perfectionism hardly leads to a positive outcome.

What is ironic about perfectionism is that we are so quick to identify when something is wrong despite knowing that an incredibly high bar has been set. Unfortunately, from there it’s a slippery slope to a pattern of self-criticism and a negative mindset. When we focus on our shortcomings, we tend to procrastinate, avoid challenges, exhibit all-or-nothing thinking, repeatedly enact the fallacy of comparison, and lose our sense of creativity. These negative outcomes can lead to depression, anxiety, OCD, eating disorders and even suicidal ideation. In the end, what we lose is what matters most to us – our authenticity alongside all the other parts of ourselves that makes us great.

By acknowledging a result, good or bad, and adjusting forward, we can develop our own superpower. By aiming high and not allowing ourselves to feel guilt or shame by a negative outcome, we can turn perfectionism into something positive. If we perceive failure as a challenge or an opportunity to try again, we are using our superpower.

One of the methods shared by Brené Brown in her book “The Gifts of Imperfection” to help ourselves continue to move forward is with the acronym DIG Deep. This represents our need to be DELIBERATE in our thoughts and feelings (i.e. prayer, meditation or setting intentions), next we get INSPIRED to make a new/different choice and lastly, we GET GOING or take action. With these tools all of us can become our own superheroes by living a more authentic and fulfilling life.