- Hey everybody.
In honor of World Mental Health Day, I'm gonna offer up
seven ways to get the most out of online therapy.
(funky, upbeat music)
First, I just want to give a big thank you
to BetterHelp for sponsoring this video.
They make what I do possible.
My first tip is to have all of the issues
that you're struggling with,
or any symptoms that you're feeling written down.
And have that list with you,
when you start the therapy session.
That's the nice thing about doing it online, is you can
have it with you while you talk with them,
knowing you can read directly from it, if you get
too nervous, or if you forget anything.
My second tip is, make sure you schedule
these appointments at a good time for you.
Number one, make sure you got a good wifi connection,
so that you can actually connect with the therapist
that you're reaching out to.
And secondly, make sure no one's gonna
come in and interrupt you.
Make sure nobody's at home, if you need to be really private
or you have a space that works for you, for that whole hour.
And my third tip, but maybe it should have been my first,
is to choose the proper therapist for you.
You know how I talk about finding that right fit,
and how important the therapeutic relationship is?
That's another reason why I love BetterHelp,
because they let you select a therapist based
on their gender, religion, sexual orientation,
or specialization, so we make sure that we're able
to pick the right therapist for us, that can meet us
where we're at, and understand where we're coming from.
They also have over 2500 licensed therapists,
who either have a master's or a doctorate in their field.
And they have an average of 13 years of experience.
And they also have over 17,000 testimonials available
on their site, so that you can read about a therapist
that maybe you think could be a good fit, and see what
other people are saying, to make sure that you get
the best care for you when you need it most.
My fourth tip, is to create a treatment plan.
And it doesn't have to necessarily be called
a treatment plan, you don't have to think of it that way,
but it could just be goals for you in therapy.
And share this with your therapist, because this keeps
both of you on track, and also allows you to look back
at that document and say, look, I have made progress,
I know I'm feeling stuck right now, but look
at all the things that I've already accomplished.
So it keeps you motivated,
and keeps you on track.
And my fifth tip, is making sure your treatment
is sustainable, time-wise, and money-wise.
Because if we're going into our busiest time at work,
and we know that we're gonna be working long hours,
and it's hard to take any time off,
now might not be the best time to start treatment.
Or, if we're really struggling financially,
therapy can be very expensive.
And that's another reason why I love BetterHelp,
because it's a much more cost-effective alternative.
Plans start at just $35 a week.
And BetterHelp has already assisted over 600,000 people.
The cool thing is, you can do it from wherever you are,
so even if you are crunched for time, or financially
it's a little stressful for you, we can find plans,
and times that work best.
My sixth tip, is to
say whatever you're thinking.
I know it can take us a while to warm up
in therapy, and that's completely normal.
But know that it's also okay to talk about therapy
in therapy, if something was said that you found offensive
or hurtful, or you felt misunderstood, know that
it's completely okay to bring that up and talk about it.
It's the one safe place where you can really express
what you're going through, and what you're thinking about,
and get a valid, warm response.
Remember, therapy's not about the therapist.
It's not about me.
It's about you, and getting you the treatment
that you need, when you need it most.
And the seventh and final tip,
is to do the homework that we give you.
I know that we won't be able to complete everything,
and some of the homework our therapists give us
can be really hard, but at least attempt it.
At least think about it.
And if you can't do it, let us know,
because that helps us too.
We don't just come up with homework for fun.
We come up with it to keep you moving towards your goals,
or to find out, if we are able to do that work,
or if we're not quite there yet.
It gives us a lot of information, and so that's why we
come up with the homework assignments, or the follow-ups
that we have you do in between sessions,
is because it helps us continue moving
towards the goals
we've set, in a quick fashion.
So give the homework a try.
And let us know how it goes.
I hope you found this helpful.
If you have any other tips you want to share,
leave it in the comments.
It's World Mental Health Day, let's learn from one another.
Let's utilize our community to work
towards a healthy mind, and a healthy body.
And I'll see you next time.