Fair to say, therapy and mental illness are something that is becoming more discussed among all generations of people, regardless of their background and social status. It’s becoming a more common theme in pop culture, as well as being discussed more frequently and freely on channels like social media.

At the same time, the landscape for therapy has changed rather drastically. Today there are several services available in a wide array of countries that make it possible for people to receive therapy remotely via computers and phones. This was especially important two years ago. In some countries, these therapists can even prescribe or recommend zoloft for social anxiety and other similar treatments. But what are the impacts of this type of therapy?

The benefits 

The benefits are clear to see straight away. It makes therapy a lot more accessible for a larger group of people and especially those who might not live close to where there are sufficient resources to serve an area. It’s oftentimes also a lot cheaper to use these types of services when compared to visiting a therapist in person, something that also makes it a lot more accessible. Unfortunately, the cost of therapy can be a big contributing factor as to why people don’t get the help they need. it can also remove a lot of the anxiety that sometimes is accompanied by a visit to a therapist, due to it being able to be done from home.

The potential negatives 

The potential negatives for the rise of remote therapy options are not enough to outweigh the big pros that remote therapy can bring to both society and the people receiving treatment. 

One massive drawback to this type of service is the potential risk of leaks of sensitive personal information. If all data about clients and the like are not stored properly it can lead to massive issues if a hacker is able to get the information, something that happened in Finland not too long ago. This is of course completely unacceptable, but the industry is aware of this and one can hope all parties take the required precautions to avoid this happening.

But at the same, it’s impossible to gauge the long-term pros and cons of this type of service is available. Most remote therapy companies have only been operating for a couple of years, which is not nearly enough time to gain an understanding of what the long-term impacts might be in the coming years.

Zuella Montemayor did her degree in psychology at the University of Toronto. She is interested in mental health, wellness, and lifestyle.