If you need mental health treatment, accessibility is one of the biggest barriers to treatment. That’s especially true with the pandemic and safety considerations. Today, virtual mental health treatment makes seeking out affordable, accessible therapy easier than ever. At Compassion Recovery our mental health and substance abuse treatment programs are now available in a fully virtual environment – helping us deliver our services, even if you’re not mobile or don’t have the time to travel to our clinic.
Today, 17.9% of the U.S. population struggles with mental health. Getting treatment is the first step to healing, learning coping mechanisms, and getting the tools to move on with your life. And, thanks to digital communication, you can do that from the safety and comfort of your own home.
Telehealth, also called telemedicine, telepsychiatry, and telemental health care, is the process of using video calling or calls to facilitate virtual mental health treatment. Here, you interact with a counselor, psychologist, clinician, or psychiatrist in a one-on-one or group environment, in real time, over a video call. In most cases, calls are conducted over secure, private platforms which allow them to conform to HIPAA and other security requirements.
In most cases, this includes video calling to replace in person visits. However, additional services, such as support chat are increasingly popular. Support over chat doesn’t function as part of treatment, but it can help you to find stability in between sessions.
Explore our in-person and virtual mental health and substance abuse treatment services in Orange County at Compassion Recovery Centers. We offer a truly individualized experience for each client who enters our innovative Orange County treatment center. Discover how Compassion Recovery can help you on your journey to long-term, sustainable recovery.
That means delivering both one-on-one and group sessions over the Internet. You get the same treatment you would from inside our doors, but without traveling to location. That makes private visits and one-on-one time with a therapist possible, even if you can’t or don’t want to visit us in person.
Virtual mental healthcare is relatively new as a concept and new to practice. But, with numerous studies from organizations like Yale and Harvard showing that telehealth can be as effective as face-to-face visits, there’s no reason not to use it.
In fact, both organizations adopted telehealth as a means of moving froward with treatment and with studies during the rise of the 2020 pandemic.
Most importantly, not all research is new. In 2017, a systematic review of over 156 articles published in PubMed, Embase, and Science Direct showed that most studies reflect positively on telemedicine. In fact, many consistently recommend virtual healthcare as a faster, more convenient, and cheaper alternative to face-to-face – making quality psychological care accessible, even to people who don’t live near the facilities and experts they need
Another study, conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, found that synchronous (real time) telemental healthcare is acceptable and as effective as in-person services, providing the quality of the video and audio is good. That study noted that conferencing is more effective on younger generations who are more adept with video calling – and there may be a technology barrier with persons over 50. At Compassion Recovery, we tackle this barrier by ensuring that every person signing up for our treatment receives training in how to use the app and the services – so you get quality results.
Most importantly, in one of the largest studies of telemental health – conducted by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs between 2006 and 2010 – utilization of virtual mental health treatment decreased hospitalization by 25%. Virtual treatment works.
Online mental health counseling normally involves shifting face-to-face meetings to virtual ones. This naturally creates some changes to therapy, especially in the early days of that therapy. For example, most people have a harder time connecting to their therapist or counselor online than they would in person. You can resolve that by having additional sessions to get to know each other, by ensuring that video is turned on, and by doing exercises or social games to get to know each other.
An immediate sense of connection aided by physical proximity.
The potential of poor Internet connection or speed.
The potential of poor familiarity with video calling services.
The potential of disruption of service due to Internet, static, etc.
Less attention paid to behavioral cues from patients.
On the other hand, each of these obstacles is relatively easily overcome – meaning that you can easily experience quality virtual therapy, in an environment where you connect with your therapist, and where everyone can benefit from treatment.
Compassion Recovery offers online intensive outpatient treatment, with daily sessions, frequent checkups, and custom programs built around individual needs and problems. This treatment is built on cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, counseling, and group therapy. IOP itself, which normally involves visits to our clinic for treatment, is also the most recommended mental health treatment option for cost effectiveness versus efficacy. Online treatment takes that a step further by removing the need to travel to and from our clinic.
With over 40 million U.S. adults struggling with anxiety disorder, anxiety disorders are one of the most common and most debilitating mental illnesses. While common, anxiety can get in the way of treatment by making it difficult to leave your home, to drive, or to see other people. This makes online treatment an especially good choice for anxiety patients. Here, Compassion Recovery offers CBT and DBT to help assess behavior patterns and underlying problems and then help you to build coping mechanisms and to resolve those issues where possible.
Depression can make you feel alone, isolated, and unwanted. But, with 19.4 million Americans struggling with the disorder, you are far from alone. Compassion Recovery offers virtual treatment for depression because it allows you to check up frequently, to connect with your counselor, and to get the help you need no matter financial resources. Therapy and counseling for depression are similar to that used for anxiety, with CBT and DBT followed by counseling and complementary therapy to build coping mechanisms, good habits, and to create a sound basis for a healthy mind and body.
ADHD often requires ongoing treatment and counseling, with continuous treatment over much of your life. Frequent follow-ups with therapists and counselors can help to reinforce treatment, can keep you on track, and gives you the daily accountability to maintain behaviors and activities that keep you healthy and happy. In other cases, ADHD treatment can be interventionist, with the intent of stopping downward spirals or putting you back into control of your habits and your life.
One in 11 Americans will be diagnosed with PTSD in their lifetime but, unlike many other disorders, PTSD is treatable and curable. In fact, 63% of patients who seek out a 3-week mental health program for PTSD no longer meet the criteria for PTSD afterwards. While most of us need longer treatment for a full recovery, getting help works. And, at Compassion Recovery, that help is just a call away – so you can access that care from anywhere.
While fully online or fully virtual treatment is not suitable for most individuals with bipolar disorder, it is a good option for anyone who has already received a diagnosis and who is already getting treatment and/or medication. Why? Many people with bipolar disorder require medication assisted treatment with prescription medication to balance and improve mood swings. While Compassion Recovery offers medication assisted treatment, this should always begin with an in-person assessment and program. However, online counseling and treatment offer good follow-ups to an initial program, can supplement a prescription offered by your doctor, and can provide the additional support you need to build better coping mechanisms.
Daily counseling with an online intensive outpatient program offers regular support, accountability, and behavioral therapy to help you to build new habits. Behavioral therapy for self-harm often revolves around counseling and behavioral therapy to assess underlying problems, to build new and better coping mechanisms, and to assess the emotions and emotional responses underlying the need to cope.
If you or a loved one is struggling with mental health, treatment is accessible, available, and affordable. Telehealth mental health treatment allows you to take part in counseling and therapy, from your home, with nothing more than a smart device. Most importantly, it’s also covered by your insurance (although this may depend on your provider.
If you’re struggling, Compassion Recovery is here to help, in person, or via our virtual treatment services.
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