Ready? I’m excited you’re here. Let’s go!
Before Your Session
1. Confirm that you have submitted your paperwork, payment information, and other documents.
2. Be privy to your appointment reminders via text and/or email, and cancellation policy.
Technology and Communications*
3. Check your internet connection in advance. We all know technology sometimes messes up on us, but we can certainly cut down on some of these difficulties. One option is going to www.speedtest.net to run a check in advance.
4. Email or call your therapist’s office if you are running late, need to cancel, or reschedule. Be aware of the office late cancellation policy.
Getting Comfy and Confidential
5. Make sure you are in a comfortable, confidential place where you are and feel safe (physically safe, safe from the earshot of others, etc.) Let your therapist know if there is any reason that you cannot achieve any of these things so that they can help.
6. Let your counselor know your location. If that address is not on the paperwork you submitted, update them on where you are at. In order to care for you, please share your location with your therapist at the beginning of every virtual session.
7. Connect your camera and microphone, gather your headphones, and charge your device(s). Make sure your audio is functioning with your microphone on, but also that you can hear from your device before your session begins. This goes for the camera as well!
8. Position yourself in frame in good light.* (*Due to the nature of virtual counseling, it is possible your therapist will miss out on your body language and other nonverbal cues that they would normally pick up on).
*An important note for couples: Keep the above in mind when you are attending couples therapy online, as you will need a way for both parties to be in the frame or for each of you to be on your own devices (likely in different rooms to avoid audio feedback) if that is preferred.
Other “Do’s” of Virtual Counseling
9. Choose to invest in yourself during that time. It’s yours!
10. Be present. Give yourself permission to be away from other things and be present with your counselor for that time. This can look like doing your best to minimize distractions (Especially at home, it can be so hard not to have interruptions (kids, dogs, emails, grocery delivery, oh my!)
As your therapist, we truly don’t mind life interruptions, we are all human and things happen. In fact, your counselor may be struggling with their barking dog or noisy kiddos, too. We just want that time to be for you and to care for you. Help us help you by taking this step.
The “Don’t’s” of Virtual Counseling
1. Unless otherwise consented to, neither client(s) nor therapist will record the contents of the therapy session.
2. Operating a motorized vehicle during your session is discouraged. If commuting is the only time you have for therapy, please discuss this with your counselor.
3. Do not participate in counseling in the presence of third parties without your therapist’s knowledge and consent.
4. Don’t throw in the therapy towel altogether if you feel like virtual counseling isn’t working out for you. Talk to your therapist about what you’re experiencing so they can help care for you and make adjustments if needed.
You got this!
You’ve made it this far.
You can do hard things.
*a note for my clients:
A note for parents or guardians: Consult your teen’s therapist on how they prefer navigating the virtual therapy space with minors, your role in the therapeutic process, and how you can navigate that together most effectively.
More specifically, if you are seeking my counseling services, it is often helpful to add an email address to the file of your teen/minor’s records if they are an appropriate age so that I can directly send them what they need for virtual therapy (ex: a virtual invitation for their therapy appointment). Please reach out and ask me questions if needed!
Scheduling, Rescheduling, & Cancellation
You can reschedule via the front office or online! Read more here: https://www.comfybrowncouch.com/post/how-to-scheduling-with-a-therapist
If you are scheduled for in-person but would like to switch to virtual, please contact the front office so they can make that adjustment- (or vice versa).
If you need to contact me quickly (ex: to let me know you’re running late, that you want to be virtual instead of in-person that day, etc) please reach out to my office and email me.
Client Responsibility
If you cannot connect virtually for some reason, or your audio or video are not working, we will do your session over the phone! After your session, please then troubleshoot your device to make sure we can resume virtually as normal next time.
You will receive an invitation to your appointment the day of, day before, or week of your appointment. While the invitation should display the correct time of your appointment, it may show your appointment in a different time zone for universal continuity. When in doubt, check your text/email appointment reminders- that is the correct day and time reserved for you.
Unfortunately, in the event that your internet or device fails and you cannot join your session virtually or over the phone, or miss part of or all of your appointment due to personal error regarding your appointment time, date, or location, you are still responsible for the fees for your session and most therapists will not be able to extend your session passed the reserved time. That time is reserved for you and the time after is reserved for others, and we will use the time we have left as wisely as we can!
We want to see you and for you to get the most out of your session that you have financially invested in, and so please troubleshoot technology beforehand and be mindful of these steps as you would any other appointments reserved for you.
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