It is a new year and a wonderful opportunity to talk with you all about therapy approaches that are well worth considering! You might have been reflecting over the holidays whether you might want to meet with a depression therapist online or receive online support for anxiety.
We want to review 10 misconceptions that you might have heard about therapy approaches in the past and set the record straight! Read on to learn more!
1. Therapy Only Focuses on the Past
Many types of therapy interventions do not only focus on the past! Although the past can be critical in terms of understanding the present, it is also important to understand what might be maintaining your difficulties in the present. For example, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is used during online depression treatment.
During CBT you will learn about and explore many concepts that are maintaining your current symptoms of depression. Some of these belief systems might have originated in the past. But it is important to understand why they are still impacting you in the present day. Therefore, CBT is a great example of a therapy that explores past experiences (as needed) but stays firmly rooted in the present as we know that causal factors are not necessarily the same as maintaining factors.
2. Therapy is Just About Talking
Although you will be talking in therapy, it is much more than “talk therapy”. People will often say they only received “talk therapy” and therapy should always be more than just a place to vent or “talk”. Of course, a key ingredient in any type of therapy is the ability to talk and feel heard and validated. That being said, it should also be about much more than that.
During the course of therapy, you will want to learn valuable skills and tools so you can eventually become your own therapist and ensure that you can apply these techniques when you are experiencing any type of struggle. For example, some of the best online therapy for anxiety and depression will incorporate valuable skills and strategies.
These will include: learning how you can gain perspective from unhelpful negative thinking patterns, learning how to approach activities and events that you might consistently avoid and learning how to ground yourself and achieve present moment awareness when your emotions are overwhelming. These are but just a few of the strategies that you should be able to receive when receiving evidence-based therapy.
For example, here at Forward Thinking Psychological Services®, we offer a range of therapy approaches that provide you with these types of skills. These include: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Acceptance Commitment Therapy and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy informed approaches. Within these approaches, you will learn tools that include:
- Thought record work
- Exploration of core belief systems
- Distress tolerance strategies
- Present moment awareness
- Unhooking from difficult thoughts and feelings
It is also important to remember that the type of discussion within a therapy session is completely different then when you are talking to a friend or family member. Therapists undergo years of training to be able to approach each session with neutrality and objectivity. They are not there to judge or evaluate and this allows the dialogue that emerges to be very different than when you are speaking with a friend. It is important to recognize that a conversation within the context of therapy is really like no other.
3. You Need a Serious Mental Health Issue to Benefit from Therapy
Although many people might believe this to be the case, people actually seek out therapy for a wide variety of mental health-related issues. While some of these might be due to very serious mental health issues, other issues are just as valid when it comes to seeking out therapy services.
Therapists are not there to judge the severity of what you are experiencing. Instead, they are there to match their intervention with your presenting issues. As a psychologist, I will assess and diagnose the issues that are being presented to me. This allows me to better understand the needs of the individual and what I can offer. However, that being said, there is no issue that an individual might discuss that would not be worthy of psychological treatment. Presenting issues within the context of therapy covers such a wide range, that it is difficult to capture them all!
At Forward Thinking we work with individuals who present with very severe symptoms of OCD as well as much milder ones. We provide online support for anxiety (all different types of anxiety) as well as online depression treatment.
We also work with individuals with relationship issues, life transitions, work-related stress, emotion dysregulation and trauma. We strive to meet the individual where they are because all outreach is important and valid. Our role is to help you with whatever it is you are struggling with.
4. All Therapies Are the Same
Although therapy approaches might share some similarities there are also differences between different types of interventions. Cognitive Behavioural Therapies are an umbrella approach from which many other therapies have been developed, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy. However, other approaches such as psychodynamic therapy and psychoanalytical therapy are different and may approach mental health issues from a different perspective.
There are also different interventions when you work with couples and families as opposed to working with individuals during 1:1 treatment. It is important to meet with a therapist who is aware of different approaches and is able to explain to you what their training is and what their particular approach is. You want to ensure that your therapist is aware of their scope and ensure that their treatment approaches provide a good evidence-based match for the issues that you are experiencing.
5. Therapy Takes Years to See Results
It is definitely a misconception that you have to engage in therapy for years in order to see any positive results. In fact, a great deal of research exists that demonstrates the effectiveness of short-term therapy. For example, CBT is typically thought of as a short-term therapy. Sessions are often offered from 6 to 20 sessions. Of course, you might opt to have more sessions in order to hone in on certain skill sets and provide more time for learning and practice. However, it is important to note that the compilation of CBT skills can be delivered to an individual using a time-limited approach.
A great example of this is the OCD group therapy at Forward Thinking, which is often delivered over 8 sessions. This allows for plenty of time to learn the fundamentals of CBT for OCD and practice ERP as well as other CBT skills that are offered within the group. An individual might want to learn more after the group sessions, of course. However, it is a type of therapy approach that is meant to be time-limited. This would be the same if you are engaging in online depression treatment or online support for anxiety.
CBT approaches for these presentations are often time-limited and involve the delivery of important skills. Should you want to explore other issues or review skills in more detail, therapists are always able to do this and will share their ongoing treatment plans with you.
It is also important to recognize that your symptoms may not take years to improve. Although this might be the case when symptoms are severe, it is also possible to see some change in symptoms early on in treatment. In fact, many therapists provide you with self-report measures throughout your treatment which will allow you to see changes within the symptoms that you are experiencing over time. This is wonderful evidence that change can happen within a very reasonable timeframe.
6. Therapists Tell You What to Do
Within any therapeutic relationship, therapists are there to guide, process, reflect, validate, listen, understand and explore. Telling you what to do is never on the list of interventions that any well-trained therapist would do. Therapists will also offer professional support and guidance which, again, is dramatically different than having them tell you what to do. If you are attending what feels like the best online therapy for anxiety and depression you will know that your therapist is able to provide you with excellent skills and perspective taking. But that should never feel like you are being told what to do.
Therapy is the place for collaboration, discussion, empathic listening and skill building. Other individuals within your life might step in and voice unwanted opinions. If you ever experience this type of interaction with a therapist then it is most definitely not the right fit for you!
7. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Is Only for Anxiety
Although online support for anxiety may be best treated with cognitive behavioural therapy, the applications of CBT are far-reaching beyond anxiety treatment alone. Decades of research have supported the use of CBT for issues such as depression, trauma, eating disorders, obsessive compulsive disorder, body focused repetitive behaviours, psychosis, ADHD and more. While there is certainly evidence supporting its use for the treatment of anxiety, it extends far beyond that type of presentation.
CBT first began in the 1960s and was developed by Dr. Aaron Beck. At that time it was initially developed for individuals with depression. It then extended into treatment for anxiety disorders and has now been found to be a widely distributed evidence-based approach for many different presenting issues. Although the skillsets used within CBT are similar for different disorders, there are also modifications that will be made depending on the presenting issue, severity and unique presentation of each person. It is never meant to be delivered in a structured or rigid fashion. Instead, it is meant to be fluid and flexible, paying attention to the needs of the person and what will be most helpful for them.
8. Mindfulness-Based Therapy Is Just Meditation
This is another unfortunate misconception regarding what mindfulness-based therapy truly is all about!
Mindfulness-based therapy offers individuals the opportunity to learn important skills so that they can be focused on the present moment without judging or labelling the quality of that moment itself. In doing so, individuals learn to notice thoughts and feelings that emerge without getting hooked on them. This can allow individuals to develop a different relationship to difficult thoughts and feelings that may arise.
There are different types of mindfulness-based therapies and mindfulness can also be integrated into different therapy approaches. Mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is one type of mindfulness-based therapy. MBCT has been developed to help individuals who experience chronic depression and low mood. It was developed by Drs. Zindel Segal, John Teasdale and Mark Williams.
This therapy approach combines cognitive therapy with meditative practices and attitudes that are based on the growth and development of mindfulness. Individuals learning this therapy approach will gain awareness regarding different ways that the mind behaves and how one can develop a different relationship to “mind modes”. This therapy has been shown to be highly effective in being able to reduce depression relapse as well as have a positive impact on depressive symptomatology.
9. Online Therapy Isn’t as Effective as In-Person Therapy
This is a common misconception and is understandable for people to think, as therapy was mostly offered in person until the pandemic allowed more therapists to offer services from a virtual platform. However, we now have a great deal of research to demonstrate its effectiveness. And that it is as effective as therapy sessions being conducted in person.
Let’s turn to the research and see what has been found!
A study conducted in 2022 examined the effectiveness of therapy for a large group of individuals with OCD who were receiving video teletherapy. These researchers found that “Treatment resulted in clinically and statistically significant improvements, with a 43.4% mean reduction in obsessive-compulsive symptoms (g=1.0; 95% CI 0.93 to 1.03) and a 62.9% response rate”. It was also shown that “treatment also resulted in a 44.2% mean reduction in depression, a 47.8% mean reduction in anxiety, and a 37.3% mean reduction in stress symptoms. Quality of life improved by a mean of 22.7%”.
These results were not only statistically significant but the effect size was large and similar to studies that have been conducted with in-person Exposure and Response Prevention therapy. This is wonderful evidence that online treatment for OCD is effective and very similar to therapy that is conducted in person.
Another recent study, conducted in 2020, “Psychotherapy at a Distance“, demonstrated that online video therapy, primarily for cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), has been as effective as in-person therapy. The study showed that “remote therapy grants the therapist revealing glimpses of a patient’s home and life.” It was stated that interactions with children, pets, roommates and spouses that can be seen or heard while the individual is in their own personal space will be more genuine glimpses into that person’s world.
Finally, a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs; gold standard research evidence) for in-person versus CBT was conducted in 2018. These researchers indicated that “moderate certainty evidence showed little to no difference in the effectiveness of in-person and therapist-guided remote CBT across a range of mental health and somatic disorders, suggesting potential for the use of therapist-guided remote CBT to facilitate greater access to evidence based care.”
Overall, the research confirms the effectiveness of online therapy services allowing individuals to feel both comfortable and confident when engaging in evidence-based therapy, such as online depression treatment and online support for anxiety.
10. Therapy is a Quick Fix
Although therapy can be time-limited and effective, it is never intended to be a quick fix. Therapy is often described as being “hard work” because you will be facing things that you have likely been avoiding for a very long time. Your therapist will support you throughout your journey to ensure the pace of change is right for you and that you feel safe and secure in what you discuss and what you work on in between sessions. The best online therapy for anxiety and depression is one that allows you to feel that you are learning skills and making changes at a pace that feels right for your comfort.
Do you want to learn more about therapy? Does Forward Thinking Psychological Services® offer therapy that will be a good fit for you? Please reach out to us today and learn more about all the therapy services that we offer! We provide online therapy sessions across Canada, specifically in Ontario, Nova Scotia, British Columbia and New Brunswick. We work with youth and adults who are experiencing moderate to very severe symptoms of OCD, anxiety, depression, trauma and other mental health disorders.
Contact us and learn more about our team as well as our CBT offerings for OCD therapy for adults and teens. We look forward to hearing from you!
References
https://www.camh.ca/en/health-info/mental-illness-and-addiction-index/cognitive-behavioural-therapy
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2834575/#c20
https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/therapy-types/mindfulness-based-cognitive-therapy
https://psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.20050557
https://www.cmaj.ca/content/196/10/E327
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35587365
DISCLAIMER: This content is meant for informational and educational purposes only. Only a licensed psychologist or psychiatrist can diagnose a mental health disorder. The content of this website is not meant to be a substitute for therapy. Visiting this website should not be considered to be equivalent to a relationship with FTPS. Mental health concerns should only be discussed in the context of providing professional services after the consent process has been completed with a qualified FTPS associate outside of our website.