Hi there Cinnamon, hi all. Yes, I'm in online therapy, it's been three years and three months now. If you have any questions or want to share experiences, feel free to PM me.

In short, I'd say the benefits for me have been tremendous, I've made significant progress, gained a wonderful ally in therapy, and done it partly because of the online format actually. I have schedule flexibility, session records, format versatility and more organic contact opportunities than I would have had in person. I also recall enjoying the "quiet" of an online environment which facilitated reflection and communication for me, especially early on. Online therapy also facilitates sharing music, images, texts, which I find enriching and makes my therapy a little more dynamic.

I've done both in-person therapy (about three years, many years ago) and online therapy for the same time currently and I've found it just as effective, really moreso for me where I am in my life now, because of the really superb relationship/match between me and my therapist along with the format and schedule.

It's been a lot of hard work, as a lot of good therapy is, and there are definitely benefits and drawbacks to the format. For example, sometimes I wish she could read my expression but I have to be patient and let her have more time to understand where I'm at if I'm quiet, or be assertive and explain what's going on, but both work. Other times I'd like the physical proximity of sharing a room, though sharing my own space- being at home and having her communicating with me there is special too. In my case, the benefits have far outweighed the drawbacks and my therapy feels more integral with my life than it did during my in-person sessions.

As others alluded, I agree it was important (to me anyway) to have a licensed therapist (and be able to verify that license) who specialized in my concerns and met other criteria I had, just as if I were seeing someone in a mainstream office.

Hope your experience is healing and growth-inspiring for you too!

Best,

Leah