[Mountaindewed]

Honestly at this point it just seems a bit like laziness and it just seems unfair to the client to still be doing virtual for 2 years now. There are hospitals with no covid patients in them and days with very few cases. I get wanting a work life balance and all that but honestly I feel like being virtual still is silly.

[LonesomeTonight]

Well, mine is finally switching back to in person, hopefully next week. He was in person for 3 weeks last summer, but kept pushing it back, then he just happened to start shortly before delta happened. So he went virtual again after 3 weeks.

I'm not sure if your therapist or other people's uses masks in session, but mine did not want to meet with masks. So last year, he was partly waiting for the American Psychological Association to stop recommending that therapists and clients wear masks in sessions. They took a very long time to do that. He had also wanted to wait until his wife was vaccinated (he got vaccinated early as a "healthcare worker"), but that happened before the APA thing. I think by the time he started in person, his son (a teen) was vaccinated as well. (We're also in a very highly vaccinated area, not that it matters much with omicron.)

I know some of it is his own concerns about getting sick--not necessarily with dying, but with long Covid. He's an athlete as well and said he's concerned about heart and lung issues. Also, he has a client who got Covid early in the pandemic and who still is coughing after every sentence. He said if he ended up like that, he would have to stop being a therapist.

I think he's also worried about liability, if he were to pass Covid on to a client. But he had anyone coming in person last summer sign a rather detailed waiver. And I doubt a client would be able to sue him for getting it anyway, as how could you truly prove where you got it? Plus I don't think you can sue for that. But I know he's mentioned fears of being sued for other (completely unrelated) things, so that's part of it.

I did basically call him a hypocrite (without using that word, but he saw through what I was saying) the other day because he was willing to travel, but didn't feel it was safe to see clients in person (though he said I don't know the details of what he's doing, which is true, but he also didn't tell me otherwise). He seemed bothered by it, but has also moved his planned in-person starting date about 10 days earlier, to mid-next week, so maybe I had some influence on him (he said I'm the client currently pushing the most for in person, which surprised me a little). We'll see if he actually starts then!

[Mountaindewed]

My therapist makes her clients wear masks even though no one else seems to be making their clients wear them. The therapist I had before I moved got pissed at me for quitting my retail job where there were safety concerns yet she was too nervous to go back into the office and I found that to be hypocritcal. She was also really pushing me to go on a vacation in September 2020 knowing I had surgery coming up in October and could not afford to get covid. Yeah she was a bit of a whack job.

[Rive.]

Personal preference, convenience, less time or money wasted in travelling, safety..

They can see clients in the comfort of their own home while wearing their PJs and getting paid.

[Waterbear]

I am trying to get to see an Art Therapist and she told me that the venue that she uses is not back in person until May. I was shocked to be honest, because all restrictions are lifted here in the UK. But I'm lucky that as a new client I had nothing invested so can wait with no real problems. I know others won't be so fortunate.

[LonesomeTonight]

I will say that if the therapist or a close family member (like someone they live with) is particularly high-risk for a medical reason (like immunocompromised, getting cancer treatment, organ recipient, etc.), then I could definitely see them wanting to remain virtual and would entirely understand. And while I don't think they owe a full explanation of why, to at least say something to the effect of "for personal safety/health reasons, I need to stay virtual."

[MuddyBoots]

Mine still does virtual for patients that don't mind it. I do virtual because I'm supposed to be living with my dad but I'm not and it's a 1.5 hour drive from my mom's.

[Deejay14]

My next appt in April will be in person. Haven't seen him in person in nearly 2 1/2 years.

[atisketatasket]

Why wouldn't a therapist do at least some virtual sessions now that they have experience with it and know it's an option?

One of mine (Info) does either depending on the client's needs and/or her own. To her it's a new business model.

The other (Visa) was pretty much a pioneer in the field of online therapy decades ago (probably why she's a lot better at it than your average therapist), though she also does in-person. Successful business model.

And if you mean "only virtual," well, other posters have answered that: health, overhead, convenience, etc.

Nothing says therapy has to be in-person or even that it's better in-person. It's just a new criterion in choosing a therapist. If you want a male therapist, you choose a male therapist. If you want virtual therapy or the option of it, you choose one who does that. I imagine a lot of therapists will continue to offer both and not be exclusively one or the other. I like it.

[LonesomeTonight]

Mine will continue offering virtual therapy as an option, which I think is a good thing. He said some of the clients he took on during the pandemic are located further away, so they may not want to drive an hour or more for a therapy session. He said he suspects that only about 1/3 of his clients (maybe even 1/4) will opt to attend in person once he offers it.

And I like having the virtual option for a day where I might be feeling a bit unwell (like getting over a migraine) but not bad enough to cancel, if the weather is really bad, if I'm out of town but would still like to meet, etc.

[ArtleyWilkins]

Immunocompromised or otherwise at risk; caretaker to someone elderly or at high risk; clients who are at risk; much less overhead; still many clients who are still not comfortable in person; being cautious that this improvement is actually going to last.

I went to a funeral last week for the wife of a teacher friend. She was fully vaccinated and boosted, but she had lupus and pulmonary fibrosis prior to Covid. They had discovered her antibodies were low (very common with immunocompromised patients) and had her scheduled for a 4th vaccine but she was infected with omicron about that same time (you know omicron: the one people wave off as a cold). Well, it killed her in a month.

Covid is still very dangerous, and I can understand a professional’s hesitation to “go back to normal” when the reality is that nearly a million people in the United States have died. It is estimated that nine million people are left in mourning for the one million dead. 200,000 or so minor children have lost a parent. The rate of people needing mental health support for grief and trauma is going to balloon.

So maybe it’s not laziness. Maybe it is cautious awareness. We’ve jumped the gun before. It is very hard to trust that this is a real recovery. We all hope it is, but a few weeks of improvement is honestly too soon to tell for sure.

[Quietmind 2]

Originally Posted by ArtleyWilkins

I went to a funeral last week for the wife of a teacher friend. She was fully vaccinated and boosted, but she had lupus and pulmonary fibrosis prior to Covid. They had discovered her antibodies were low (very common with immunocompromised patients) and had her scheduled for a 4th vaccine but she was infected with omicron about that same time (you know omicron: the one people wave off as a cold). Well, it killed her in a month.

When I tested positive, I was terrified I had infected my frail, elderly landlady who is a grandmother. I can't self isolate in my room as I don't have a toilet to myself. Thankfully she's still testing negative.

I was not happy that the clinic staff kept trying to refuse my request to be moved to a covid hotel (in my country, I can ask for that), and minimising the potential harm to my landlady.

At the hotel, all the staff wore n95s, face shields, hair nets, gloves and isolation gowns.

In my job screening patients before their tests, I wear a mask, face shield, hair net and gloves. The swab test folks wear isolation gowns on top of all that.

Omicron was like a bad flu for me and really exhausting. I'm still worried about long covid, particularly brain fog, fatigue, cardiovascular stuff.

Plus there's plenty of countries in the global majority where people can't get vaccinated, much less have a booster.

My therapist offers in-person and virtual. I prefer in person, mostly because I've little privacy and tend to dissociation. I'll eventually go virtual when it becomes too far to see her in-person.

You might consider it silly, but it is not silly for everyone. I am pleased that my therapist continues to work remotely. I prefer remote sessions. Occasionally, I go in person but I feel much safer doing my therapy work in my own space.

[Salmon77]

A friend's T moved to the country for Covid. It was supposed to be temporary but ended up being permanent. Now they live on a farm and do virtual sessions only.

[Mountaindewed]

I get why they would keep virtual open as an option. When I moved I kept the same pdoc and I see him virtually. Everyone is pushing me to go see him in person. He wants to see me in person too.I'm supposed to have one in June. I just find traveling a headache these days plus I just really don't feel mentally like going back into that office again after 2 years.

[Gawain]

If it works for the patient then there's literally no downsides.

It saves money, time and bother for everyone involved. It's also more environmentally friendly.

[Favorite Jeans]

I work in a hospital. We still have covid patients. It’s not like before, but people are still getting sick and at least once a week someone dies of covid.

As much as I don’t love/get that my therapist is still virtual… Everyone gets to set their own level of risk tolerance on their own turf. We each have to accept that we don’t need to know the reasons for or agree with another person’s way of doing things. That’s their boundary to draw. You always have the option to remain in the relationship or not. That’s yours.

It’s good practice for every issue, not just this one.

[JaneTennison1]

Mine gave up her office so I have no idea what the future holds. She has an office space she can use 1 day a week only and we meet then because virtu just doesn't work for me. I've tried it with different therapists and various ways and something about it is just off for me.

[nottrustin]

Originally Posted by Mountaindewed

Honestly at this point it just seems a bit like laziness and it just seems unfair to the client to still be doing virtual for 2 years now. There are hospitals with no covid patients in them and days with very few cases. I get wanting a work life balance and all that but honestly I feel like being virtual still is silly.

The state I live in just relaxed mask mandates in public places and schools. My therapist has a young child so she is waiting a few weeks to ensure that now with the relaxed mandates, the infection rate continues to decrease. The idea of going back and forth between in person and virtual appointments does not appeal to her. She has clients it would be really difficult if that were to happen

[nottrustin]

Originally Posted by Mountaindewed

My therapist makes her clients wear masks even though no one else seems to be making their clients wear them. The therapist I had before I moved got pissed at me for quitting my retail job where there were safety concerns yet she was too nervous to go back into the office and I found that to be hypocritcal. She was also really pushing me to go on a vacation in September 2020 knowing I had surgery coming up in October and could not afford to get covid. Yeah she was a bit of a whack job.

My therpist will not wear a mask during appointments; as a trauma therapist she relies on facial expressions. Also she has clients who were assaulted and killed by people with masks (mostly immigrants) so her wearing a mask would be triggering for some.

[stopdog]

Because they can. Therapists have a decidedly take it or leave it business model. And clients who get attached to them will put up with it. The truth is I probably would've preferred it online rather than going to their stupid offices. I preferred my space to theirs

[amandalouise]

doing telehealth / virtual appointments are here to stay. they are just another tool for professionals to use to better help their clients.

Sometimes I watch those old tv shows with my children like the jetsons. and remember back to watching them myself and thinking wow wouldnt it be great to have that kind of technology. the same with popular science fiction shows that keep getting rerun like star trek. what an amazing thing the technology in those shows. made lots of people wish they could have virtual reality where you could just call up the doctor, flip on the screen and the doctor would know right way from the description and viewing through the screen what was wrong and would say be right there.

those shows were back in the 1970's and 1980's and here we are in 2022 with the full tech knowledgeand abilities for virtual reality devices, and telehealth appointments.

sure covid kicked it into high gear but we humans were already on that track and it would have happened anyway in the next few years even with out a pandemic. the world already had skype, facebook and online therapy, emailing our treatment providers, private messaging our treatment providers.

read some of the old posts here. its been here all this time even before the pandemic.

the only difference is that because of the pandemic the world had no choice but to embrace online therapy, online medical care, online groups and so forth.

it's been here for over a decade and its here to stay. treatment providers now have embraced and added telehealth fully into the services that they provide.

if you feel uncomfortable with telehealth aka online therapy, online medical care, online groups talk with your treatment providers. they will let you know when and if their agencies are going to include "in person" scheduling or staying full time with online therapy, online medical care, online groups. if they choose to stay online and you prefer in person care they can help you locate treatment providers who are providing in person care.

there was once a day when telehealth was just part of popular tv shows and everyone wished we had it, and now it's here to stay. now treatment providers have another tool to better help their clients and their clients can choose which we are more comfortable with.

talk with your treatment providers they will help you find the best fit for you, for me and my therapist we use both telehealth and in person options.

[InkyBooky]

Originally Posted by stopdog

Because they can. Therapists have a decidedly take it or leave it business model. And clients who get attached to them will put up with it. The truth is I probably would've preferred it online rather than going to their stupid offices. I preferred my space to theirs

Yes. This was exactly my experience with my Ex-T.

My Ex-T decided to stay permanently and entirely virtual when most other therapists were starting to offer some limited in-person sessions again. She had always used a shared office space just three days a week- and all the other therapists sharing the space had returned. I was so eager to get back to in-person (which she knew) so it was quite surprising when she just sprung it on me one day that she was never going back to in-person sessions....

Being a PhD trauma therapist/psychologist she had previously told me that research showed in-person was considered to be best for high risk clients, deep trauma work and EMDR. However, once she made the choice to stay online indefinitely she then tried to tell me that Zoom worked just fine for therapy and most of her clients were fine with it.

Well, not in my experience. Her quality as a therapist had deteriorated over Zoom and I was truly needing to get back to in-person where my sessions felt much more grounded, safe, and attuned.

At the end of the day she didn't care what I (and probably others) needed. At least not enough to find an office space for even one day per week. She said it was easier and cheaper for her to work from home and her clients could basically take it or leave it.

I was incredibly attached and I think she was shocked when I told her I was going to find a new therapist. She just expected me to go along with whatever she said.

My new therapist is amazing. She allows the option of in-person or online depending on the client's needs. All in all things worked out, but my Ex-T really let me down on that one. Especially the way she handled it- sort of making me feel like a jerk for even wanting/needing in-person again one day.

[Etcetera1]

Originally Posted by InkyBooky

Yes. This was exactly my experience with my Ex-T.

My Ex-T decided to stay permanently and entirely virtual when most other therapists were starting to offer some limited in-person sessions again. She had always used a shared office space just three days a week- and all the other therapists sharing the space had returned. I was so eager to get back to in-person (which she knew) so it was quite surprising when she just sprung it on me one day that she was never going back to in-person sessions....

Being a PhD trauma therapist/psychologist she had previously told me that research showed in-person was considered to be best for high risk clients, deep trauma work and EMDR. However, once she made the choice to stay online indefinitely she then tried to tell me that Zoom worked just fine for therapy and most of her clients were fine with it.

Well, not in my experience. Her quality as a therapist had deteriorated over Zoom and I was truly needing to get back to in-person where my sessions felt much more grounded, safe, and attuned.

At the end of the day she didn't care what I (and probably others) needed. At least not enough to find an office space for even one day per week. She said it was easier and cheaper for her to work from home and her clients could basically take it or leave it.

I was incredibly attached and I think she was shocked when I told her I was going to find a new therapist. She just expected me to go along with whatever she said.

My new therapist is amazing. She allows the option of in-person or online depending on the client's needs. All in all things worked out, but my Ex-T really let me down on that one. Especially the way she handled it- sort of making me feel like a jerk for even wanting/needing in-person again one day.

This one is hard. I'm really sorry. This is part of why I think deep therapy should not be allowed with deep attachment in there. Because, you can't really pay with money for deep attachment. As soon as money starts talking it's going to create all this mess. I just view it as really unprofessional for a therapist to even allow one-sided deep, strong attachment in therapy. Let alone capitalising on that....some of them I'm sure do do that. Or even when it just comes to, oh the therapist would like to save some money, understandable, but then why would they even allow the attachment to go this far in the first place?! Just not going to be possible to keep it truly safe and real.

[Quietmind 2]

Originally Posted by Mountaindewed

The therapist I had before I moved got pissed at me for quitting my retail job where there were safety concerns yet she was too nervous to go back into the office and I found that to be hypocritcal.

Wow at that therapist's hypocrisy yeah. Before vaccines became available, my T still did in-person for some clients who lacked the safety (eg, abusive situations) for virtual appointments.