When I first thought of working with clients by Skype many years ago, I hesitated. I did not truly  believe that I could be an effective psychological therapist without being able to ‘feel’ the client in the room. Especially given that I did so much Advanced Integrative Therapy [AIT].

I had worked with people quite a lot by telephone over the years and, while it was never my preferred option, I did find it to be surprisingly effective. But that was just talk therapy. AIT is a psycho-physical therapy and it incorporates muscle testing. Surely it would be necessary for the client to be present. Or so I thought.

Despite my reservations, when was contacted by some international clients back in 2009, I decided to go ahead and try it.  And the results were surprisingly positive.

I found that I could muscle test my clients effectively using myself as a surrogate [something that I had practiced for years anyway], and I could actually feel the clients’ emotions and energy very effectively through this modern medium.

Since then I have worked a great deal with clients by Skype. Many have lived in other countries. Many have been based in the UK, but a lived a bit far from my practices in Surrey/London and Brighton/Hove to travel to me comfortably. Others have just found it more convenient at times to  work through Skype. It can be an effective way to deal with childcare, work commitments, disability and travel issues, and many people enjoy the comfort of seeing a therapist in their office or home [without even having to tidy it up 😊].

I always avoided doing Skype with children in the past, but in recent years I have found that children as young as eleven work well with it too, particularly teenagers. After all, cyberspace is their home.

I won’t say it has always been smooth sailing doing therapy through video chat. Sometimes connections can be dodgy at either end. Sometimes the Skype app has struggled to run smoothly. Sometimes, when Skype is struggling, I have had to switch to WhatsApp or MSN Messenger or voice calls. And some highly distressed clients really need to be held with a therapist present in the room with them. But most of the time my Skype work has been a very successful.

If you are a psychological therapist and have been thinking of giving it a go, I suggest that you go ahead and  ‘suck it and see’.

If you are thinking of having therapy and, for whatever reason, want to try Skype sessions, please get in touch by email [lorri@lorricraig.com] or, better still, text [+44 7456660227]. We can simply set up an appointment, swap Skype names and begin. Skype and WhatsApp video calls are free and it’s easy to register if you don’t already have an account. And you can pay for the session by PayPal or bank transfer. Given that we are talking technology, it’s amazingly simple. 😊