What I’m doing here is examining my experience of using each mental health service, instead of its effectiveness – because even the most wizard-like therapist isn’t going to ‘cure’ you in just one week. I’m simply comparing each service to the experience of sitting in a space and blarting on about yourself to a therapist. Nod if you’re with me. Okay, cool – let’s psychological health!
BBC
How does it work?
As seen on FB (by me, anyhow), US company is the corporate behemoth of the e-counselling video game. They claim to have 500 certified counsellors working for them, each with at least three years of experience.
After filling out a survey to determine what specific flavour of mental you are, you’re coupled with a counsellor, who you can mercilessly switch for a different one at any time. (I got Dr. Laura Dabney, from Virginia). You then kick off an instant messaged treatment session that both you and your counsellor can drop in and out of, and which could, in theory, continue till one of you eventually died.
What does it cost?
You get a complimentary seven-day trial – just like a free Netflix or Amazon Prime trial, other than with way more concerns about what your childhood was like. After that, it costs from , 24.50 a week for unlimited message-based counselling and one ‘complimentary’ phone session with your counsellor per month. Yeah, I don’t get how it’s free either, but whatever.