Question: Is there anywhere to get free or very low cost online counseling for anxiety? I don’t have a lot of money.

Scott Graham Says...:

Hi,

The reality of counseling is that there are few options for people who don't have money -- or insurance -- to pay for it. (That is a commentary about health in general).

If you have no -- or very little -- money -- your best option is a community mental health center that has federal or state funding to supplement their budget.

Online you will find support groups -- like dailystrength.org -- but recognize that you are not getting professional help.

You might also post a request for a coach at noomii.com but recognize that coaching is like the Wild Wild West:  coaching is an UNREGULATED profession and ANYONE can claim to be a coach and claim to help you.

Question: Can I learn to become a more assertive person through online counseling? I just read an article about assertiveness and I am exactly like they described the non assertive person to be like. I don’t know why I have such a hard time standing up to anyone to get what I want and deserve. It’s just the way I am wired I guess. I am interested in online counseling because I do not have a lot of free time and I am also looking for something that will get me some tangible results in a reasonable length of time.

Scott Graham Says...:

Online counseling works.

Today we most often see online counseling listed as "coaching" and even sometimes "training" or "consulting."

The skills to be an effective online counselor / coach are the same as those to be an in-person counselor / coach.  Unfortunately for clients. the online counseling and coaching world is somewhat of a wild wild west.  ANYONE can call themselves a coach and offer online counseling.  Clients should make sure that anyone they are working with has real credentials (and by that I mean college degrees from accredited institutions).

One of the great benefits of online or telephone counseling is that it can happen anywhere and anytime.

Another benefit of this aspect is that your counselor or coach can be more available for you, making this type of counseling more intrusive (in a good way).  Here's an example:  I had a coaching client who was struggling to have a difficult conversation with her husband.  We talked about this on the phone, set up a plan -- we even role played over the phone.  Her plan was to talk with her husband at 7:30 pm.  I called her from 7:15 pm - 7:20 pm for a 5 minute check-in call.  She had the difficult conversation and emailed me later that night about her success.  I congratulated her and asked her to list 5 things she learned about herself from the incident that night before she went to sleep.

A good counselor should set clear goals with you and you should be able to see your progress with them over time (this is true for both online and in-person counseling).

Follow the suggestions and you can learn to stand up for yourself with online counseling.