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Is a Therapy App Ever as Good as the Real Thing?
Programs that allow you to text or video chat your therapist are more popular than ever. Here’s how to decide if one of them is right for your mental health needs.
Of the tens of millions of Americans who suffer from a diagnosable mental health problem each year, only half will pursue treatment, for any number of reasons. Some can’t afford it, or struggle with accessibility. Others are deterred by the stigma still associated with mental illness. And that’s not even counting all the people without a clinical diagnosis who could still benefit from therapy, but are put off by the same challenges.
In recent years, a new type of therapy has positioned itself as a solution to all of the above. Text-based teletherapy apps, often with the option of phone and video sessions for a higher fee, are becoming an increasingly popular alternative to face-to-face sessions in a therapist’s office. Some of these apps claim hundreds of thousands of users; Talkspace, one of the bigger names, has said that it’s generating tens of millions of dollars in revenue.
It should be said that these apps do not and should not take the place of an in-person diagnosis or medication. When it comes to serious mental health issues, it’s important to consult your doctor before trying any new form of treatment. But with that in mind, therapy apps may be helpful for some people in treating a spectrum of problems, from depression and anxiety to career stress and relationship hurdles. Here’s what to know if you’re thinking about trying one.
Do they really work?
The research on app-based therapy isn’t exactly robust. There’s some evidence that it can be effective — one study, for example, argued that, in some cases, video-based teletherapy can help therapists cultivate their clients’ trust more easily, fostering a stronger, more intimate relationship than in-person therapy would. And some studies suggest that therapy apps can reduce symptoms of depression. But much of the other positive research has either been commissioned by the companies behind the apps themselves or done in concert with them, throwing the reliability of the conclusions into question.
