Interpersonal Skills for Effective Online Psychological Counseling
Posted by Personal Online Therapy on January 19th, 2023
A personal counselor helps his patients navigate their problems to live a happier and healthier life. They guide the people on their healing journey. People going through depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other mental issues seek professional help through counselors. They help individuals to address their problems in a positive way. A counselor needs proper training and experience to practice successful online psychology counseling. They should possess both soft skills and hard skills.
Six Valuable Skills for Effective Online Psychology Counseling
Counselors need to strike a perfect balance between interpersonal and technical skills. Here are a few essential skills you should develop to be an excellent counselor.
Counselors Should Build Trust Between Themselves and the Patient
Trust is integral to a patient-therapist relationship. It is a counselor's job to build and maintain this trust. In a trustworthy relationship, the client will share his experiences and thoughts without the fear of judgment. Patients who do not trust the doctor will never talk freely. There is no way for the doctor to understand the innermost feelings of the patients.
For Effective Online Psychology Counseling, A Therapist Should be Unbiased
A therapist should not impose his own beliefs, ethics, or morals on their patients. Your job is not to guide them to a particular moral path but to help them recognize and understand their feelings.
Counselors Should Interpret Vital Information
Practitioners generally get incomplete information. No patient comes and gives the counselors the road map of their issues.
Patients generally talk about vague topics. It is up to the counselor to piece essential information together and analyze the patients. The counselor should be able to read in-between lines. It is equally important to analyze data that the person refrains from sharing.
A Counselor Should be Able to Read Body Language
Non-verbal communication is also an integral part of therapy. A therapist should be able to read the patient's physical cues. A person reveals a lot about their personality through their body language. The nervous foot tapping, fidgeting, etc., are some physical tics of an individual.
The Ability to Question the Patient Gently
For effective Online Psychological Counseling, a therapist has to ask questions outright. However, they have to do it gently so that the patients do not put up their guard. A therapist can ask two kinds of questions- open and closed questions.
An open question will get detailed answers. A closed question will elicit a 'yes' or 'no' response.
A Counselor Should be an Active Listener
A therapist should actively listen to the patient with interest. They should employ the correct gestures and facial expressions to convey attentiveness. It will make the patient feel heard and encourage them to speak more. On the other hand, if the doctor expresses boredom or frustration, the patient will not speak up.
You should visit personal online therapy if you want a safe space to talk and seek professional help. You can connect to professional counselors through the platform and get the help you need. Book your Online Psychological Counseling sessions now!
