Can a major problem like mental health be treated through a screen? 

Getting help for mental health support is now more accessible than ever with the increasing number of online or virtual counseling services. The concept is a straightforward one: The patient usually pays for a session upfront before scheduling an appointment at their most convenient time.

While the current state of online counseling does provide practical benefits, some maintain that mental health problems are meant to be solved in the traditional way, which means face-to-face with in-person sessions. 

Comfort zone

Heralda "Sasa" Savira, a master's degree student in psychology at Airlangga University, said online counseling certainly had its own benefits and drawbacks both for the therapist and the client, just like most internet-based services today. 

"Being an online psychologist has its pros and cons [...] For example, one of the pros to online counseling is that clients feel more comfortable because they are home," said the psychology student.

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