Brilliant Relatable Webinars

My favourite feature of this platform was the vast webinars that the site had on offer. From advice on perfectionism to information on managing ADHD symptoms, there were informative webinars suited to people with all kinds of difficulties or interests. I liked the interactive aspect of the webinars where other members could ask questions live to the specialist delivering the sessions.

Moreover, I particularly liked the feature where you could catch up on the webinars by watching a recording of it at a later time.

Flexibility

Betterhelp therapists also are a lot more flexible when it comes to the timings of therapy sessions. I found it particularly easy to find sessions that suited my timetable but also make last-minute changes to sessions when needed.

Flexibility was also there when it came to finding alternative therapists. As mentioned in my previous post, the ability to change therapists is essential when making the most of your therapy sessions. This is something that is easy to do with BetterHelp.

Limited Specialist Therapists

One of the main and probably the most concerning issues I found with Betterhelp was the lack of specialist therapies offered by BetterHelp. I came across two different therapists who both offered Person-Centred therapy which was too surface-level for what I was looking for.

I found myself often frustrated with the lack of specialist support that I expected from such a vast platform that it advertises itself to be.

Therapists – Toss a Coin

Finding the right therapist can be quite difficult on the app. The luxury of choice offered by the platform contributes to its downfall. There is more of an emphasis on quantity rather than quality which I found to really impact their quality control processes. I believe that the site needs to be more strict with their site and have a more rigorous selection process on which therapists they allow on the platform.

I had two therapists throughout my year using Betterhelp:

The first therapist was based in the USA so the timings were a little funny. For example, my usual therapy slot was during evenings sometimes as late as 9 pm due to the time difference. My therapist started off offering 45-minute sessions but started reducing them to 30-minute sessions. I found it a little frustrating as sessions are advertised to be at least 45 minutes long. I also found it frustrating to only have therapy sessions over the phone with my therapist as having face-to-face interaction is something I opted for and expressed to my therapist.

After a month, I decided to switch my therapist which was easy to do. I was matched with a new therapist within 24 hours and had my first session another two days later. Because my therapist was from the UK, I felt more comfortable with not having to explain a lot of things from scratch as my therapist had an understanding of being British. My therapist was experienced in supporting people with stress management, anxiety and depression which was what I was looking for at the time. BetterHelp therapists have a bank of resources that they can share with clients such as diaries, questionnaires and tasks in order to gain a better understanding of their clients.

Better Finance Options

Another thing I would like Betterhelp to improve on is their options for payments. Since they only offer monthly memberships, oftentimes I found myself having three sessions of therapy a month rather than four. It made it unfair to have to pay for a whole month worth of sessions. Moreover, as time went on and my symptoms felt a lot better, I found myself not wanting weekly sessions. But since I was paying monthly, I felt the need to schedule a session to get my money’s worth. Having flexible pay-as-you-go options should be open to those that have used the platform for a long period of time.