UK "lockdown" and therapy

Hello,

I was just wondering what you thought about therapy resuming in person in England. I realise this is up to each clinic and each T as there is no official guideline, but just as a wild guess, when do you reckon England based Ts will start seeing their clients in person?

I guess it doesn't help that the government's stance is pretty confusing with this whole "stay alert" bs. My T said something vague about waiting for the government to give the green light on returning to work as therapists are not considered key workers in the same way that medical doctors and food suppliers are. And Boris did urge people who can work from home to continue doing so for the time being.

Anyway, if I had to guess, I'd say maybe sometime in late June when lockdown (whatever that even means now) eases a bit more? After all, teachers get to spend time in the classroom with some students and I think non-essential retail shops are opening later this month. I would assume in-person therapy wouldn't necessarily be more dangerous than going into a non-essential shop, especially if safety measures, such as a 2m distance, are observed.

Although I really miss seeing T in real life, I don't feel too strongly about this. I have found teletherapy to be pretty ok despite the drawbacks, so this is purely speculative on my part. In an ideal world, I would like to go back to in-person sessions when it is truly safe, but until there is a vaccine, I guess we have to adapt.

Thanks in advance.

I think my Therapist will have to move from her clinic room. She is based in a building where she rents a room... I'm guessing. The room is tiny. 2 metre distances won't be there. I have a feeling I won't get back any time soon. We have to wait for our First Minister. We take our lead from Nicola Sturgeon. We are kinda behind England in that sense by a week. With schools not going back until August I can't see me seeing my Therapist any time soon

I think it’s personal choice. I know jobs where you can’t social distance (hair dressers, dentists) haven’t been allowed to operate. But I’ve seen my T in person every week, maintaining social distancing. He said it is essential work. But I’m sure there are lots of people still too afraid to go out and meet with other people for work or otherwise.

I think is up to every individuals.

So far I haven't heard anything from my T about resuming face to face sessions.

I travelled to HK several months back and when I got back my T saw me via FaceTime instead of face to face for two weeks.

So my guess she is quite cautious.

I haven’t seen my therapist in person since March. However, today I’m meeting her at a park near her office - lots of space and no worries about cleaning her office between each client.

From what I have seen on social media from various Ts and Therapy centres, none of them seem to have any plans to resume face to face any time soon. I was on a waiting list for one therapy centre and they have said they are not planning on resuming any face to face appts until at least September and even then it might get delayed. A couple of people I know in therapy have said their therapists have said that their supervisors have advised to delay face to face as long as possible as it is just not safe to resume. I think a lot of therapists over here seem to think that telephone and online therapy is an adequate alternative and therefore there is no urgency to get back to face to face sessions. I personally disagree.

Gosh, September is a long time. The clinic I'm at says "for the duration of lockdown" sessions will be strictly online. I really hope it changes soon. Although video sessions are better than nothing, I miss the non-verbal bond/communication we have when in person. It's simply not as rich over Zoom, so I really hope clinics will find ways to make it safe to resume in person asap.

It baffles me that it is deemed safe to open some non-essential shops and schools, but not yet safe to resume therapy.

I know I feel exactly the same. For me therapy is an essential service, it literally saves lives if people are suicidal. But I guess it’s down to the individual therapist.
My anxiety around phones and online means therapy via those means is not possible so I have been without any support during the whole of lockdown and have struggled immensely and have been very suicidal at times.
Fortunately my workplace have a counselling service and I had a couple of sessions with them before lockdown and last week they have now begun to allow a limited number of face to face sessions again as they can use the large meeting rooms in the building that would usually be used for large groups. But they are only allowing a maximum of 12 sessions which is far from ideal but I figure it’s better than nothing as I currently have no other option to get face to face support from elsewhere.

I see my T in person now. We made that decision between ourselves. Most Ts in this area are still offering online or phone only.

I'm so sorry, that sounds awfully hard. I'm glad you have managed to get some support from your work counselling service, it's certainly better than nothing. I think therapy is an essential service too and I hope more Ts recognise that it's not the same over phone/video as it is in person. People who don't have that as an option suffer the most.

I hope that soon they'll be able to work out a way to resume in-person sessions that is both safe and reasonable. I wish my T would be open to a walk in the park, but sadly I just don't think he's that sort of therapist. I think that a lot of us who post here are deeply attached to their Ts and this whole coronavirus thing has hit us hard where it hurts the most--our support system. I'm grateful that my T makes extra effort online, but it's just not the same.

This makes me feel happy and hopeful. Thank you for sharing.

I’m in the UK too, I really wish I could see my T in person. I think she’s going to wait until her professional organization gives her the green light. She told me that she needs to for her insurance. I suppose it’s considered that therapy can be done on online, not like the dentist or other health professions. I can’t see any change coming for a while.

I'm incredibly fortunate with my T - she puts the needs of each client foremost and we decided online therapy wasn't going to work for us for a substantial length of time. There was a period where we needed to do that of course, but as soon as she felt it was safe enough for me to return I did. I know this isn't the case with all of her clients. I hope other therapists may start to feel able to act on a case by case basis as lockdown measures are easing.

The four nations are leaving lockdown under different strategies so there is no categorical answer. I hope my therapist continues to work remotely for as long as possible in order to prioritise her health and that of her clients. Client emotional need is only one element to consider and unfortunately it is outweighed by governmental guidance and law, by public health responsibilities, and by individual physical safety. I value the fact that we are keeping each other safe by working remotely.

I feel lucky in that I have in person sessions with my T throughout. It was a mutual decision and based on additional protocols and trust regarding social distancing outside of the office we keep two meters apart at all times and he ant bac the room between clients but not all clients have chosen to have face to face so there are fewer people coming in and out.

Tbh I consider it a vital service and I don't know what I would have done without it. I also don't see how people can consider it adequate alternative especially in instances where bodily presence is vital. I dissociate a lot and so online therapy would be pointless for me

I’m not in the UK, but in my area of my country they are allowing face to face sessions for counselling specifically- however, they are still asking for guidelines to be met.

My therapist is in her 60s (I don’t know her exact age so that’s a best guess) so I know she isn’t planning on doing in person for a while longer at least. It’s really hard for me, but I know she’s in a higher risk group due to some health issues, so I totally respect that. Online sucks, but it’s better then her being out for a long time or dying from the virus for sure.