As work environments evolve from box-shaped buildings where minimum amenities exist, many companies are now opting to include conveniences to their employees: gourmet chefs highlighting international cuisines; in-house massage; pharmacies onsite; espresso bars; etc. While the ease of having such features can be alluring for a new employee, it can also lead to an imbalance of work and life—why leave your workplace when everything you need (and don’t need) is right there? In Silicon Valley specifically, workers may find themselves too busy to even take a lunch break, balancing production & output with logged development time. The constant struggle to produce & create leaves even less time for something that has now been deemed a luxury: self-care.

Ongoing stress in the workplace takes its toll, and at a point then it becomes critical to find an outlet for those stressors—to give voice to the frustrations, the micro-aggressions, the imbalance of work and life. When the underlying expectation is fast and furious, taking breaks and finding a good therapist or psychiatrist to listen to the goings-on becomes even more critical for personal well-being.

But who has the time? Especially when your therapist’s office is located miles away across town? Or in the next adjacent city? And on top of that, you know it will easily take an hour for the commute alone?

 Does this sound familiar?

 Lucky for you, there are now alternatives to the standard office-visit when connecting with your mental health provider. As with all other disciplines in the medical field, psychotherapy and psychiatry are making advancements. The disciplines are evolving. With the advent of telemedicine, you can have a regular session with your doctor in the comfort of your own office, a conference room, or even your home. The best part is… you are not only talking to your doctor, you are seeing them—face to face—via a secure video-conferencing site. Telemedicine or video-medicine emerged in the aerospace program to perform routine check-ups for astronauts while in orbit. Research has proven that telemedicine is a viable (and reasonable) option for those in need of regular therapy sessions, not only because it is just as effective as an office visit, but it also has myriad other benefits: it saves you money on parking, gas, public transportation; it saves you time on the commute and taking additional hours away from work or family; you can have your session while at home and the kids are napping; sessions can be conducted while you’re traveling; no waiting room hassle.

 There are many reasons to give telemedicine a try, but the one that we hope resonates most with you is that your well-being and mental health are worth it. Too often, we are told that seeking treatment for stress, drinking too much, depression, anxiety, or mood swings, to name a few, is weak and that we should be able to handle it on our own. However, psychotherapy and psychiatry are empirically supported interventions that are proven to assist in the reframing of the daily struggles that all of us face on a regular basis. And now with the immersion of technology into a human field, you can bridge the gap of distance and time with a more convenient approach to treatment. Whether you’re grieving the loss of a loved one, having a series of really bad days, questioning your family’s history of mental illness, experiencing bouts of insomnia, calculating the next steps in your life or career, suffering from chronic pain, or just need an objective listener who can ask appropriate questions, psychotherapy and psychiatry can guide you as you unlock your life’s latest mystery.

Author: Nathan Tylutki, MA