It’s fun to be in college, isn’t it? But part of being a college student is typing “how to find a therapist online” in the Google search bar because it’s just stressful to be in college. According to Massachusetts General Hospital, 73% of college students are dealing with mental health issues.
You’re probably here because you’re one of them.
Here’s the good news: It’s possible to find a therapist for college students online, and there are lots of them so you’ll be able to find one that’s right for you. Some online mental health therapists are covered by insurance, too. That’s perfect for your budget.
Let’s talk about how to find a therapist online for college students.
How to Find a Therapist Online for College Students
Gone are the days when you need to go to the clinic in person to be able to talk to a therapist. There are virtual therapists online and a lot of them specifically serve college students. Here are some of the good online therapists that you can seek help.
1. Online-Therapy
Online-Therapy was founded in 2009 and their focus is to make their patients happy.
Their primary method for counseling is cognitive behavioral therapy, which is effective in treating depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, and even severe mental illnesses that affect the overall quality of a person’s life.
This method involves changing the behavioral patterns of the person, so the effect of the therapy is truly life-changing.
The therapist that they will provide to you is the best therapist for your case. You will be asked about the difficulties you are facing involving your mental health as well as your preferences, such as whether you want a male or female therapist and if you prefer to communicate with them via voice, video, or text.
You have to subscribe to their online therapy program if you want to use them for your mental health issues, which starts at $32 per week. This isn’t covered by insurance, but you’ll pay 20% less for the first month.
2. iCounseling
The good thing about iCounseling is that there’s always a therapist available for you to talk to. And if you think that the therapist isn’t a good match for either your case or your personality, simply say so and they will find another therapist.
There’s no limitation when it comes to the number of times you can use the platform to find a good online therapist for your case. Simply pay $60 to $80 per week and you will have unlimited access to 4,000 licensed online therapists that passed their standards.
You can talk to them via text messages, chat, phone, or video. iCounseling isn’t covered by insurance.
3. Pride Counseling
Did you know that the LGBTQIA+ community is more prone to having severe mental health issues? It’s because many people judge them and look at them as if they are bad people—simply because of their gender. If you belong to the LGBTQIA+ group, here’s good news: There are online therapists you can talk to!
Pride Counseling takes pride in how they provide counseling to the LGBTQIA+ community. Their service is affordable but they will give you an online therapist who is a perfect match for you within 24 to 48 hours, and you don’t even have to tell them your real name if you don’t want to.
You can talk to them about anything, whether it be your anxiety, depression, or some personal issues you deal with because of your gender. It costs $90 to $120 per week.
4. Talkspace
So you want to talk to a therapist via an app. You may want to try Talkspace, which has thousands of licensed therapists ready to serve you. It offers counseling services to individuals, couples, teens, veterans, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community.
One great thing about Talkspace is that you can talk to a therapist near you. You can talk to them via text message anytime. But if you want a live video session with them, you need to schedule an appointment beforehand.
The therapist that they will provide is based on your answers on the assessment test that you need to take at the beginning. They treat mental health issues using cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy, mindfulness, and psychodynamic therapy. It costs $65 to $100 per week.
The Talkspace app is available on Android and Apple devices.
5. Teen Counseling
Teen Counseling has 14,000+ therapists ready to help teens treat their mental health issues. This is a bit different in the sense that parents can use the platform for their children in case they don’t want to talk about their mental health alone, which is common among teens.
The process is similar to most online counseling platforms. You will need to answer a few questions at the beginning so they can give you the online therapist who is perfect for the mental health issue you’re dealing with. After that, you can talk to the therapist via chat, text message, phone calls, or video conferencing.
If you want to do that with your parent, the therapist won’t talk to both of you at the same time. You will have separate therapy sessions. Each session costs $60 to $80.
6. BetterHelp
Among the treatment methods used at BetterHelp are psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, mental health therapy, trauma therapy, anger management therapy, teletherapy, porn addiction therapy, and grief therapy.
As a college student, you’re at a point in your life where you’re discovering so many things, and that overwhelm you. BetterHelp offers counseling for issues involving relationships, self-esteem, eating disorders, stress, and other mental health issues.
You can talk to the therapist via message, live chat, voice call, or video. Their service costs $60 to $90 per week.
BetterHelp is the parent site of iCounseling.
7. 7 Cups
What makes 7 Cups different from other online therapy platforms is that it provides free counseling to people with mental health issues who can’t afford weekly or monthly therapy sessions with a licensed therapist.
There are also free resources on their website that you can read.
Their paid counseling service is for those over 18 years old, and it costs $150 per month. If you are 13 to 17 years old, you can talk to a volunteer therapist via chat. You can do that anonymously.
7 Cups has a mobile app available on Apple and Android devices.
