How to Prepare for Your First Online Therapy Session

Starting virtual therapy can be both exciting and confusing. Whether you’re attending online therapy from your home, office, car, or whatever, you may not know what to do to get ready. At an in-person therapy session, you know the routine. But with online therapy, things may seem to work a little differently.

Steps to Prepare for Online Therapy

You will find for yourself what works and what doesn’t. Here are some general pointers that may be useful. You also might consider reading our post What Happens in Your First Online Therapy Session? for more information about virtual therapy.

Find a Comfortable, Private Space

First, you will want to find a comfortable and private space if possible. You want a space in which you feel safe and comfortable discussing private and personal matters. Many people choose a bedroom, a parked car if appropriate and safe, or a private office at work. We also strongly recommend using headphones.

On the same note, it is useful to tell roommates, family members, or people nearby that you will be on a call and unavailable. There are many benefits of online therapy, but one of the downsides is not being able to always control who comes into the room. Do your best to make sure you have privacy and feel comfortable by politely telling people to leave you alone.

Just a note, if you are doing online couples therapy, your therapist may prefer you are together or separate. Depending on the situation, some therapists may want you to be on separate devices or on the same one. This is a question worth asking your therapist if you are unsure.

Get Your Technology Ready

With online therapy, getting the technology right is key. We ideally don’t want to spend the session troubleshooting tech issues. Make sure your computer, tablet, or phone is fully charged. Check your internet connect, camera, microphone, headphones, video link, and lighting.

Especially for first sessions, we recommend hopping into the meeting room a few minutes early to make sure everything is working properly. Your therapist may not be in the room until meeting time, but you can have a few minutes to make sure everything is working seamlessly.

Minimize Distractions

We obviously cannot minimize every single distraction. Sometimes things happen outside of our control. But you can do a few things. Silence your notifications, close other windows, shut off the television, and make sure you have nothing planned that may interrupt. You may want to consider things like deliveries, children or family, and outside distractions.

Get Any Supplies

In order to not have to get up from the therapy session, make sure you have all of the supplies you want. This is personal. Maybe you want tissues, a journal or notebook, water or tea, a charger, and any intake paperwork.

Give Yourself a Few Minutes

This is something many people don’t think about. When you go to a clinic or private practice, you often have a few minutes of silence to sit by yourself in the waiting room. We recommend getting ready for online therapy early if your schedule permits. Give yourself a few minutes to settle into therapy mode.

On a similar note, give yourself a few minutes after the session too! We often need a few minutes to decompress. Jumping out of therapy right back into daily life, family responsibilities, or work can feel rather jarring. Try leaving just 3-5 minutes after your session to journal or let things settle.

Bring Any Relevant Topics

You don’t necessarily need to come to therapy with something specific to talk about. But you might take a moment before the session starts to consider what you want to talk about. What’s going on for you? Have there been any strong emotions or difficulties this week? What’s on your mind?

If you’re in online therapy for anxiety, maybe you can reflect on how the anxiety has been recently. If you’re in therapy for support with relationship issues, you might look at how your relationship has been over the last week or so. Again, you don’t need specific points or questions; just take a moment to reflect and see what surfaces.

Relax and Be Yourself

Finally, try to relax. We know it can be nerve-wracking for some to attend therapy for the first time. Your therapist has plenty of experience, and will work to make the space comfortable and safe. Your job is just to show up, be honest, and notice any feelings of anxiety or nervousness.