Talkspace Review: The #1 Rated Online Therapy Service - ABC Action News Tampa Bay

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Talkspace is an online therapy platform that connects you to a network of licensed therapists based on theirknowledge and expertise. Therapists hail from all over the country and the range of mental health needs theycover includes anxiety, depression, trauma, substance abuse, LGBTQIA+ specific issues, and more.

Founded in 2012 by Roni and Oren Frank, who had a mission to make therapy more affordable, accessible andconvenient, Talkspace is one of the first mental health online platforms. 

The service has grown from a small startup that offered live group therapy sessions to a massive business withthousands of therapists available 24/7 for text, audio and video calls.

The services offered now include couples therapy, psychiatry evaluation and medication management, which placesit ahead of much of the competition. The variety and ease of access make Talkspace one of the market's bestchoices for online mental health services.

Review of Talkspace Pros:

• User-friendly interface
• Constant access
• Flexible plans
• Talk therapy may offer more comfort
• No commute
• Couples therapy, teen therapy and psychiatry services offered

Review of Talkspace Cons: 

• No group counseling
• Talk sessions are only 30 minutes
• No sliding scale
• Age restrictions

Things to Consider Before Signing Up for Talkspace

Before signing up, you must first consider if the service is right for you. Talkspace may work for you if:

• Your job is demanding
• Your schedule is busy
• Your anxiety or depression symptoms are mild to moderate
• You need medication management
• You belong to the LGBTQIA+ community
• You're a college student
• You need couples therapy

However, Talkspace is not for everyone, as some prefer face-to-face contact. Since Talkspace is a large companywith therapists numbering in the thousands, a high turnover rate is a risk you should consider. A therapist mayleave the service, which could mean you will need to look for a new one whether you want to or not.

Talkspace is also not meant to be a substitute for mental health emergencies, so contact your local emergencyservices or an in-person treatment facility if you are having a crisis.

Talkspace Review: Features & Benefits

There are many reasons Talkspace is so popular with users, from the easy sign-up process and therapist selectionto the number of services available.

Talkspace Online Therapy Easy Sign-Up

The sign-up process is simple. You just go to the Talkspace website or the app to register, click on the buttons to choosethe type of service you want, and hit "Get Started." During the sign-up process, you'llcomplete a questionnaire that will concentrate on your life, goals, and preferences for therapy.

You can speak with a licensed mental health professional in a private chat room who will help match you with atherapist on their service. This consultation will include scripted questions and responses to help make theprocess smoother.

The mental health professional will explain how Talkspace works and answer any questions you have about thedifferent pricing plans. There is no time limit to this consultation, so you can feel free to ask as manyquestions as you like.

The app will match you with a therapist who best fits your goals and personality. Once you havesigned up, you should hear from your therapist within 48 hours unless they are on vacation or otherwisescheduled for days off.

The downside of the therapist selection process is that you can only see three options at a time, so if you wantto see more therapists, you need to keep scrolling. There is also no guarantee that you will be assigned thetherapist you prefer.

The algorithm considers several factors, so finding a therapist that aligns with your preferences shouldn't taketoo long. Talkspace has a wide array of mental health professionals from diverse backgrounds and locations, andfinding the right one is one of the most manageable parts of the process.

Talkspace Online Therapy Room

The Talkspace platform is easy to use with an intuitive interface both in the online platformand mobile app. It offers several different communication methods to connect with your therapist, including:

• Audio messaging
• Video conferencing
• Phone call
• 24/7 online messaging

You may go into a virtual room where you can connect with your therapist. In the room, you can text or leave anaudio message up to five minutes in length. You are guaranteed to receive a response from your therapist atleast once daily, five days a week.

There is a response time section in which you can select the "reply-by" button. This feature willupdate you with an estimate of when you can expect the therapist to respond, which will benefit you since iteliminates the need to check emails and notifications constantly.

Therapists post their work schedules on their profiles, so you can easily see what days you can expect to receivea response from the one assigned to you.

It is easy to schedule live sessions with your therapist via the app or online portal page if you have that aspart of your subscription plan. If it's not part of your subscription, you can schedule live sessions fora small fee.

You can communicate with your therapist 24/7, but you shouldn't expect to hear back immediately. Forinstance, if you send a text in the middle of the night, you may not hear back until the next day. The maintakeaway is that you can communicate 24/7 but shouldn't expect to receive therapy 24/7.

Talkspace Therapists

All the therapists on Talkspace are licensed professionals and must have over 3,000 hours ofclinical experience in their field.

Talkspace therapists must possess one or more of the following credentials: licensed professional clinicalcounselor (LPCC), licensed clinical social worker (LCSW), licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT), or havea Ph.D. in clinical psychology. 

The therapists have profiles you can view and decide which is the best match for you. Their profiles show theirphoto, a short introduction, the time zone they reside in, availability, treatment experience and licensenumber.

You can see how long they've been practicing, their specialty, and how long they've been withTalkspace. Some types of therapy available include:

• Interpersonal psychotherapy
• Dialectical behavioral
• Client-centered 
• Existential
• Mindfulness
• Humanistic
• Trauma-focused
• Family
• Psychodynamic

You'll find that many of the therapists specialize in mental health issues and can address topics such as:

• Anxiety
• Depression
• Family/relationship problems
• Dysfunctional eating
• ADHD
• Trauma
• Bipolar
• Addiction
• LGBTQIA+ issues

You may find that some therapists reply with short responses that only scratch the surface or that it seems hardfor them to relate to you on a productive level. The upside is that the process of switching therapistsis easy. If you feel you have not been matched correctly with a particular therapist, you canalways request a new one.

Talkspace Psychiatry Services

Talkspace's psychiatry services are separate from its therapy services and mainly focus on medicationmanagement. You will have to pay extra for these services, and it might take a bit longer to get in touch with apsychiatrist than with a therapist. It sometimes takes three to five days.

A psychiatrist will be able to offer you medication if they determine that it is necessary. However, while theycan prescribe antidepressants, controlled substances such as Xanax, Adderall and certain types of sleeping pillscannot legally be prescribed virtually.

Psychiatric services are not offered as part of the typical subscription plans,so you must pay $199 for aninitial psychiatric evaluation and $125 for each additional visit.

Talkspace Online Couples Therapy

Therapy is available for couples and the pricing plans and structure work the same way as the individual therapy,running about $260 per month per couple.

Couples therapy includes text, audio and video messaging with your therapist in a group room with your partnerand four 30-minute live sessions per month. This service costs $396 per month for both people or $1,068 perquarter.

Talkspace Online Teen Therapy

Teens aged 13–17 can work with licensed counselors who have experience working with young people their age.Teenagers will need to provide video proof of parental approval before being accepted into the program.

Talkspace Online Sleep Therapy

Talkspace offers an eight-week behavioral health program to treat insomnia. The program includes messaging with alicensed therapist trained in cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia who will work with you to address sleephabits and develop a plan to improve sleep hygiene and set goals and exercises for controlling intrusivethoughts.

This program is message-based and does not offer live sessions. This service costs $520 for the eight-weekprogram.

Talkspace Online Therapy Progress Reports and Supplemental Videos

In addition to the texting feature, you can have live face-to-face calls with your therapist ifthat is your preference. Please remember that these live calls cost an additional fee if your plan does notcover them.

You can also view your therapy journey through milestones, checkboxes, and progress reports to see howyou're doing. These progress reports are essential as they allow you to maintain sight of your goals andidentify whether therapy is working for you.

Talkspace also offers several how-to videos that show you how to use the service most effectively and videos andexercises that help you deal with stress and improve coping mechanisms. You can use these videos to supplementthe regular therapy you're already working through and help you achieve your goals more quickly.

Affordable Cost of Talkspace

Talkspace offers several subscription plans, varying from $260 to $400 per month, depending on your chosen plan.The three main plans are:

• Unlimited Messaging Therapy Plus Plan: This plan is affordable at $260 a month featurestext, audio, and video messaging but no live therapy sessions.
• Unlimited Messaging Therapy Premium Plan: This plan starts at $316 a month and includes allthat is in the Plus Plan but with an added live 30-minute session each month.
• Unlimited Messaging Therapy Ultimate Plan: This plan is $396 a month and includes what isin the Plus Plan. However, you also get four live 30-minute therapy sessions every month.

You must use the plan benefits up each month, or you'll lose them. You can also change your subscription atany time during the month. The changes to your plan will be effective immediately and applied to your accountduring the next billing cycle.

Typically found on theTalkspace homepage, discounts ranging from $80 to $200 off your first month may beavailable. You can also use browser add-ons like Honey to see if there is a discount.

Talkspace is an online therapy that takes Insurance, including working with employers,employee assistance programs, and education organizations to deliver its services. If you wish to use yourflexible spending account (FSA) or health savings account (HSA), you can do that, but you should check with yourprovider to be on the safe side.

Talkspace talk therapy subscriptions cost roughly the same as other online mental health service tools on themarket and are more affordable than working with a private practice.

Talkspace Online Therapy Customer Support

Customer support on Talkspace is available 24/7 via email or Twitter. You can also visit the Help Center, whichcontains several articles and topics you can browse through to find the answers to your questions.

The articles in the Help Center contain answers to frequently asked questions, such as:

• What is Talkspace about?
• What do your providers specialize in?
• How much does Talkspace cost?
• Is Talkspace covered by insurance?
• Are Talkspace providers licensed?
• What do MS, RMHCI, LICSW, LMHC, and LPC letters by the name of providers mean?

The process of switching your plan or canceling your service is straightforward. You are under no obligation toremain with Talkspace and can cancel your service if you feel unsatisfied. You are also able to switchtherapists if you like for any reason.

Talkspace Site Security

Talkspace takes user security and data privacy very seriously. The company uses digital certifications andfirewall barriers to protect personal information and secure online sessions. They use their own platform tostore, encrypt, and anonymize personal information and data to ensure it is safe against hackers.

Talkspace also follows all HIPAA compliance laws and requires employees to be trained in information protectionprotocols, so you can rest assured with the knowledge your private information will be secure.

Talkspace User Reviews

Some people value the convenience that services like Talkspace offer, with text-based messaging services thatallow you to access a therapist at any time of the day who will give you feedback at their earliest convenience.

Many users report being pleased with Talkspace's services. Not all reviews are positive, however. Talkspacehas received a B rating from the Better Business Bureau and 1.3 stars out of 5 on Trustpilot.

Many of the complaints lodged against Talkspace have to do with billing and customer service, with some saying itsometimes takes a week to several weeks to receive a response to a question or complaint. 

One user said they liked the therapy, but not the company, going so far as to call dealing with customer servicea "nightmare" since it took so long to get a response. 

Talkspace Online Therapy Alternatives

There are a number of online therapy platforms that are similar to Talkspace. Check out some of the differencesto help you choose the best online therapy service.

BetterHelp

One of the main differences between Talkspace and BetterHelp is that BetterHelp only offers talk therapy forindividuals and does not offer couples therapy or teen counseling. BetterHelp also does not provide psychiatricservices or medication management.

At around $65 a week, both services offer similar pricing plans. However, Talkspace seems to be accepted by moreinsurance companies, so it has better payment assistance. If you consider the live video service option,however, Talkspace is more expensive.

BetterHelp only has one subscription plan, which varies in price from $240 to over $600 a month depending onwhere you live and which therapist you match with. The main benefit is that the service offers unlimitedmessaging with your therapist, and live sessions can last from 30 to 45 minutes (as opposed to Talkspace's30-minute limit).

Cerebral

Cerebral offers mental health services similar to Talkspace, including counseling and medication management,although Talkspace offers a broader array of services for couples, teens and individuals.

Cerebral has a monthly flat fee of $85 a month or $29 plus a co-pay with in-network insurance. Unlike Talkspace,Cerebral's services are not available in every state, and not all their therapists are licensedprofessionals, so you may need to do some additional research if you go with them.

Amwell

Amwell operates like Talkspace and the other alternative services in that it connects patients and mental healthprofessionals through virtual video calls.

Amwell offers a broader range of services when compared with Talkspace, however, including urgent care needs suchas sinus infections, treatment for UTIs, pink eye, and more.

With Amwell, you can also choose doctors based on their experience and board-certifications before booking yourappointment.

>>Check the best price for Amwell

Talkspace Review: Final Thoughts

Talkspace has gained its reputation because of its variety of mental health services, relatively low cost andease of use, and the number and type of mental health professionals that Talkspace employs.

You can gain much from Talkspace if you find that it offers what you are looking for. Some benefits may include abetter overall mood, a stronger sense of self and a healthier outlook on life. It may also improve your worklife and personal relationships.

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