Online Marriage Counseling - There are pros and cons to online marriage counseling, and we give you the most important ones to consider.

Online marriage counseling may be the only viable alternative for couples whose lifestyles prohibit traditional counseling methods. If you are considering online marriage counseling, you should consider some of the pros and cons of the approach.

Pros of Online Marriage Counseling

1. Easy and immediate access. Couples utilizing online marriage counseling benefit from easy access to their counselor. One counselor we spoke to told us about a couple that seemed to have their worst fights during working hours, over the phone, when they were apart from each other. With online marriage counseling, each spouse had immediate access to the counselor. Without online marriage counseling, the hurts were given time to fester.

2. No time constraints. Need only ten minutes to discuss what s on your mind? Online marriage counseling gives you that. Need two hours? If your counselor is willing, online marriage counseling can give you those two hours. No one will be looking surreptitiously at his or her watch while you type away.

3. You don t have to look the counselor in the eye. Let s face it, the biggest appeal online marriage counseling has for some folks are that they can bare their soul and not ever look the online marriage counselor in the eye. You can speak frankly and openly without scrutinizing the response of the counselor. Like the partition between confessor and sinner during a Catholic confession, the virtual barrier makes it a little easier to tell all.

On the other hand, there are some cons to consider when you look at online marriage counseling.

Surprisingly, they look very much like the pros:

1. Easy and immediate access. Some people realize that this supposed benefit of online marriage counseling can actually be a bane. You get tempted to react, and participate in the online marriage counseling, in the heat of the moment. No more waiting a week from next Tuesday! Online marriage counseling allows us to blurt to the counselor before having time to cool off and calm down.

2. No time constraints. Ever wonder why those sessions are timed for an hour? Human beings, counselors and those seeking counseling alike, can give a subject direct attention for about one hour, after which attention begins to fade. Also, short, little bursts of information do not provide enough background for the counselor to work effectively.

3. You don t have to look the counselor in the eye. Words, whether spoken or written on a computer screen, are only part of the communication process. Tone, inflection, body language, all contribute. You can t benefit from the full expression of the counselor s communications if they occur only online.

Pros and cons aside, online marriage counseling is here to stay. Be sure to discuss all the pluses, and minuses, with your spouse, before committing to an online marriage counseling program.