TalkSpace review: Review 16

HIPAA doesn't have a certification program.
Data can be stored off-site or remotely with violating HIPAA. TalkSpace's data may also be (and most likely IS) encrypted so that no one can access it or that any and all access is monitored. Your medical records are LEGALLY moved around all the time electronically - to and from remote servers, in and out of various databases (philanthropy, marketing, billing, etc.), to and from different medical providers/health systems, etc., so if you're going to freak out about privacy, this isn't the place to start. Plus, therapists take notes during in-person session. Though this is not the same as recording a conversation, it's a recording, of sorts, of your conversation broken down into quick notes. That's not a HIPAA violation. It's only a HIPAA violation if someone ELSE accesses that information. It's certainly much easier to swipe a file off someone's desk than it is to erase your tracks after accessing a medical record that you had no business being in. I wouldn't worry. I think this is an overly paranoid review. BUT that's just my opinion - you make up your own mind.

I am also concerned about the true identity of the people behind the scenes who run this website. Something seems off about it to me as well, and I don't find this review paranoid at all. It is the lack of total transparency on the site that is a red flag to me to begin with. They need to address privacy first and foremost on their website. But when you click Privacy on the actual website you are taken to this page. http://support.talkspace.com/public/privacy-policy - It is a 404 FILE NOT FOUND page for those who are interested. (I actually laughed out loud when I clicked it. I mean seriously? Is this a joke?!) When you click on Frequently Asked Questions about privacy ...The response is a two sentence long message that tells you "Oh you're safe" ... That's essentially what it says in a nutshell. The only assurance you get is that they have to follow HIPAA guidelines. Well if you read the fine print with HIPAA there are multiple loopholes in how your data is handled. And I'm not sure what any of it really means as it pertains to the Internet. But I have a sneaking suspicion that there is something seriously sketchy happening with this site. I can imagine people's deepest secrets and vulnerabilities might be worth a pretty penny in some circles... How else would this be sooooooo affordable? They're charging you very little to be available to you 24/7? I was in therapy ... My therapist charged 60 bucks for one hour online. Therapy is not cheap. It is certainly not this cheap. The money they're charging isn't where the money really is. It is in your personal information. I for one am avoiding this site.

I have also been super disappointed by the lack of professionalism of this site. It honestly seems like it is copy and paste, they make it seem like you are in a "private space" but anyone could be reading what you write. I had even addressed to my "therapist" that she didn't even have a photo up near her "biography" so I felt like I was talking to a bot. She said she'd "look into it". (She never fixed this.) It felt like I wasn't talking to a person, for the money that they charge, I'm uncomfortable with it, the lack of transparency of who they are and unfortunately it's just not for me. Will be canceling.

This really is not worth it.

I gave it a shot. It took about 24 hours for me to be assigned a therapist when I was told it would likely be the night of. Your therapist usually only responds once a day. This was infuriating for me, because over the course of a week I mostly got questions. "It seems like you're saying this, is that correct?" Simply parroting back what I say is not useful by any means. After a week I cancelled.

I called twice to ask about a refund. Was immediately put on hold and then disconnected. Twice. I emailed about a refund as well, and got a form letter about how to cancel. After sending them yet another email finally they told me they don't do refunds, which I should have deduced from their vague FAQ page.

Simply put. I felt like just one of many clients with my therapist. I got sparse responses. The amount I said in a week I could have said in 15 minutes in person. Just text a close friend and save yourself the money.

In one week I got 7 replies from my therapist. In that same amount of time I sent 52 messages.

Karatechop250 -- were the 7 comments target or just flippant? just curious as I have been investigating the authenticity and value of this platform as well. It's a brave new world of support out there and likely more and more of these companies will arise to serve the "digital natives"

I happen to be a therapist (licensed) that is in the process of getting on to Talkspace to provide therapy via their HIPPA compliant platform. Let me tell you, from this prospective, that there are many checks and balances that we have to go through in order to become a therapist with Talkspace. I believe they are doing a thorough job with interviewing and testing their prospective therapists. Now, I do believe for every one good therapist, there are five not so good ones that may only respond once a day. Unfortunately, you may have had an unlucky match up. I have been practicing in this field for quite sometime now, and it is sad to see some people make it through as therapists when he/she really should not be practicing in the field! I believe technology has moved our society to a place where we all have to figure out how to move with the times because there is no going back now (this deeply saddens me). So, with Talkspace, I believe they are trying to move with the times and like every thing else, there will be kinks and such to work out. I am actually pleased with Talkspace as a therapist so far and believe people can greatly benefit but within the boundaries that texting allows. NOTHING will replace good ol' fashioned face-to-face therapy but we don't live on those times anymore due to technology. Let's embrace because you have no idea how this service may have played a hand in one less suicide in the world!

What about the issue with therapists responding to Talkspace clients living in states that the clinician is not licensed in? This and anonymous clients pose a number a legal land mines for licensed clinicians.

Is there any talk of these limitations and dangers to the practitioners signed on with Talkspace?

If I can I will reference an interesting blog-take on this very topic: "Should Buyers Beware? Hidden Risks In Talkspace's Text-Only Therapy" by Todd Essig: http://www.forbes.com/sites/toddessig/2015/06/29/should-buyers-beware-hidden-risks-in-talkspaces-text-only-therapy/2/

I think these complaints ignore the fact that some people find it much much easier to discuss their intimate problems over text, immediately, than face to face. I've had three face to face therapists and each time I've failed to return because I felt self conscious, embarrassed and not sure what is expected of me. Worst is having an awful weekend and then pulling yourself together for the session and feeling fine. Absolutely fine and not being able to discuss the things which raced through your head 48 hours earlier. Text services aren't ideal for everyone, but you just need to dive into the depths of the internet to see how many people are more willing to anonymously discuss the depths of their mind with a stranger than face a therapist. I'd rather that stranger was qualified and there to cure me, and teach me, not exacerbate my negative thoughts

As a psychologist myself I would warn against this "service" unless you're looking for a coach but it's certainly NOT therapy and for any clinicians considering this I would suggest you check with your board first and consider your lack of control regarding client records. Let me give you a little scenario... Imagine you're working with a client who after trying to reach you many times over a several day period ends up commits suicide. Well lets add to this that there was a problem with the Talkspace's messaging platform and you never got those messages but now an angry and grieving family needs someone to blame so you know, it's going to be you...

Fast forward, your in court and let me ask you this... How exactly would you defend yourself? You can't prove there was nothing in the last "session" that indicated your client was in such distress. It's a conflict of interest and you will be blocked from access to any records that may vindicate you and hold them accountable. In the end imagine you walk away from that drama reasonably intact, you'll still have to answer to the board.

One last thing to mention, most psychologists frown upon this type of service for good reason, and look poorly upon "therapists" who engage these types of practices as it's a clear indication of poor professional judgement which means the "therapists" that you're likely to encounter on this "service" are not likely to be well respected or of high caliber in their ethics or clinical skills so think twice about where you share your secrets!

I am also a licensed therapist, but I am currently on medical leave and leaving the house is incredibly hard for me. Ever appointment I've made to see a therapist had to be canceled due to health limitations, so I decided to try TalkSpace as a means of accessing therapy in the bed-ridden state I've been in. I worked with the assigned therapist for a month and only received one or two sentence replies like others have noted. Unfortunately, my experience went from disappointing to damaging, which is why I feel compelled to share it with other would-be clients. In a post to my therapist I shared that I was having racing thoughts and suicidal ideation, and that my depression was so severe that I was no longer eating and had lost 30 lbs in a month. Her response? I was congratulated on my weight loss. Apparently, this was an attempt to 'focus on the positive' in my life. This type of response is completely unacceptable. I contacted customer service and they assigned me a new therapist. It took several days since they 'take care to match you to the therapist that is right for you.' My newly assigned therapist is a marriage counselor. I am single. Needless to say I canceled the service.

I believe you are better off contacting your local health insurance company to find a license therapist or a local pastor at a church than using talkspace. Talkspace is a waste of time They don't solve your problems, instead they just keep asking for more money and never give you a solution to your problems. Visit a therapist in person instead of using talkspace. They do not hold your privacy information to themselves . They divulged mine and got me baker acted and had a hospital bill for $20000. They asked me for my address and personal information. Christine Paul should be removed from talkspace since she gives one sentence answers and talkspace should be closed down permanently.

I'm a licensed theapist completing my first month of training (probation) and was surfing through these reviews because I wanted to get a feel for whether clients thought the service was helpful or not. I had many questions myself because it was a new platform for me and I wanted to make sure I was still able to ethically treat people who couldn't access face to face therapy. Re: The state lines thing, the informed consent portion tries to be transparent in having the client agree know that they would be agreeing to be treated as if in the therapist's state. Not a lawyer here.

One sentence responses are totally unacceptable and I'm sorry you experienced insensitive ones too. So far my goal for my Talkspace clients is to treat them like my face to face clients and really diving personally deep, despite how different that would look online (recently they allowed us to be creative with leaving audio/video snippets if the client is ok with that, and soon to be rolled out, live video sessions). I try to respond at least 2-3 times per day, 5 days per week.

That said, I wouldn't feel comfortable treating someone who had a high risk or acute condition and think they are more appropriate to be referred to a higher level of care. I think the initial consult therapists who match people up try to "catch that." The initial responses may sound scripted because they're legally required in order to make sure clients know what to expect. But the therapists are real people also trying to figure this new medium out with you. :)

Regarding the picture thing, we're all required to submit a headshot— but it usually gets uploaded after we passed all of our background checks and probation. Also all therapists have to be fully licensed-- no interns or post grad residents can apply.

THis has all been very helpful. I am a therapist and considering doing therapy with Talkspace. However if they are dictating how one does therapy then I am not comfortable. One sentence responses and not really having an engaging session is not how Therapy is done. Even "coaching" is deeper than that. I have applied and am at the stage of sending back signed terms of areement and Non-Disclosing Undertaking. However, I do not yet have an understanding of how the whole program works, how the clients are matched how long sessions are and what the pay scale would be for client, prgram and therapist.
I have more questions than answers and cannot sign these documents without knowing more. That is why I went online to see if there was more information. I need to contact Talksapce to ask more questions before I sign anything.
I feel what i have read is helpful and people are being fair and honest, and no sour grapes, in their assessment and responses. Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules and lives to communicate about this kind of program.
It is keeping up with times in a sense. I do periodic SKYPE counseling with already established patients when I am away for a few weeks. It is only the client and me with no personal information shared with a third party and I keep my own notes. No taping of the session, etc. I am not comfortable with the company, "Talkspace, " sharing any of the conversations or responses with anyone! THis should be client and Therapist sessions only. If they want to have a Qualified, board certified therapist Case manager periodically attend a session to be sure therapist is being ethical and professional, that is different. But, who are these people using the dialog without names and why are they using them? Again, thank you all for your feedback.

I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has been forced to retire early due to my own physical health reasons. However, I am still very much qualified and able to provide therapy and have been looking into Talkspace and other sites. I am not sure if I want to try this due to the ethical questions I have and whether or not I will really be in control of my clients and their information and sessions. I am in favor of this type of therapy for clients who are not able to go into an office for traditional therapy but I feel the mental health issues being treated on line should be very limited and should not take the place of face to face interventions when needed. Sometimes the fact that someone is not "comfortable" in therapy should be part of the therapy itself. I am thinking of building my own website with safeguards and encryption so that I am the only one in control and with access to my clients personal information.

I tried talkspace as a therapy tool. I found the platform terrible. The therapist had was poorly skilled. She did not seek so completely understand the situation. I frequently heard a baby crying in the background during her pre-recorded audio responses. So I am going to guess she was taking care of a baby while working so there was no time to really help me. This is really why I felt she did not serve me well. She would mis-quote my responses and go and on about other things that was not what I was seeking.

Complete fail. Do not use. Or if you do, use with extreme caution or else it will bite you in the end.