I’m Linda Kondilis, PhD

A lot of people wonder whether in person and teletherapy match up with one another and luckily we have research that shows that it does. The key to any therapy, whether it's in person or via video, all has to do with the therapeutic relationship. If we're able to connect then we're going to be able to do the work that we need to do. Say over the past several years I have found that more and more people are gravitating towards teletherapy.

I'm based right now in Atlanta, Georgia and I think one of the reasons is because commuting in this city can be really challenging at times and people want to be able to have more free time in their lives as everyone's lives are just getting busier and busier. I like the idea of teletherapy that we can fit it easily in someone's schedule and create even more free time for the self-care that we're going to work on. I think one of the benefits to teletherapy is honestly just removing one more barrier to get to therapy and take care of yourself. There are just so many barriers that and I find a lot of people I work with will prioritize everything around them except for themselves and so if I can create an experience that makes it just that much easier for them to get the kind of care and support that they need I'm all for it.

My name is Linda Kondolis. I'm a reproductive health psychologist. So when I was in college I realized that I want to be a therapist. When I was studying psychology I also decided to study women's studies. After college I decided to take a little time off before going back to grad school and when I went to work I worked in a college university doing research. The research was primarily focused on women's health and that's when I really decided that it wasn't just women's health but I really want to work with reproductive health with alongside of psychology.

Reproductive health psychology is actually a subspecialty of health psychology. Health psychology is going to be when you're helping someone who has a health condition and alongside of it is having a psychological impact. So a reproductive health psychology is when you're helping someone through the psychological impact of something related to human reproduction.

So the first step is to call and set up a time to speak with me either on the phone or we could set up a 15-minute video chat. During that time I'd really like to hear about what you're struggling with what goals you have in mind. I'd really also like you to hear my thoughts about which direction we should go in just so you can get an understanding of what my style is like and of course I'll let you know if what you're presenting to me fits within my expertise. I do a variety of therapy. I don't really like to choose just one style or practice because I really like to meet the person and see what's going to be the best fit for them. So typical therapy styles that I'll use are cognitive behavioral therapy, dialectical behavioral therapy and my foundation and education is also really rooted in psychodynamic therapy.

The benefits of therapy are endless. You know you're trying to make lifelong changes and I think that they can have such an impact in your life in your relationships your ability to progress whether that is emotionally or even in your career. I just think it's therapy is endless and I think that we all find times where we get stuck and it's so beneficial to have someone help you through that so you can learn the skills that you need to get through some of the tough times and challenges that come up in your life.

I get that question a lot it really depends because sometimes short-term therapy is a great fit and other people need long-term therapy. Usually with the 50 minute consultation I can give you a pretty good sense of what that's going to look like so feel free to ask that question. I think it really depends on what your goals are and how intense of say symptoms you have. If your goal is to completely eliminate something that you've been struggling with for years it might take us a little bit longer. If you just happen to be going through something that's really difficult and it's really situational then sometimes I can find that we could just do some short-term solution by just working on your coping skills.

That's pretty easy if you want to switch to in-person therapy it is my job to find you someone who you can see in person and that's not a problem at all. Sometimes teletherapy isn't the right match for everyone depending on what they're going through and you just let me know and I'll take care of it and I'll find someone who you can see in person.