Why Group Therapy (Especially Online) Can Be One of the Most Powerful Ways to Heal

When you’re struggling with depression or anxiety, isolation often becomes part of the problem. You start to withdraw—not because you don’t care, but because everything feels too heavy. Even getting out of bed or leaving the house can feel impossible.

That’s why group therapy, especially in an online format, can be a lifeline.

1. You Realize You’re Not Alone

Depression and anxiety have a way of convincing you that you’re the only one who feels this way. Group therapy breaks that illusion. When you hear someone else put into words what you’ve silently carried for years, something shifts. You feel seen. Understood. Less alone.
That shared understanding reduces shame—a key barrier to healing—and begins to rebuild hope.

2. You Learn from Others’ Journeys

In a group, you don’t just learn from the therapist—you learn from each other. Someone might share how they used a coping skill that worked, or describe a setback that sounds just like yours. That shared wisdom can be incredibly motivating.
Each week becomes a reminder that recovery isn’t linear, but it is possible.

3. It Teaches Real-World Emotional Skills

Many people come to group therapy to learn skills—ways to manage emotions, communicate better, or tolerate distress without falling apart. In a group, you get to practice those skills in real time, with others who understand.
It becomes a safe, supportive laboratory for growth. You learn how to be honest about what you feel, to validate others, and to ask for what you need—skills that ripple outward into every part of your life.

4. The Online Format Removes Barriers

For many people, online therapy is what makes participation possible in the first place.
When you’re housebound due to depression, anxiety, chronic pain, or mobility issues, travelling to a therapy room can be a major obstacle. Online sessions remove that barrier—you can log in from your bedroom, your couch, or even your garden.

It’s private, flexible, and accessible—without losing the sense of connection. In fact, for some, the online setting can make it easier to open up, because they feel safer in their own environment.

5. Structure and Accountability Help You Keep Going

Depression and anxiety can blur the boundaries of time—days roll into each other, and motivation fades. A weekly group provides structure and gentle accountability.
Knowing that others are showing up for themselves helps you show up too. Over time, that consistency becomes part of your healing routine.

6. You Give and Receive Support

There’s something deeply healing about being able to offer support to others, even while you’re still struggling yourself. In group therapy, both giving and receiving are therapeutic acts.
You start to see your own growth reflected back in the faces of others. You realize you’re part of a community—one that grows stronger together.

Final Thought

You don’t have to face your depression or anxiety alone.
Whether you’re joining from a city apartment, a rural farmhouse, or your bed on a hard day, online group therapy offers a space to connect, learn, and heal alongside others who understand.

Healing doesn’t happen in isolation—it happens in connection.

By Dr Michelle Beukes-King