Introducing online dreamwork during the COVID-19 pandemic: Method, training, and impact

Abstract

In early 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the Counseling and Training Clinics of the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) to shut down. Consequently, our graduate counseling program students needed help accruing the direct counseling hours required by their degree programs. Without an established telehealth option, the UTRGV Counseling Department supported the creation of DreamStar Free Online Counseling (DFOC), an online counseling program facilitated through Zoom video. In response to our students' urgent need for clients, we added individual and group dreamwork to DFOC's array of services, increasing the referral level. This paper describes the creation of DFOC, the introduction of "co-creative" dreamwork to DFOC's services, the training and group leadership model that we adopted, and a pilot study we conducted to assess the level of risk and benefits in introducing online dreamwork conducted by recently trained student counselors.