What strategies can you use to get a little more privacy when doing virtual appointments? Bwog’s staff has some ideas.

Maybe you finally connected with CPS, have a therapist, or scheduled an appointment with your primary care doctor. Since the start of the pandemic, many healthcare providers have been meeting with patients online. There are pros and cons to this, but one thing is for sure: not everyone wants their roommates to overhear their entire appointment. 

The good news is, there are ways to make it better and to keep your appointments private.

Healthy communication with the people you live with is always a good thing. You can let your roommates/suitemates know what you’ll be doing (you don’t need to get into the specifics unless you want to), and hopefully they’ll respect your privacy. You can ask them for a space to yourself for an hour, or try to coordinate a time for your appointment when your roommates will be out and about. 

If you end up having your appointment at a time or place where you feel like someone might be able to hear you, there are measures you can take so people can hear you a lot less. You can turn up your fan or heater or air conditioner (if you’re one of the lucky few who has one) for some organic white noise or find a YouTube white noise track and blast from your phone. You can also play music in your room. If you choose one of these options, you can place the source of your noise by your door for extra privacy. You can also open the window to add some street noise to the mix. Another way to prevent roommates from overhearing you is placing a towel under your door if there’s a gap.

While a dorm room might be your first instinct for where to do your appointment from, you have other options. You can go outside where few people will hear you or care about what you’re saying. Riverside Park is pretty, and Central Park is huge. There are also certain on campus spaces that you can reserve like music practice rooms or conference rooms. 

Wherever you do your appointment from, headphones can add an extra layer of privacy. If you’re using bluetooth headphones, make sure they’re fully charged. And, for that matter, make sure the device you’re using for the appointment is well charged too. 

Hopefully, with these strategies or others of your own, you’ll feel comfortable during your appointment.

Online Connection via Bwog Archives