Should you trust a therapist who recommends AI?

Short answer: yes — but I understand why you're asking. There's nuance here. There's a right way to do this and a wrong way.

I'll elaborate...

In her third session, my client looked at me and said:

"You're my therapist, not ChatGPT."

I'd suggested she use an AI tool between sessions to explore the patterns we'd identified. She wasn't having it.

She wasn't being difficult. She wasn't anti-technology. She was expressing something real—a need that deserved to be understood, not dismissed.

If your therapist has suggested something similar and you're wondering whether that's okay, this is what I want you to know.

First: What The Recommendation Tells You (And Doesn't Tell You)

A therapist recommending AI doesn't automatically make them good or bad. It's neutral. What matters is how they're doing it.

The same principles that make therapy homework effective—relevance, clarity, collaboration, review—apply whether the tool is paper or AI. A therapist who recommends AI thoughtfully is showing good practice. A therapist who tosses out "try an app" with no explanation is showing poor practice.

The tool reveals the practice. It doesn't determine it.

So the real question isn't "is AI okay in therapy?" It's "is my therapist doing this well?"

Here's how to tell.

Signs Your Therapist Is Doing This Well

They did proper assessment first

They didn't recommend AI in session one. They spent time understanding your patterns, developing a shared understanding of what's going on, identifying what needs to change. The AI recommendation came after they understood you—not instead of understanding you.

The tool connects to your specific situation

It's not generic. Your therapist explained: "Based on what we've identified about your pattern of [X], I want you to use this tool to [specific purpose]." The tool serves your treatment, not the other way around.

They gave you specific guidance

Not "try using ChatGPT." But: "Here's how I want you to use this. Input our framework like this. Focus on this type of situation. Bring back what you notice."

Good homework always includes clear instructions. AI homework is no different.

They explained why

Why this tool? Why now? How does it fit? You understand the purpose, not just the task.

They plan to review what happens

"Next session, we'll look at what came up when you used this." The AI work feeds back into the therapy. It's not fire-and-forget.

They're still doing the actual therapy

Assessment, formulation, in-session work, clinical judgement—all still happening. AI is handling the between-session practice, not replacing the treatment.

Red Flags: Signs This Might Be Poor Practice

AI recommended very early, before they know you

If a therapist suggests AI in session one or two, before they've understood your patterns, that's concerning. It suggests they're reaching for a tool before they know what problem they're solving.

No connection to your specific situation

"Just try this app" with no explanation of how it relates to your patterns or goals. Generic recommendation = generic therapy.

No guidance on how to use it

Vague instructions like "explore your feelings with it" rather than specific frameworks. This suggests the therapist hasn't thought through how AI fits your treatment.

No plan to review

If they don't ask what happened with the AI tool next session, they're not integrating it into treatment. It's been assigned and forgotten—which is bad homework practice regardless of the tool.

It feels like they're offloading work

If you sense the AI is replacing the therapist's engagement rather than extending it—if sessions feel shorter, less attentive, more rushed since AI was introduced—that's worth paying attention to.

They can't explain why

"It's just useful" isn't a rationale. A competent therapist can explain: "This tool will help you [specific thing] because your pattern is [specific pattern] and you need practice with [specific skill]."

What Good Homework Practice Looks Like (AI or Otherwise)

In CBT, homework isn't optional. Research consistently shows it's one of the strongest predictors of good outcomes. But the quality matters—not just whether homework exists.

Good homework practice means the task is:

• Meaningful — connected to something you genuinely want to change
• Relevant — targets the patterns identified in your therapy
• Agreed collaboratively — you understand and agree to try it, not just told to do it
• Practiced in session — your therapist shows you how, maybe does an example together
• Clear — you leave with specific instructions, not vague suggestions
• Reviewed thoroughly — next session starts with "what happened when you tried it?"

These principles apply whether the homework is a paper worksheet, a behavioural experiment, or an AI tool.

If your therapist is doing most of these with the AI recommendation—it's being used well.

If they're doing few or none—AI is being used poorly. Just like any homework would be.

Questions To Ask Your Therapist

If you're unsure whether AI is being integrated well, ask directly. Good questions:

• "Can you help me understand how this AI tool fits with what we're working on?"
• "What specifically should I focus on when I use it?"
• "Will we be reviewing what comes up?"
• "I want to make sure I understand how this fits our work together."

A competent therapist will welcome these questions. They'll be able to explain clearly.

If they get defensive or can't explain—that's information.

Questions To Ask Yourself

After your therapist has explained, check in with yourself:

1. Do I understand why this tool, for me, right now? Can I explain it back?

2. Does my therapist still seem engaged with me? Or does this feel like being handed off?

3. Is this adding to the therapy or replacing something? AI should enhance between-session practice, not substitute for in-session work.

4. Am I being given guidance or just a suggestion? Specific instructions = thoughtful practice. Vague suggestion = lazy practice.

5. Will this be reviewed? If there's no plan to discuss what happens, it's not really part of the treatment.

Why Some Therapists Recommend AI (When It's Good Practice)

There are clinical reasons why AI might be the right choice for certain clients:

You need real-time processing. If your pattern is to "manage emotions away" or process things into non-existence, timing matters. Paper captures thoughts after the fact. AI can engage when emotions are live. For this type of client, recommending AI is more thoughtful than paper—not less.

You need interactive challenge. Some clients fill in worksheets superficially. They need something that pushes back, asks follow-up questions, doesn't accept vague answers. AI can do this; paper can't.

Your patterns benefit from exploration. When the patterns are nuanced and you need space to explore multiple angles, AI's conversational format can go deeper than structured worksheets.

A therapist recommending AI for these reasons is showing good clinical thinking. They've matched the tool to your specific needs.

The Frame That Trips People Up

When you hear "use AI in therapy," your mind often creates a comparison: AI versus Therapist. In this frame, AI is a replacement—a cheaper, colder substitute for the human connection you came to therapy to find.

But that's not what's being offered.

The actual comparison is: AI homework versus paper homework.

In CBT, homework between sessions is standard. You might fill out thought records, track your mood, complete worksheets exploring your thinking patterns. This has always been part of the treatment.

AI tools don't replace your therapist. They upgrade your homework.

Your therapist still does the assessment, the formulation, the clinical judgement, the relational work. No AI does that. But between sessions, instead of static paper that provides no feedback, you get an interactive tool that can ask follow-up questions, apply your therapist's framework to your specific situations, and be available when insights actually arise—not just during scheduled homework time.

What Paper Worksheets Can't Do

Traditional CBT homework has real limitations:

Paper is static. You write an answer. Nobody responds. If you're vague, nobody notices. If you're stuck, you stay stuck until your next session.

Paper can't ask follow-up questions. You write "I felt anxious." The worksheet doesn't ask, "What specifically triggered that? What were you telling yourself in that moment?"

Paper isn't emotionally or cognitively available at 2am. Therapeutic breakthroughs don't arrive on schedule. You might have a crucial realisation at 11pm on Tuesday. With paper, you write it down and wait. By your next session, the emotional charge has dissipated.

Paper makes it easy to go through the motions. Fill in the boxes. Check "done." Return to therapy saying "I did the homework." Learn nothing.

Research shows 20-50% of clients don't complete homework properly. The tool limitations are part of the problem.

What AI Tools Can Do (When Used Properly)

Ask clarifying questions. "You mentioned you felt 'fine' about the conversation with your mother. Can you say more about what 'fine' means? What did you notice in your body during that call?"

Apply your therapist's framework to your specific situation. When you input the framework your therapist taught you, AI helps you apply it to whatever you're facing right now—not a generic textbook example.

Be available when emotions are live. Instead of reporting on feelings three days later, you can process them in the moment.

Push back when you're being vague. Paper lets you off the hook. A well-prompted AI doesn't.

The Deeper Layer (Worth Considering)

When my client said "I need the help to come from you," she wasn't really making a methodological argument about AI's effectiveness.

Her objection was about something else: a longing to be personally carried.

She had spent her life being the one who holds everything together for others. Part of coming to therapy was hoping someone would finally hold space for her. When I suggested a tool, it felt—unconsciously—like being sent away to handle things alone again.

This need was real. It deserved to be honoured.

But here's what she missed: I wasn't leaving. The relationship wasn't ending. The tool was for between sessions. The longing to be held and the use of enhanced homework tools aren't mutually exclusive.

If you're feeling resistance to AI in your therapy, it's worth asking: what's the resistance actually about? Is it about the tool? Or is it about something deeper—something that might be worth exploring in therapy itself?

Your resistance might be valid preference. It might be reasonable scepticism. Or it might be your patterns showing up.

The Bottom Line

Should you trust a therapist who recommends AI?

Yes—if they're doing it well. Which means:

• They know you first, then recommend tools
• The tool connects to your specific patterns
• They give clear guidance on how to use it
• They explain why this tool, for you, right now
• They plan to review what happens
• They're still fully present in your sessions

If those things are true, your therapist is showing good practice. The AI recommendation is a sign they're thinking carefully about how to help you make progress between sessions.

If those things aren't true—if it feels generic, unexplained, or like you're being handed off—that's worth raising. Ask questions. A good therapist will welcome them.

And if your resistance runs deeper than the practical concerns—if something about this triggers feelings of abandonment or not being held—that's valuable information too. Bring it to your next session. That's exactly the kind of material therapy is for.

The tool doesn't make the therapist. How they use it does.