CBT without a Therapist: Helpy vs Clare

CBT without a Therapist: Helpy is a self-help platform centered on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), with materials drawing on DBT and ACT. Its thought journal helps users distinguish facts from assumptions, identify cognitive distortions, and assess how well thoughts fit reality. Helpy’s AI assistant asks clarifying questions and may suggest a thought record, grounding, or breathing practice. The service offers audio and written exercises, along with screening questionnaires for anxiety, mood, sleep, and burnout; results are not diagnoses. An anxiety program is available, with its first module free, while other programs are described as forthcoming. Helpy runs on Android, iOS, and the web. The free plan includes unlimited journal use, limited AI chat replies, the full exercise library with audio, and the first module of every course. Full Access costs $29.00 USD as a one-time payment and includes unlimited conversations and journal entry analysis. Optional end-to-end encryption is off by default. When users request an entry review, its text is decrypted on their side and sent to the AI. Helpy is not medical care, therapy, or a substitute for professional care.

Clare is a conversational self-help service intended to support people through mental health concerns. Users can speak with Clare by phone or send WhatsApp messages, follow a weekly call schedule, or start a call when they choose. It offers reflection exercises and coping tools drawing on self-compassion, stress management, positive psychology, resilience, and meditation. The maker says psychologists curate the content and advisors oversee it. Clare is available on Android, iOS, and web; phone calls, WhatsApp, and SMS are listed access options. The maker also presents a clinical AI for clinic and practice admissions, including automated intake assessment that it says saves practitioners 60 minutes. Clare says it processes health information only with explicit consent, does not sell user data or use it to train its systems, and deletes data on request. It states that it is HIPAA and GDPR compliant. Clare does not provide or replace traditional psychotherapy and recommends professional help for persistent or strong anxiety symptoms. Its terms exclude people under 18 and certain acute or serious conditions.