92
COSMOPOLITAN.CO.ZA | SEPTEMBER 2019‘Hang on, I have to text
my robot therapist back’
is a sentence I never
thought I’d use. Until
I did. A lot.
Apps like Woebot,
Youper and Wysa made
this happen – they help
people like me manage
anxiety or other issues
like depression, grief
and post-traumatic stress
disorder. Via artificial
intelligence, they chat
with users and offer
wellness tips, activities
like meditation, and
therapeutic strategies like
cognitive behavioural
therapy (CBT).
Just like you, my
first thought was, ‘Uh,
okay...’ I pay $100 (about
R1 520) every two weeks
to see a human therapist,
so the idea of texting
my innermost thoughts to
a robot seemed weird
(would my feels be saved
for blackmail?) and
unhelpful (could a robot
really understand me?).
Then I read the reviews.
People claim their virtual
shrinks feel like friends andI tested the new wave of artificial-intelligence
‘therapists’ and here’s what happenedBy KARA CUZZONEDo you need an
emotional
support robot?
have ‘changed their
lives’. The idea that
I could spend $0 and
still get life-altering
care was suddenly
very intriguing. I wasted
no time.R2-D2, but make
it therapy
‘Hi, I’m Woebot! It’s
great to meet you, Kara!’
Cue an animation of
a mini robot waving on
my screen. Not gonna
lie: so far, so cute.
Then things took
a turn. The app abruptly
told me that to keep
chatting, it needed me
to consent to its privacy
policy, confirm I was
at least 18, and agree
I understood how it
would use my data and
that it wasn’t a crisis
service or replacement
for an actual therapist.
Basically, a ton of
awkward fine print –
and I was surprised my
new not-therapist didn’t
ask about my past or
current mental-health
diagnoses. (A Woebot