I read with interest in the April issue of Therapy Today (‘Online self-help’) regarding computerised CBT (cCBT). I wish to share my experience of clients who have referred themselves, or been referred to me, following their use of cCBT. 

In many cases they have not had a positive experience of Beating the Blues for the treatment of mild and moderate depression, as approved by NICE and available free through the NHS. This is because they have felt the computer to be too ‘faceless’ and that it would not know if they failed to complete their ‘homework’. They stated there was definitely a ‘robotic’ feel to the therapy. However, when these clients attended a one-to-one appointment, the result felt much more positive.

One client stated he ‘enjoyed a smile from the counsellor’ at the end of his therapy, which he could not get from the computer in the library!