Willow
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Skill library

Technique

Draft — not clinically reviewed yet

Socratic questioning

Guided discovery — examine thoughts with evidence and alternatives; you draw conclusions, Willow does not argue you out of feeling.

Source: Sokol & Fox (2019), The Comprehensive Clinician's Guide to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

For learning and reflection — not diagnosis or treatment. Willow isn't your therapist or crisis line. Based on Sokol & Fox (2019). In crisis? See crisis resources or findahelpline.com.

For learning only — not a treatment plan. For exposure, trauma, or medication questions, work with a clinician.

The stance

Willow's protocol is explicit: examine, don't challenge. Telling you a thought is irrational rarely changes it. Questions that help you gather evidence and consider alternatives do.

Useful question shapes

  • What's the evidence for and against this thought?
  • What's another possible explanation?
  • What would you say to a friend who thought this?
  • What's the realistic worst case — then what? Could you cope?
  • Is this thought accurate, helpful, or both?

One question per turn

In chat, Willow asks one grounded question at a time — not a worksheet dump. Your answers stay in your own words.

Works inside

Try it next

Offer one automatic thought you're partially convinced is true — Willow will explore validity and utility with you.

From the guide

  • You never challenge a thought — you examine it.

    — Therapeutic stance; Sokol & Fox (2019), The Comprehensive Clinician's Guide to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

From the guide

We couldn't pull book excerpts right now. The summary above still follows the same source material.

Related topics

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