Therapist recorded using AI without consent
I’ve been in weekly therapy for over 3 years dealing with severe trauma and CPTSD. Literally just two weeks ago I told my therapist I think I was finally ready to start talking about harder stuff. It’s been a long road for me to trust her and I’ve worked really hard to get to a place where I felt like I was starting to.
Until last week. Basically, mid session I found out she was recording using an AI transcribing software through her EHR. It is HIPPA compliant and deletes the session recording after 48 hours, leaving behind the note. But that’s not the point. She NEVER got consent or mentioned it prior. I had no idea she had been recording our sessions for weeks. I was shocked and barely could speak, by the end of the day I was devastated.
I can’t imagine ever coming back from this with her. I work in mental health, I know the ethics around informed consent and how important it is. With AI transcribing becoming more popular, I know that pretty much every licensing board says to only use them with informed consent (preferably written consent). I got none of that. Her excuse was that she “thought we had talked about it” and that she won’t use it moving forward if it bothers me.
My sense of safety and trust has been shattered into a thousand pieces. I know with my trauma this is making it even worse. I had intense emotional flashbacks all weekend reliving other situations where I felt similar emotional responses and betrayal. I never expected this from her of all people. I thought she understood my struggles with trust. I don’t even know where to go from here. I can’t imagine losing her but this doesn’t feel fixable.
I feel so alone and lost.