Exploratory · Adapted from spoken-journaling work in Brian Nuckols's clinical groups
Three-Prompt Clearing
A short, grounded way into writing. Three prompts. Fifteen minutes. No commitment to a longer protocol, and no clinical screening required.
What it is
Three-Prompt Clearing is the shortest protocol in the app, and often the most useful first session. It asks three brief questions that surface the pattern beneath what brought you here, without requiring full disclosure or a defined trauma focus. The protocol runs in fifteen minutes and can be repeated as often as you want.
The clinical origin is group work. In spoken processing groups, three questions tend to surface more material than a single open-ended invitation: when did the pattern start, what was life like before it started, and what other pattern is actually hardest to control right now. The written form of those three prompts produces a similar opening on the page.
The protocol is exploratory in evidence tier. It is not a trauma intervention, it is not a replacement for therapy, and it has not been tested in a randomized trial. It is a reliable way to begin writing when you do not yet know what you want to write about.
Who it fits, and who it doesn't
Likely a fit
You are new to the app and want a low-stakes first session. You have a pattern you are trying to work with but cannot yet name precisely. You want something briefer than Pennebaker or C.A.R.E. and more structured than Morning Pages.
Not the first line
You are in acute crisis and need immediate clinical support. You want to write specifically about a single defined traumatic event — the Pennebaker block is better for that.
The prompts
- How it started 5 min
Write about when the pattern you came here to work on first started. Not the full story. Just the beginning. Who were you, where were you, what was going on around you.
- Before it started 5 min
Were you okay before it started. Write about what your life was like in the period just before this pattern emerged. Not what you remember about yourself in retrospect, but what was actually going on.
- Hard to control right now 5 min
What behavior right now — not the one you came here to change, but a different one running alongside it — is actually hardest to control. Write about that one.
Do it in the app
The writing app runs this protocol with a timer, autosave, and optional LIWC analysis. Free, private, clinician-built.
Open Three-Prompt Clearing in the app →Read further
Frequently Asked Questions
How is Three-Prompt Clearing different from free journaling?
The three questions are structured to surface material in a specific order: the origin of the pattern, the conditions before it, and a parallel behavior that may carry relevant information. Free journaling tends to stay on the presenting story; this protocol is designed to move off it productively.
Do I need a screening to use Three-Prompt Clearing?
No. The protocol is not gated. It is exploratory in evidence tier and low-risk for most users. The Pennebaker block is the one that requires a clinical screen in the app.
Can I repeat Three-Prompt Clearing?
Yes. The protocol is designed to be repeated with different presenting concerns or at different points in your work. Running it on the same pattern across weeks can surface new material as your relationship to the pattern changes.
Will the app analyze my writing?
Yes, with your consent. The LIWC-style engine runs on each entry and surfaces pronoun shifts, cognitive-processing markers, and affect tone. The analysis is private to you and is not used for research without explicit opt-in.