EXPLORE TAIU
The Clearing is the free, private part of TAIU.
It is here if the book has left you with something you want to look at more closely. It is also here if something is pressing now.
You can talk a question through with Ask Alto, keep track of the areas of your life in My Tree, write in My Journal or choose a Guide to spend time on one thing.
It will not tell you what to do. It gives you somewhere to look properly, before deciding what comes next.
Private. Free. No decision required.
The Clearing
Where would you like to begin?
Ask Alto
Bring a pressing question. Ask Alto helps you think it through without telling you what to do.Ask AltoMy Tree
A private profile of the areas of life you want to understand, return to and work on.See My TreeMy Journal
A private place to write down what is happening, and come back to it when you are ready.Open JournalGuides
Choose an area of your life. Follow a Guide to spend time on one question.Explore GuidesWhat happens when you use it
You say what is going on
In your own words, typed or spoken. There is no form to fill in and no category to pick first.
Ask Alto asks the next question
Ask Alto asks questions that help you slow the situation down and see what else may be connected. It does not give advice or tell you what to do.
You see what else is connected to it
Work, money, health, love and family rarely stay in their own boxes. You can look at one part without pretending the others are not there.
You receive a handback
At the end, The Clearing hands back what seems true, what remains uncertain, what you may be protecting and what can wait for another day. You can keep it if you want.
Privacy
Your writing is not sold or made public. You can delete material saved to your account.
What it is not
It is not therapy, it is not a crisis service and it is not a coach with a plan for your life.
Urgent support
If you are in danger or in crisis, please use urgent support instead. The page includes 999, NHS 111 and Samaritans.
Urgent supportFree to use. Private by design.
Nothing you write is saved by itself.
A visitor’s Ask Alto conversation goes when the visit ends. If you create an account, only what you choose to keep is saved. Nothing you write in Ask Alto, My Tree or Journal is sent to Google, Meta, advertising or a mailing list.
The book is a separate thing
The Alternative Is Unthinkable is £7.99, bought once and owned permanently. It is not needed to use The Clearing, and nothing in here is held back until you buy it.
Read about the bookQuestions people ask
- Do I need an account?
- Not to start. You can say what is going on and be asked the next question without one. An account is only needed to keep what you write between visits.
- What can I use free?
- All of it. Ask Alto, My Tree, the Journal, saved items, Tree Review, History and every Guide.
- How much does it cost?
- The Clearing costs nothing. The book is a separate purchase at £7.99, paid once. Buying it is never required to use anything here.
- Is there anything to cancel?
- No. There is nothing to pay for The Clearing and nothing recurring anywhere, so there is no subscription to stop.
- What happens to what I have written?
- It stays yours. Writing saved to your account is never deleted for any commercial reason, it stays visible to you, and you can delete it yourself whenever you want.
- Is The Clearing therapy?
- No. It is not therapy, not treatment and not a crisis service. If you need any of those, please use them. Alto asks questions rather than giving advice, and one honest ending is that nothing needs to change.
- Do I need to own the book?
- No. The book and The Clearing are bought separately and either one works on its own.
- Is my writing used for advertising or analytics?
- No. What you write is never sent to advertising or analytics, never sold and never shown to other members. We count that something happened, never what was said.
There is nothing to set up.
Bring one thing. You can stop at any point, and nothing is kept unless you keep it.
Look around