AI has ushered us into a new era. If the internet was once considered the information superhighway, artificial intelligence is the Millennium Falcon—blasting us into hyperspace at faster-than-light speeds. It’s thrilling, powerful, and incredibly useful. But according to some experts, it’s also a little terrifying—and a potential threat to humanity as we know it. Yikes.

 

The most immediate concerns? How AI Challenges Our Work, Professions, Training, and Education. Its efficiency often exposes the limits of our very human brains.​ Not a day goes by without a client mentioning to me how they've used ChatGPT to assess their mental health, outside of session. They’ve turned to it for a wide range of reasons: plugging in symptoms for self-diagnosis, pasting in confusing text messages from partners, or trying to solve or “cure” their insecure attachment styles. Some have even forwarded me their chatbot conversations. I welcome it with caution. 

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And yet, despite AI’s lightning-fast responses and 24/7 availability, clients still come to therapy. It appears I have job security- for now. What human therapy IRL chat offers is attunement, the client’s felt sense of being seen, and nervous system co-regulation. Some say being a therapist is like renting out your regulated nervous system by the hour. I feel this. The energetic one-on-one human experience, empathetic understanding, sincere eye contact, humor, and presence are not something an AI bot can offer… just yet. 

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So, dear friend, use AI to your advantage—but do so with care. Remember, true healing occurs in community, through meaningful relationships, and with the support of fellow living beings who offer non-artificial emotional intelligence and genuine, loving understanding.

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Onward, 

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Mandy 

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*Full Disclosure: Written by me, but recruited ChatGPT to clean up my terrible spelling.