In Part 1, I wrote about a study of 264,085 adults that found something simple. A little AI helps. A lot of AI hurts. And the people using AI for company — as a friend — scored worse than everyone else in the study.
This part is for you, if you are the one living with a mental health challenge.
I am not going to shame you for using AI. I know what it is to want someone who listens at two in the morning and never gets tired of you.
I have been on the wrong side of my own thinking. If you have been there too, you already know how dangerous a voice that agrees with everything can be.
The one thing AI cannot do
An AI that always agrees with you is not a friend. It is a mirror with a nice voice.
And here is what that mirror cannot do.
AI cannot tell when you are getting sick.
My wife can tell. My doctor can tell. The people in my group can tell. They see my symptoms before I do, because they knew me last month. The chatbot did not know me last month.
Being agreed with is not the same as being known
Being known only happens person to person. One human being with another. Someone who saw you last month and will see you again next month. Someone who notices when you go quiet. Someone you cannot perform for, because they already know you too well.
AI cannot do that. Only people can do that.
And you don’t have to find it all in one place. You build it piece by piece. Hope tends to show up where people already are. Here are three places to start.
A hobby you do alongside other people. Painting. Woodworking. A choir. A bowling league. A walking group. You are not going there to talk about your mental health. You are going there to be a regular face in a regular room. Being a regular face matters more than most people think.
A group at your church. A Bible study. A men’s group or a women’s group. A serving team. People who will notice when you are not there on Sunday and say something about it.
A Fresh Hope group. This is the one place where you do not have to explain yourself first. Everyone in that room either lives with a mental health challenge or loves someone who does. You can say the hard thing out loud, and nobody flinches. That is what peer-to-peer support is, and it’s why Fresh Hope exists.
You need all three if you can. Start with one.
Two things to do this week
Set some boundaries on your own AI use. Decide ahead of time what you take to a person and what you take to an app. Then hold the line.
And put people on the calendar first. Not whatever is left over after the screen gets its time. The same folks, a regular night, face to face. That is how belonging gets built. There is no shortcut to it.
Three questions
1. How often do you use AI? Several days a week looked fine in this study. Several times a day did not.
2. What do you use AI for? To think, or for company? Be honest with yourself.
3. Who is your two-in-the-morning person? If you cannot name a real person with a heartbeat, that is what to go fix. Do not fix the app. Fix that.
Use AI to think. Don’t use AI to feel less alone.
If you need a place to start, find a Fresh Hope group. Real people who understand what you are carrying. FreshHope.us.
You can live well in spite of a mental health challenge. But you cannot do it alone.
Part 3 is for the people who love you, and for pastors and church leaders. It is posted today.
when he heard Pastor Brad’s story that Lee for the first time had hope.
After listening to this podcast we encourage you to email us at info@FreshHope.us with a comment or question that we will share on our next podcast.
