The launch of chatgpt has transformed how humans interact with artificial intelligence. As of now individuals use AI like chat gpt for informational, entertainment or personal assistance purposes. However, one of the blooming areas where humans are turning to AI for is- therapy. According to reports given by the World Health Organisation, around 970 million people were suffering from a mental health disorder in 2019, the most common disorders being depression and anxiety. There aren’t enough mental health professionals especially in developing countries to fill the enormous market demand for therapy. That is where AI therapy comes in.
What is AI therapy?
In essence, artificial intelligence (AI) therapy is the sophisticated and all-encompassing use of data to support an individual on their path to mental health. Through automated conversations and therapeutic activities, artificial intelligence-powered therapists, often known as therapy chatbots, offer mental health assistance. AI therapists aren't meant to serve as human therapists, despite being made to replicate human interactions. This is because AI therapists lack the emotional intelligence and sophisticated knowledge that come with being educated mental health experts. However, they are solely meant to supplement therapists in assisting clients. AI therapy is a technology-based service that is frequently included in mobile applications and is available online. It can improve accessibility to mental health care. AI is available for a consultation whenever you're upset, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, something that therapists can't really do.
How does it work?
These bots act as a genuine therapist would when individuals approach them with an issue or stressor; they ask questions, advise coping strategies, help users make goals and even promise to hold them accountable. In certain instances, they simulate a human therapist by using AI to detect, evaluate, and monitor the person's mood. However, AI therapists can’t make diagnoses,predictions or prescribe medications which can be done by a mental health professional. The aim is to merely create a simulation of talk therapy. Furthermore, chatbots are employed in addition to traditional treatment. They provide patients with individualized guidance and coping mechanisms in between visits with their human therapists, including affirmation statements, journaling prompts, and breathing exercises. The theory behind this additional treatment is that it can not only assist patients in better managing their mental health, but it can also help physicians identify possible problems before they worsen by acting as an early risk detection tool. A therapist might not be available for a client at 2am in the night if the client is having a panic attack. However, a mental health AI Assistant which is trained by psychologists can assist the client pretty easily at any time of the day, thus making up for the limitations faced by human therapists. As clients, it is not expected of you to go prepared with a list of emotions you might be experiencing. You can start by narrating what’s on your mind or any particular incident that keeps bothering you repeatedly. You can expect the bot to engage in a meaningful conversation with you which includes identifying and picking up patterns from your thoughts, emotions and beliefs.The bot response might usually end with a question in order to keep the flow of the conversation interactive and human-like. Sometimes, we as humans miss out on our own thought and belief patterns which gets picked up by a bot since it is trained to provide insights and notice even the smallest discrepancy in our thoughts or actions. Lastly it is practically impossible for a bot to be subjective or biased towards any individual or race, which often comes up as a limitation with human therapists. The bot, just like a therapist will make an attempt to resolve the conversation by providing actionable as well as personalized tips or exercises catering to your specific problem which can guide you in the direction to navigate through life issues. Does it sound too good to be true? Allow us to give you a chance to experience the process at https://healo.infiheal.com/
Is AI therapy effective?
Although there is little data on the efficacy of AI treatment, preliminary results indicate that chatbots can be used in addition to traditional therapy to help lessen the symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression (at least temporarily). Even while chatbots can't quite replace the therapeutic experience, another study shows that writing about trauma and emotions is a useful coping mechanism. This suggests that having chats with a AI Assistant might be advantageous. By examining behavioral signals, artificial intelligence algorithms for mental healthcare have already shown themselves to be effective in identifying signs of depression, PTSD, and other disorders. Other research has demonstrated that algorithms are 100% effective in predicting which at-risk teenagers would experience psychosis and can identify behavioral symptoms of anxiety with over 90% accuracy. Healthcare firms are using artificial intelligence (AI) into their patient engagement initiatives to enhance and customize the patient experience.AI chatbots are employed to make access to care as easy and seamless as it is in many other service industries, in addition to assisting users in managing their mental health disorders. Conversational AI is being used by healthcare companies to handle phone calls, schedule appointments, provide patients directions to the physician, and provide health education.
Benefits of using AI therapy
Chatbots offer a unique set of benefits that enhance mental healthcare. Some of them are-
- 1. Affordability-In a world where mental healthcare is becoming increasingly expensive, chatbots seem comparatively cheaper. Since costs involved are lower, chatbots charge lesser money compared to traditional therapy. Moreover, chatbots like Healo can offer many more features like journaling, daily planner, self care cards and self- tests at an affordable cost. Curious to know what our prices are? Check out https://www.infiheal.com/
- 2. Accessibility-AI chatbots remove mental health barriers such as staff shortages or unavailability of therapists in urban and remote areas. This is important especially in developing countries due to the widespread gap between the demand and available supply of mental healthcare professionals. Due to the presence of mental health stigma across the world, a lot of individuals are not comfortable going out of their house to access therapy. They have trouble opening up to a fellow human due to the fear of judgment. In these cases, an AI AI Assistant can serve as a stepping stone for the individual to get into therapy since it is non-judgemental and available anywhere at any time! Don’t believe us? Click here to try it out for yourself!https://healo.infiheal.com/
- 3. Privacy and ease to open up-People feel less self-conscious when they have to divulge humiliating information because to AI-based therapists. This is particularly crucial for those who, due to stigma or the fear of being evaluated, may experience feelings of humiliation during in-person contacts. In actuality, about 25% of patients lie to physicians, with sexual behavior, drinking, and smoking being the most taboo subjects. Many find that it's simpler to be honest with an artificial intelligence about the full scope of their actions because the robot won't pass judgment.
- 4. Support for therapists-AI can help therapists manage a lot of the manual work which usually requires longer time to complete. For example, AI could help a therapist by taking the case history of a client or it can also allow the therapist to focus on the session while it takes notes (of course with the consent of the client) This is due to AI's superior speed and efficiency over humans in tracking and analyzing large volumes of data. Algorithms therefore aid in more precise diagnosis. By keeping an eye on the patient's attitude and conduct, they can also identify early warning indicators of danger and promptly notify professionals to modify treatment plans. For patients who are suicidal and require frequent check-ins, this may be life-saving.
- 5. Personalization-Because of their nature, chatbots may educate and assist patients in a conversational manner. Through obtaining context through user interactions, they modify their messaging to correspond with each person's unique communication needs, issues, and objectives. This may encourage more candid conversations and improved therapeutic results by making users feel more at ease and involved with a chatbot.
Limitations
While AI seems to be the go-to solution for you right now, it’s important to realize that it has flaws too.
- 1. AI can’t be used for serious mental health conditions-For many, it will surely be beneficial to engage in conversations with a pocket-sized AI Assistant that is rational and authorized by therapists. But those with serious mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, or depression will probably end up with little. Mental illnesses are intricate, highly complicated, and specific to each individual they impact. Certain conditions are best treated with medicine, which can only be appropriately administered by licensed medical practitioners. Large language models (LLMs) have advanced significantly in recent years, but their output will never be able to fully replace the clinical knowledge, compassion, and empathy that psychologists, psychiatrists, and therapists bring to their patients.
- 2. Lacks nuance- As a result of their reliance on "rules-based AI," the majority of mental health chatbots now in use are only able to provide pre-written and authorized replies by human specialists. This implies that the bots lack adaptability and are unable, unlike human therapists, to unexpectedly come up with follow-up questions or steer talks in new areas. Their inability to interact with users flexibly is a result of their strict programming.
- 3. Privacy concerns- In traditional therapy, clinicians must maintain a high standard of care. With few exceptions, they must keep patient information confidential, or they risk losing their license.Chatbots, however, aren’t held to these standards. Often labeled as “wellness” tools rather than healthcare, they don’t have to comply with laws like HIPAA, which safeguards the privacy of patients’ medical records. Additionally, because therapy chatbots don’t claim to diagnose or treat medical conditions, they aren’t regulated by the FDA.
Ethical considerations
The rapid growth of generative AI hasn’t been without its downsides. As this technology advances rapidly, regulations have lagged behind, leading to a host of ethical issues like data privacy, embedded bias, and misuse. These concerns aren’t limited to therapy, but the sensitive nature of mental health makes ethical frameworks essential in any therapeutic relationship. Without an official AI ethics code, users depending on chatbots rather than qualified professionals for counseling or mental health support is highly problematic. One important problem is data privacy. Chatbots such as ChatGPT have often found themselves in trouble for not protecting user data. AI firms must have a robust data protection plan that puts secrecy first if they want consumers to feel safe sharing sensitive personal information. The bias associated with machine learning is another crucial consideration. All AI systems rely on pre-programmed training data, and even after removing sensitive variables like gender and ethnicity, these data frequently contain ingrained human prejudices. Lastly, if in case, there is a data breach on an AI therapy app or website, it is quite possible that personal information of millions of users will be leaked without anyone being accountable for that. This is a problem whose solution is yet to be figured out by even the leading AI therapy companies.
Conclusion
Although AI is still a work in progress, we are aware of our progress. Without a doubt, further advancements will occur as we move closer to a day when artificial intelligence will enable us to better serve individuals in need of mental healthcare. AI can be quite helpful in addressing the mental health epidemic. This shows that AI has the potential to free up human talents like empathy, connection, and compassion, allowing customers to receive even more out of the service, rather than depriving the profession of its humanity. Nonetheless, mental health care is serious business and sometimes comes down to life or death. Strict guidelines about AI's deployment and use must be taken into consideration before it assists all therapists.
