Making AI Safe for Mental Health Use
According to recent survey data pending review and publication (Rousmaniere et al. 2025) yet widely circulated, 48.7 percent of 499 U.S. respondents reported using LLMs (large language models) for psychological support in the preceding year. The majority did this for anxiety, personal advice, and depression. Notably, they reported primarily either neutral or positive responses, and […]
How Does Menopause Affect Your Mental Health?
Tamsen Fadal remembers the exact moment that she thought she was losing her mind: 10:30 p.m. on November 19, 2019. The longtime prime-time news anchor couldn’t remember how to pronounce the word “subpoena.” But, as she writes in her 2025 book, How to Menopause: Take Charge of Your Health, Reclaim Your Life, and Feel Even […]
How Can Immigrants Protect Their Mental Health Right Now?
In early January, a wave of immigration arrests in California’s Central Valley sparked fear across the state. Those real arrests spurred false reports of raids in cities like Oakland, heightening anxiety just days before President Donald Trump officially returned to office. Then, on his first day, Trump signed a series of executive orders targeting immigrants’ […]
The Mental Health Benefits of Free Speech
Sarah Ross / CC BY-NC 2.0 What is free speech? The First Amendment of the United States Constitution says that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, […]
Study Finds AI Chatbot Can Improve Mental Health
A new artificial intelligence (AI) study in The New England Journal of Medicine publication NEJM AI demonstrates how an AI chatbot called Therabot can significantly improve symptoms in just two months for those suffering from major depressive disorder (MDD), generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), and eating disorders. “Generative artificial intelligence (Gen-AI) chatbots hold promise for building […]
If Parenting Feels Hazardous to Your Health, Try This
The U.S. Surgeon General recently issued a warning that startled millions of people, claiming that parenting can be hazardous to your health. My understanding of the report is that he finds the hazards to be the deleterious impact of stress, social isolation, and financial strain. This was compounded by a powerful March 2025 essay in […]
How Basic Income Programs Can Support Mental Health
Over half of Canadians feel “financially paralyzed” by the cost-of-living crisis, according to a recent poll. As life becomes more unaffordable for more people, we need governments to create policies that will improve public health and well-being. One such policy is a basic income guarantee: an unconditional cash transfer from government to ensure people can […]
Why Is Loneliness So Bad for Your Health?
Human beings are inherently social. We thrive on connection, communication, and shared experiences, which help shape our identities and foster a sense of belonging. Yet, in an increasingly digital and fast-paced world, feelings of loneliness and social isolation have become alarmingly common. The World Health Organization has stated that these feelings are widespread. About 25% […]
Cyberstalking and the Role of Mental Health Professionals
Cyberstalking involves using digital technology—including social media, digital tracking devices, digital messaging, email, spyware, surveillance cameras, or keyloggers—to track, follow, intimidate, or harass an individual, family, group, or community (Marcum & Higgins, 2021). Cyberstalking scenarios may range from someone harassing their former spouse after separation, to racist or homophobic bullying in a school or other […]
Poverty and Mental Health | Psychology Today
By R. Susan Daily, M.D., Eunice Y. Yuen M.D., Ph.D., and the Child Committee of the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry Lily is a Caucasian 17-year-old girl coming to a family medicine clinic with fatigue and shortness of breath when walking. She has been depressed for more thanr two years, suffers anxiety, and has […]