QUINCY (WGEM) – With more than 40 years of combined therapy experience, Malinda Vogel, a counselor at Midwest Counseling Services, and Tiffany Rains-Eaton, a counselor and social/behavioral sciences instructor at John Wood Community College, have seen their fair share of clients. But new data indicates younger generations may start trading traditional mental health counselors for something else.
A recent study published by JAMA Network indicates 13.1 percent (roughly one in eight) of adolescents and young adults in the U.S. have sought out mental health advice from generative AI.
Among those age 18 to 21, the rate increases to 22 percent.
For better or worse, AI is reshaping the way the world works, learns and lives, especially young people. Now, mental health therapists are the latest professionals to see the technology finding its way into the workplace.
AI models marketed as supplements or alternatives to traditional counseling are starting to gain traction.
Therapod AI, for example, offers a free AI chatbot and even sells AI-powered “wellness pods” for use at schools, hospitals, and businesses.
According to its website, the pods are meant to provide instant access to evidence-based support, including guided meditations and breathing exercises, but the technology is meant to “complement traditional therapy, not replace it.”
The website’s FAQ page also specifies the pods are not designed for crisis intervention.
The leap in automated technology is stoking discussions over AI’s implementation in the therapy field. Vogel and Rains-Eaton believe tools like Therapod could be helpful if used in concert with traditional counseling.
“It sounds like it’s really meant to supplement help from actual mental health professionals. So that part to me sounds really good,” Vogel said.
“We are in a crisis with a shortage of mental health providers right now. We know that. And if we can find ways to help bridge the gap to get people some treatment, but also not replace that human connection, I think there could be use for it. But we have to be really careful,” Rains-Eaton explained, later adding, “We’re in this place where we need to figure out how to best use it (AI), but not overuse or rely on it. Because I think there’s a really fine line, especially when it comes to mental health.”
Both counselors expressed concern over the possibility of AI technology eventually being pushed as a replacement for human therapists. Rains-Eaton does not believe AI has the capability to navigate the complexities many therapists encounter with clients on its own.
“You can’t program something to know every combination of everything that will ever happen. I’ve been doing outpatient therapy for almost 15 years, and I constantly hear new things, new experiences, new symptoms, things that people are experiencing that I can’t predict,” Rains-Eaton said.
Vogel stressed the importance of human connection in the therapy process.
“To take the human being out of therapy, it’s alarming to me. It (therapy) is not just a, ‘Oh here, do these breathing exercises and you’ll feel great as a person.’ I’m not disputing those things help, but at the end of the day, for most of us, I think we’re very motivated by connection with other human beings, and therapy is really a big part of that,” Vogel said.
“Even when we say, ‘Oh they’re coming to have help for their mental health,’ it usually boils down to some issue with relationships. Either they’re feeling lonely, they’re feeling disconnected, they’re in conflict with people that they love. And so, I feel like if we take the humans out of the therapy equation, we’re only increasing that likelihood,” Vogel concluded.
As in other professions, the proper role of AI in counseling will likely be debated for years to come, but among those in the field, one thing remains true.
“You might not feel judged by a computer, but also, you’re not going to feel connected,” Rains-Eaton told a WGEM News.
“That personal relationship that you have with someone that you feel like really cares about you, they understand you, they want to help you, that makes so much more (of a) difference,” Vogel said..
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