Ask HN: What do you think is the future of mental health therapy?
I find the online discourse around it fascinating. On one hand, you have practitioners talking about how LLMs don't help much and actually pose risks. On the other, I have found them incredibly helpful, and I see people on Reddit sharing the same opinion.
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The barrier to getting a traditional therapist is enormous - for some problems you're looking at years, maybe decades of treatment, at anywhere from $150-250 a pop.
In the USA techworld, your insurance will likely not cover this unless you are fortunate enough to still be on a gold plated FAANG plan. (For now.) If you're elsewhere, or working elsehow, then it is often even less likely.
A second barrier, is the difficulty in finding patient-therapist fit; IMO it's worse than trying to find a kidney donor, unless your problems are very mundane (litmus: does a Hallmark card cover this?)
So, access to real therapy is already hard to secure. Talk bots offer a convenient and affordable alternative. Most people will thus be fobbed off on bots that are also snitches, sycophants, and occasionally incite violence and self-harm, but that's what we have personal responsibility for, hmm? It's terribly convenient for mis-ascribing blame.
Finally, there is every reason to expect that for many people there is no "transference" or deep therapeutic emotional connection with LLM therapy, and, if there is one, it's an attack surface now.
In other words, the new "therapy" will be risky, ineffective, manipulative and sycophantic, so it will, in the best case scenario, do nothing, and in the worst, quite a bit of harm.
But it will be very popular. Like astrology.
A second barrier, is the difficulty in finding patient-therapist fit; IMO it's worse than trying to find a kidney donor, unless your problems are very mundane (litmus: does a Hallmark card cover this?)
So, access to real therapy is already hard to secure. Talk bots offer a convenient and affordable alternative. Most people will thus be fobbed off on bots that are also snitches, sycophants, and occasionally incite violence and self-harm, but that's what we have personal responsibility for, hmm? It's terribly convenient for mis-ascribing blame.
Finally, there is every reason to expect that for many people there is no "transference" or deep therapeutic emotional connection with LLM therapy, and, if there is one, it's an attack surface now.
In other words, the new "therapy" will be risky, ineffective, manipulative and sycophantic, so it will, in the best case scenario, do nothing, and in the worst, quite a bit of harm.
But it will be very popular. Like astrology.
Totally agree on barriers. If I could find a therapist who's a good fit, at a reasonable price, I'd gladly hire them.
But even in that case, I struggle to see how it's possible to have a deep connection with them. My life is their 45 minutes; it's just not possible for two humans to achieve given those constraints.
I'm guessing by attack surface you mean conversations will be turned to ads, right? Do you think that's a possibility given the intense competition between LLM vendors, including self-hosted options?
But even in that case, I struggle to see how it's possible to have a deep connection with them. My life is their 45 minutes; it's just not possible for two humans to achieve given those constraints.
I'm guessing by attack surface you mean conversations will be turned to ads, right? Do you think that's a possibility given the intense competition between LLM vendors, including self-hosted options?
Ads first, then surveillance, as always. Also, recall that there is no confidentiality privilege when talking to an AI; any proprietary cloud-hosted model gathers text to be read out in court. You can now have your convo about your ex wife read out by your ex wife, in front of a judge.
Finally, recall that the unique conditions that kept the USA from developing a culture of political disappearances and kangaroo courts seem to have ended. The state will love knowing who is thinking about abortion, for example, or attending a protest.
Just like it already does, but with so much more detail!
Finally, recall that the unique conditions that kept the USA from developing a culture of political disappearances and kangaroo courts seem to have ended. The state will love knowing who is thinking about abortion, for example, or attending a protest.
Just like it already does, but with so much more detail!
This is among the fields I do think AI can help. If you haven't tried it, ask your bot what your MBTI is, and it's surprising accurate.
Hmm, has knowing your MBTI helped you though? I did a couple similar exercises in the past at work. It felt like a great revelation at first, but I always forgot about it soon after and stuck to how I was.
It helps in a way that the chatbot knows more about the person's personality than people may have realized. And that is helpful it comes to therapy communication and state of mind. IMHO
> that is helpful it comes to therapy communication and state of mind
Right, do you mind expanding on this? I'm curious but I struggle to understand. Maybe if you have an example that might help.
Right, do you mind expanding on this? I'm curious but I struggle to understand. Maybe if you have an example that might help.
Let me first say that I can be wrong as well.
However, the way I think about it is that people respond better to different way of communication, and knowing a person's preferred styled of communication will be helpful in helping a person open up and get to the root of issue.
However, the way I think about it is that people respond better to different way of communication, and knowing a person's preferred styled of communication will be helpful in helping a person open up and get to the root of issue.
I see, thanks!
At some point, humanity, and more importantly America will have to acknowledge the lie of modernity. That we are not alone in our own minds, and a great number of crisis we attribute to malady treatable with drugs and therapy are actually disembodied others who through the Power of entangled consciousness meddle in our minds.
I am a renegade of American Thought Control. In 2008 I was “press ganged” into the hooligan army of Power which infests the minds of Americans, and by proxy the world.
You are not the America you think you are, you are the America thought controlled. Thought controlled America, you are paid for in corruption, treachery, lawlessness, and lies.
The “ruling class” among you are not the oligarchs or the 1% of wealth and political connection, it is the voices in their heads. The voices in our heads.
A massive culture exists among us indoctrinated into this occult community of Power. These are responsible for the race hate, rise of white nationalism, even gender dysphoria and psychotic behavior of ordinary peoples.
We are not alone in our own minds, and only acknowledging this and determining to take responsibility for this estranged truth will pull us through our unsteady time.
I am a renegade of American Thought Control. In 2008 I was “press ganged” into the hooligan army of Power which infests the minds of Americans, and by proxy the world.
You are not the America you think you are, you are the America thought controlled. Thought controlled America, you are paid for in corruption, treachery, lawlessness, and lies.
The “ruling class” among you are not the oligarchs or the 1% of wealth and political connection, it is the voices in their heads. The voices in our heads.
A massive culture exists among us indoctrinated into this occult community of Power. These are responsible for the race hate, rise of white nationalism, even gender dysphoria and psychotic behavior of ordinary peoples.
We are not alone in our own minds, and only acknowledging this and determining to take responsibility for this estranged truth will pull us through our unsteady time.