Within the mental health world, especially when we’re talking about eating disorders and body image issues, there is a lot of discussion about the effects of plastic surgery – not just plastic surgery itself, but also the way that society views plastic surgery and the effect that it has on the population as a whole.
Recently, a reporter from the Huffington Post reached out to Flourish Psychology to ask about this very topic. Dr. Sadi Fox, founder of Flourish Psychology, is one of the leading nationwide experts in Disordered Eating, was asked about her thoughts regarding plastic surgery.
As the term “AI” takes off, and more and more people choose to use these chatbots and related tools, it is becoming clear that unrestricted use of these tools is a problem.
We’re not just talking about ethics, plagiarism, or the economic impact. Chatbots, specifically, are proving time and time again to be problematic, especially for those struggling with severe mental health challenges. AI runs the risk of introducing problems or exacerbating existing conditions, and the interactions that someone has with it can cause significant harm.
About AI – What it Is
First, for clarity, “AI” does not yet exist. That is a marketing term. Current AI is actually an algorithm that uses a highly advanced predictive text to determine what the most likely word will be given their dataset. It is not capable of thought, reasoning, and certainly not emotions. Any sign of personality from within the program is coding designed to present information in a specific way.
This is important to understand because many people, even those without mental health conditions, feel like and think like they’re talking to computer “person” that is responding to their thoughts. The algorithm is designed to sound like a human being, but it is essentially just a 100x more advanced version of the predictive text on a person’s phone. It is not thinking and has no consciousness of any kind.
How AI Can Trigger Psychological Challenges
With that in mind, modern versions of AI Chatbots:
Sound like people, which makes it feel like you’re talking to a person.
Write with authority, so it makes it appear they “know” what they’re talking about.
Are marketed as if they’re artificial intelligence, rather than just a dataset algorithm.
Has no concept of right or wrong and cannot understand the user’s intent.
Can be intentionally/unintentionally programmed to respond in different ways.
Now, imagine a scenario where someone both doesn’t understand what AI is, and then also struggles with their mental health. It’s easy to see how this computer algorithm on the other end may cause issues that lead to further mental health challenges. For example:
Paranoia/Loss of Reality – Those that are struggling with issues related to paranoia or delusions may equate what chatbots say as either reality or hiding reality. Because these bots can be essentially told to answer questions in mysterious ways based on user prompts, it’s possible for individuals to misinterpret AI interactions as signs of a higher power, AI tracking, government interference, and more.
Depression – Most well known Chatbots are programmed to be careful around depression and suicide related topics, but this programming is tenuous. There are many examples of people sharing information with the chatbot with responses that are not sensitive to the person’s mental health. As these chatbots are unable to think, they are not always capable of determining whether the language output they provide could be interpreted as encouraging self-harm.
Personality Disorder Challenges – Chat algorithms do not always elicit consistent responses. As a result, someone that has abandonment issues (for example, a person with borderline personality disorder) may find that they expect their chat to react a certain way. If it does not, they can interpret that as rejection or abandonment.
It’s also possible for people’s usage of these AI Chatbots to be used to fuel their own mental health challenges further. For example, a person with health anxiety may search these chatbots for diagnoses and get incorrect answers. Or someone with body dysmorphia may seek out validation of their eating habits.
Guardrails to Manage Mental Health and AI
AI’s affect on society runs far deeper than chatbots. It can be used for Deepfakes. It can fuel eating disorders by creating impossible standards of beauty. It can be manipulative. There are also the economic and ethical reasons to be cautious around AI. Plus, the term itself “AI” is misleading enough to warrant concern.
But one other thing we are seeing that we need to monitor even more is the way that “AI” is affecting people that are going through mental health crises. As therapists, we may even have to be aware of clients using programs like ChatGPT in order to make sure that we can be proactive in monitoring for the effects on Chatbots on our patients, and encourage them to be more aware of the way they feel when using these services.
The 4th of July is over. For some, it was a time of celebration, where we got together with friends and family for fun, enjoyable experiences filled with food, people, and fireworks. For many others, however, it is a triggering time. It is a time where issues like the loud noises of fireworks can trigger immense anxiety, stress, and fear.
Fireworks are often a trigger for those struggling with PTSD, as the loud and surprising noises can all create issues from unresolved past experiences. That is why now is a good time to ask yourself whether or not it is time to start seeking treatment for your past traumas.
How Did You Feel on July 4th?
If you’ve experienced trauma in the past that you’ve struggled to deal with, and you found that you were especially on edge during July 4th as a result of loud noises, bright lights, or even crowds, it may be a sign that you could have post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. PTSD can trigger many issues, including:
Hypervigilance – This is where you feel on edge or unsafe in an environment that should otherwise feel safe.
Flashbacks – This is when memories from the past flash into your mind, especially during loud noises or when surrounded by crowds.
Extreme Stress – This would describe you feeling as though you’re under extreme stress during these July 4th experiences, despite no clear stressful activity.
Those with PTSD may also have trouble sleeping not only the night of July 4th, but the following days, or may experience emotional or even psychological detachment caused by feeling overstressed and overstimulated.
What is EMDR?
Studies have found that one of the reasons that trauma may be impacting people long after the event is because the stress of the event disrupts the normal processing response. In a way, it cause the event to be “stuck” and fragmented in the brain, which in turn causes people to relive the stress and be unable to move it to long term processing, where a person can start coping with it.
One of the most effective known solutions for this is Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing, or EMDR. The focus of EMDR is to help people re-process a traumatic event and move the traumatic event into long term memory so that it is then unable to trigger the same physiological and emotional distress.
EMDR is a unique process that helps people process events through eye movements, sounds, and other forms of stimulation to help them maneuver the event through the normal cognitive processing channels, in order to help them process it, reduce its intensity, and heal. It is very effective, and while it is not right for all patients, those that are candidates for EMDR find it to be one of the most effective tools available for overcoming trauma.
It is especially useful to consider EMDR right after something like July 4th – something that has triggered the emotions. Some believe this can make it easier to access them and process them, resulting in better overall outcomes.
Seeking Psychotherapy for Trauma After July 4th
If the Fourth of July caused you to experience psychological challenges related to trauma, let’s talk about it. Reach out to Flourish Psychology today and let’s talk about your struggles and how we can help you manage your trauma and experience a better July 4th next year.
When a person has a traumatic experience, it can linger in the brain. Studies have shown that one of the reasons that people experience issues like PTSD is because their mind struggles to process the emotional significance of the trauma, and the trauma then lingers in the mind, bouncing around and causing anxiety and distress.
It’s one of the primary reasons that EMDR has been so successful at treating PTSD. EMDR helps a person process the event in a safe setting, helping move it to the long term storage part of the brain and reducing the distress that it causes.
Still, when we say something is “stuck” in the brain, what does that mean? Where is it stuck?
Let’s talk about it.
Where a Trauma is Stuck in the Mind
One thing to understand is that when we say that a traumatic event is “stuck” in the brain, this isn’t metaphorical. There are specific brain regions involved in how trauma is recalled, stored, and processed. During a traumatic events, those systems are overwhelmed and dysregulated, causing trauma to feel like it’s ongoing.
For those that have this unresolved trauma, it’s stored in several places. These include:
Amygdala – The Amygdala is what stores the emotional intensity of the event. During a traumatic event, it tags the memory as “dangerous,” which is partially what leads to these feelings of being on high alert (even in safe environments), cause panic at otherwise mild triggers, and lead to heightened anxiety and stress. The amygdala also has no concept of time, which may explain why a person feels like they’re still living the event.
Hippocampus – While the amygdala governs emotion and alertness, the hippocampus helps form and organize memories, placing them in a logical timeline. Under extreme stress, hippocampal activity can become impaired. Traumatic experiences may be stored as sensory fragments or disorganized impressions, rather than coherent, narrative memories. This may cause flashbacks, intrusive images, and more. There is even research that shows that the hippocampus may shrink after a traumatic event, making it harder to process additional memories.
Prefrontal Cortex – In a healthy stress response, the prefrontal cortex helps regulate the amygdala and integrate emotional memory with reasoning. But during trauma – or when trauma has been left unprocessed – this area often becomes underactive. The prefrontal cortex helps distinguish between a real threat and a perceived one. When it is dysregulated, the brain struggles to tell the difference. It also has a difficult time with decision making or accessing calming thoughts.
When we say that trauma gets “stuck” in the brain, it’s not entirely an exaggeration. It may not be stuck in the literal sense, but the way that it fragments and deregulates the brain’s functions means that it’s always bouncing around in there, causing ongoing issues. Addressing the trauma then requires figuring out how to help the brain process it the way it would process any event – helping it get unstuck.
Processing Trauma to Move Forward
What makes trauma different from other negative experiences is not only the intensity, but also the way it bypasses normal memory systems. If the brain doesn’t fully process and integrate the experience, it may remain stored in a raw, emotionally charged form – especially in the amygdala and sensory systems. These unprocessed fragments can be reactivated by smells, sights, sounds, or even thoughts that are only loosely related to the original event.
Therapies such as EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), somatic experiencing, and trauma-informed cognitive behavioral therapy work by helping the brain complete the processing of these memories. The goal is to shift the trauma from an ongoing alarm to something that is recognized as part of the past.
Even if trauma feels deeply embedded, it does not have to stay that way. With the right support, the brain can begin to rewire and recover – moving the trauma out of a reactive loop and into long-term memory where it no longer dictates how we feel in the present.
If you’re struggling with trauma, reach out to Flourish Psychology today. Let’s have our team help you process trauma, using EMDR and other therapies to help you move forward. Contact us today to get started.
Recently, Dr. Sadi Fox of Flourish Psychology was featured on Fox Weather to discuss the way that severe weather patterns can affect our mood. Take a look!
Usually, when we talk about the way weather affects mood, we are primarily focused on issues like seasonal depression. But weather can affect our mood in some wany ways. Even the heat!
Right now, millions of people are living through Hurricane Season. It’s now even become something we have to worry about more in New York! Sadi addresses the way that weather can affect our mood, and more!
Take a look and reach out to Flourish Psychology with any additional questions, or if you want to learn more about our psychotherapy services.
Location: 300 Cadman Plaza West Floor 12 - Brooklyn, NY 11201
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