AI & Mental Health - between stories

AI & Mental Health

PART 3: What Therapy Requires That Simulation Cannot Provide

What makes psychotherapy irreducible to supportive language? Sometimes what changes us most is not what is said, but what becomes possible between people when something difficult can finally be held without collapse. A sentence may soothe, or a reflection may feel perfectly accurate, and simulated empathy can offer real relief

AI & Mental Health

PART 2: Why Simulated Care Feels Like Care, but isn't

Even when we know an AI system is not conscious, humans often describe interactions with these systems as comforting and emotionally meaningful (Howcroft et al., 2026; Rahsepar Meadi et al., 2025). This paradox—the feeling of relational presence in something without subjective awareness—sits at the heart of modern AI

Scrabble letters laid out on a white table spelling the word therapy with some green plants.

AI & Mental Health

PART 1: Beginning a Critical Inquiry

I’ve begun digging more deeply into the growing body of research surrounding artificial intelligence in mental health care and what I’ve found has left me with more questions than answers. AI is increasingly framed as a solution to the mental health access crisis. Chatbots designed to simulate therapy