Q: What do you do if you can’t find a therapist to see where you live? Either because the options aren’t…. great // there aren’t options // cost of care // etc:

A: Have you considered the option of therapy using an AI (artificial intelligence) platform.

Real talk: There’s not enough therapists to meet the need for high quality mental healthcare. AI technology is interesting – and exciting – because if it’s effective, then we could help more people AND lower the cost of high quality mental healthcare.

No, I’m not talking about having a robot like Wall-E or R2-D2 be your therapist.

… But what about chatbots?

There’s AI chatbots that do therapy. They’re programmed by therapists, and they’re designed to help people who can’t access therapy (for whatever reason).

Chatbots AREN’T a fit for everyone, but using a chatbot could be an illuminating experience.

There are a TON of startups in the mental health space. If I were you, I would check out @HiWoebot – which is free!! Here’s what starting to chat with @HiWoebot looks like:

[Special note: I’m an addition to the new clinical diversity advisory board over at Woebot. Just want to be transparent!]

I’ve heard from people that the thought of trying an AI therapist seems “weird” or “potentially frustrating” because the AI chatbots on customer service platforms, well, suck. I’ve been pretty impressed with how these ^^ chatbots engage with users.

So there’s the thread! I’m really interested in how to make mental healthcare more accessible AND equitable, and I hope that this thread helps someone.