Mental Health Self-Diagnosis: The Dangers of TikTok and A.I.

Mental health information from social media and AI can be misleading and potentially harmful. While increased acceptance of mental health issues is positive, self-diagnosis through TikTok or AI often leads to misinformation and misunderstanding of complex conditions.

• Over 50% of mental health information on TikTok is inaccurate
• Even mental health professionals often disagree on diagnoses
• The same diagnosis manifests differently in different people
• Everyone experiences anxiety – it becomes problematic when it interferes with daily life
• Focus on where symptoms interfere with your life rather than seeking labels
• Research shows the most powerful agent of change is having someone trusted to talk to
• Be an informed consumer of mental health information
• For crisis situations, call 988 or seek professional help immediately

Chapters

• 0:00 Introducing Mental Health Information Online
• 3:01 The Problem with Digital Self-Diagnosis
• 6:40 Anxiety: Normal vs. Problematic
• 11:30 Finding Reliable Help and Resources
• 15:24 Being an Informed Consumer

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Hey, welcome to a mini episode of No Shrinking Violets. I'm going to talk today about something that I've been thinking about a lot, and I hesitated to talk about this earlier because I think it's really controversial. And I want to make sure that I'm being really clear with the insights or opinions that I'm giving. I want to talk a little bit about using social media, specifically TikTok or AI, to get mental health information. So, first, let me say that over my 35 years in the field, I have seen a huge increase in the acceptance of mental health concerns as legitimate, as something that we all deal with. And people are being much more open about the struggles that they have. And I think this helps so much because I know my generation, and especially my parents' generation, really was characterized by the idea that you pull yourself up by your bootstraps. You just tough it out. And in some cases, I think this is true. I think it's important. But I think in other instances, it can feel isolating to really, really struggle and believe that we're the only one that is struggling or that we're broken. So the first thing that I want to say about that idea of being broken is no one is broken. It doesn't matter how broken you feel. We all handle situations that come up in the best way that we know how. And sometimes we end up at the end of a road when we have no idea how we got there. And we have a lot of things to fix, but we got there because we were just trying. We're just trying to feel better. So I like the idea that we've increased our acceptance of mental health issues. I think we've overcorrected because I think there's a lot shared on social media about how bad people feel. And sometimes it's romanticized. And I'm not going to go down that road too much, at least in this episode. But I want to talk more about using social media and AI to diagnose. So, first of all, let me give you a little foundation. Licensed mental health professionals use the DSM 5 TR, which stands for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders. It's edition 5, TR stands for text revision, because what happens with the DSM is that as we learn more and we become more understanding of neurodivergent issues and simply how depression looks, anxiety looks, all of those things, we adjust. And so it's actually edition five, but there's already a revision, and that what that's what the TR means. So there's not even agreement among professionals developing the diagnoses, first of all, that when the next revisions come out, there is a lot of debating and discussing. And some people walk away from the table. Typically, these are psychiatrists, mental health professionals, walk away from the table, not getting what they think is right into the book, into the manual. So some of the diagnoses themselves can be controversial. There's conflicting opinions about it. But the other part that I think is even probably more important is that when a professional is using the symptom checklist, because each type of diagnosis comes with a checklist, they are not even 100% agreeing. So it wasn't uncommon or hasn't been uncommon for me to get case notes on a new client and see a diagnosis that I would have never considered for someone. So you have to remember first that mental health professionals are human and also people's situations change. So that's one of the first things that I want to put a little asterisk beside that it's very, very, very rare for me to discuss a diagnosis with a client. It might be interesting to know that. One of the things that occurs though is that people create diagnoses and they will share their experience. And this may have happened to you. You can identify with what they're saying. And, you know, you may think, oh, that sounds like me. I must, that must be my diagnosis. I understand wanting to have a label for something, but often they're either not true diagnoses or they're not accurate. How a diagnosis is exhibited in a person or is expressed in a person varies widely. I could give you five different people with the diagnosis of generalized anxiety disorder, and that is going to show up in their lives totally differently. You can even use the idea of autism spectrum disorder, totally different. That's why it's called a spectrum. So one of the things that I want you to think about when you want answers is what is bothering you. Think about what are you experiencing? Where is it interfering with your ability to be successful, to go out into the world and do what you really want to do? Where is it affecting your relationships? Those types of things. Start with that. The concern I have about using things like TikTok, where actually over 50% of the information on there is inaccurate. Or when you're using AI, AI is pulling information from all over the place. And often it puts it together inaccurately, or it will simplify a treatment. So if you're saying to ChatGPT, how do I cope with anxiety? First of all, there are literally hundreds of ways that you can cope with anxiety. So if you think about a mashup of all of that, likely what you're going to get will have nuggets of truth. But my real concern is that people will think that is the end all and be all, and they cannot, that that's not effective for them. So then it creates a worsening situation because, oh, well, I asked ChatGPT, it said to do this, and it doesn't work for me. So I must really be broken. And let me give you an example that I read online that eating an orange in the shower reduces anxiety. Now that sounds ridiculous. And it's an example of I think what we like to do with a mental health issue. We want there to be something that often we want there to be something that is quick. What can I do that's going to solve this? You didn't get anxiety overnight or depression overnight. These things are really complex. And there may be what we call a precipitating event, the thing that seems to kick it off. But a lot of times there are things underlying that. So let me talk a little bit about this eating an orange in the shower. Can that work? Well, for sure, because first of all, you're concentrating on something else. And mindfulness is one of the most powerful ways to deal with anxiety. So if you're in the shower, first of all, and you're peeling an orange or you're eating an orange, there's a lot of other stuff going on, but you're not thinking about the worries that you have. Your brain can't truly do two things at once. So you can't worry about the exam coming up or worry about the date you have that night or whatever the worry is, and then feeling that anxiety if you're concentrating on eating an orange while water is pouring over your head. And I'm not trying to make light of it, but it could actually work really well for people because they are finally feeling relief from the rumination, from the constant thinking. But it's simply an example of how we like to take something that is off the wall or seems very simple and apply it across the board. It's difficult to figure out what is going to work for each person. And that's why there are therapists. And I am not saying at all that every therapist is effective because that is 100% not true. What concerns me is when people go to a therapist, they don't feel it's working, they don't feel heard, and then they say therapy doesn't work. It's the same with anything. You can hire somebody to put a roof on your house and the roof can leak. You can have a doctor, a medical doctor, and you don't feel heard, or the diagnosis is wrong, or the medication is wrong. There are humans trying to treat humans. So let me go back to when you're looking for answers, the first thing to focus on is where are things interfering with your ability to live a life like you want to. Another thing that I think it's important to remember, and this is something that is certainly exacerbated by social media, is it will take things that all of us experience and portray them as something that is serious for everyone. Example, anxiety. Every single person in the world experiences anxiety. If we did not have any anxiety, we would be in more danger because we would walk across the street without looking for cars, or we would um, I don't know, leave our doors unlocked in an area with high crime. The things that we're equipped with, we're equipped to have these types of feelings inside to keep us safe. When anxiety gets out of control, when it starts to exert itself in our lives to the point that we are not able to do things that we want to do, to go out on a date, to even leave our house, or to make a phone call. Sometimes, well, often anxiety will exert itself in very specific ways for different people. But everyone feels anxiety. You cannot create a life where there's no anxiety, nor should you, because it would be dangerous. When we think about feelings or emotions or the experience of something like anxiety, I want people to understand that we're supposed to feel that. It is, again, when it gets in the way of things that you want, it keeps you from expressing concerns to a partner so that you can have your needs met or you can be safer. Or, you know, thinking about, again, I'm going to circle back to the beginning. If you are bothered by different, what we'll say, mental health concerns, things like depression and anxiety, look at where they're interfering. If you are feeling hopeless, that is a whole other thing. That is a situation where you call the 988 crisis number, you go to psychologytoday.com and you search for a therapist in your area. And often you are going to be able to do a consultation call with them first. So you can talk about what your concerns are. They can make sure they're a good fit, they can determine a little bit how serious this is. Getting information from places other than Google or ChatGPT or TikTok is really, really important because the biggest agent of change, and this is supported by research, is simply having somebody trusted to talk to. That is the most important thing. As humans, we're meant to connect. So when you sit in isolation and you look for answers, or you talk to somebody online that says they have the exact symptoms you do, that can be a good source of support to start. But you don't know that person's life. And there can be a lot of things that are inaccurate, or the person that you're talking to doesn't have your best interest at heart. So I think you can tell by now this trend of looking for answers online, whatever, whether it's social media, whether it's AI, um, whether it's just Googling something, please check your sources. Make sure it's coming from a reputable source. If you're listening to a podcast, try to understand where the host is coming from. How are they trained? Are they only using their own experiences to give you information? I want you to be an informed consumer of information. And most importantly, I want you to get the help you need. So remember that any mental health concern can look the same on the surface. We certainly have universal similarities as people. But your situation, you are a unique person. So be a little bit savvy in looking at the information online. Be very aware that a lot of it can seem verified, it can seem reliable, but be careful of the information. And if there's anything that gives the impression that a serious mental health concern. So deep depression, where you have trouble functioning, or a level of anxiety that leaves you feeling like you're having physical issues. A lot of people use the word panic attack when it's really just a severe anxiety attack. But if you feel like you're physically dying, it could be a panic attack. That's still going to be different than somebody else's panic attack. So remember that you're a unique person. Find, certainly find those commonalities because I don't want you to feel like you're alone. But if you have a feeling of crisis, if you feel that you're in danger, talk to someone, talk to a friend, call 988, find someplace to start. But if you are in a situation that we'll say is not a crisis, it's not an emergent situation, you just want to feel better, start by reflecting on where are these issues getting in the way? What does it feel like? Where do I feel most like my life is out of control? Where do I want to create change? And know that there are many, many people that feel like life is hard every single day. It does get better, but being able to approach the issue with a little bit armed with a little bit of knowledge, just be aware of your sources and start to look at where do you want to experience change. And then if you feel like you want to work with a coach, there is a lot out there. Just make sure they're trained, make sure they're certified. If you want to work with a therapist, I recommend starting with psychologytoday.com because therapists or other mental health professionals, we are licensed by states. You need to work with someone that is in the state where you are. Actually, they have to be licensed in the state. I could be anywhere. I could be in, I don't know, Tahiti right now or Spain, as long as my client is in Pennsylvania, because that's where my license is. So be armed with information, be discerning, be really careful, and just start with what is bothering you, where is it getting in the way, and where do you want to start to create change? And until next time, go out into the world and be the amazing, resilient, vibrant violet that you are.