Hello everyone, welcome to the Said in Therapy Podcast. Have you ever considered going to therapy and you ended up not going? My question is why? In my humble opinion, I believe everyone can benefit from therapy. In fact, I believe everybody should go at least once in their life. My name is Iman Tohami, and I'm a psychologist. This podcast tells you all about everyday cases with everyday people who have everyday problems and difficulties, and sometimes they carry around really deep wounds. These are their stories.
SPEAKER_02Hi everyone. Happy New Year. It's 2026. And I really hope you had an easy transition into the year. Whether you stayed at home, like me, or you basically celebrated somewhere. I really hope you had some fun. And yeah, like every year, I think I didn't do that last year, but like um the last two years, I always um released the first episode of the year on my birthday, which is today. And I really need to make the remark to everybody who lives in Europe. I was really born that day in Germany, in Cologne. So please don't come for me and tell me when is your real birthday. It's really my real birthday. That aside, I want to apologize in advance. The recording quality on my site wasn't so good, but I edited as much as I can, so I hope you can still enjoy the conversation that I had with my very dear friend Amanda, who agreed to do this with me very last minute. And yeah, I will not share too much about it without further ado. Just jump in and I hope you really enjoy this conversation. And yeah, just to answer the most common question that I got, the podcast will be back in 2026. Happy New Year, everyone.
SPEAKER_01Okay, Amanda. Hi.
SPEAKER_00Hi, Iman. I'm so happy to be here with you.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, thank you so much for doing this. And it was very last minute, and I know that this was kind of uh random, but I'm so grateful that you're here and doing this with me. Uh I'm so happy to be here. Do you want me to tell talk a little about myself? Yes, please. I just wanted to tell you, introduce yourself because the people who are listening to my podcast are usually very curious and they want to know everything. So tell us as much as you can and as much as you want.
SPEAKER_00Okay, my name is Amanda. I am an attorney and I'm from the United States originally. I moved overseas to Ireland uh approximately 10 years ago, and then on to the Netherlands, where I met Iman and became very fast friends with her. And I'm so grateful and delighted that I had the opportunity to meet and become friends with Iman and now to be here. Although I was traditionally educated as an attorney, I worked in child safety in big tech. And now I stay at home with my three little kids who are four, almost three, and just one year old.
SPEAKER_01And I um and you recently moved back to the States.
SPEAKER_00Yes, we just moved to Texas, and it's been a huge cultural shift, I'd say, much more so than even moving to Europe. So it's definitely been interesting.
SPEAKER_01So yeah, Amanda has been sending me random bits of American life, and it's super funny because it's basically full fulfilling every cliche I have about the statistics and about how they eat, how they live, and everything. But it's nice, and I think you're gonna be happy if you give it a chance. Insha'Allah.
SPEAKER_05InshaAllah.
SPEAKER_00What can I ask you this question, just building off what you said? What is one thing that I've sent you that's been surprising or unexpected about the United States so far?
SPEAKER_01Nothing really, nothing really, but I'm always super surprised about the way Americans eat. And I think um also a little bit slightly, I think slightly shocked because I grew up in Europe and not that I'm a super organic person or vegan in any way, but I like nutritious stuff. And when I look at videos, uh especially on social media, but also things you send me or show me, I'm so shocked how many things, for example, uh contain corn syrup. And corn, it's um I don't know if people know this or not, but I have been obsessed about this for a while. Uh, corn is basically genetically altered in the States. So I'm very afraid when I see these things. And but I guess it's just normal for people living there, and I don't think they overthink it anymore. Just see it as food and it is food. I don't want to bash the way they eat, but it's very unhealthy from my point of view.
SPEAKER_00You know what I mean? I think uh being here in the United States, you have to be super conscientious about what you're eating all the time. Whereas when I was in the Netherlands and even Ireland to a certain extent, you can just go to the grocery store and buy a loaf of bread or cheese or, you know, obviously produce milk and not think about it. Whereas here, you know, if I want to get the eggs where I feel like they've had a good life, I have to spend uh my eggs cost $10 or $11 right now. Wow. So that's crazy. And also you have to be really focused on all the labels.
SPEAKER_01Um yeah, crazy.
SPEAKER_00Um, I do have kind of an introductory question I wanted to ask you, sort of building off the fact that I've been to living in different countries, and obviously I know you are you are a cross-culture kid, I would say. And I want to play a game of this or that with you, if this is okay with you.
SPEAKER_01Oh, I love that. Yes. By the way, I have no idea what questions she's going to ask me. So you're all experiencing this with me for the first time before.
unknownGo ahead.
SPEAKER_00Okay, well, Iman, obviously, you know, you have roots and Egypt, Germany, the Netherlands, and the Emirates. So Dubai. So I wanted to play a game about which is the best for different things. So whether the best is Egypt, Germany, Netherlands, or Dubai specifically, because the Emirates is broad and I know you lived in Dubai. So uh I just want to quickly go through this list for you. So which is the best grocery shopping? Germany, most definitely. Okay, who who has the calmest people? The calm, oh my god.
SPEAKER_01Uh I think the Netherlands, they're a little bit more down to earth. Germans tend to be a little bit more aggressive. And Dwai is a melting pot of so many people, it's never calm there. And Egypt, I don't need to explain this too much. It's a very loud country. Their um definition of calm is very obvious stimulating for me at times.
SPEAKER_00So if Netherlands has the most calm people, then do you feel like that sometimes makes you feel calmer as a result or no?
SPEAKER_01That's a good question. I think so, yeah. Interacting with the Dutch is very simple and easy for me. And I think um I also love that they're very straightforward, so but you don't really you don't need to overthink the meaning of whatever someone is telling you. And I like that. I like that everything is very clear and direct. I know a lot of people consider this rude at times, but I really like it, and it gives me a lot of peace of mind, if you will.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and I think Dutch people really take pride in um in that uh perception of them, which is straightforward and direct. Okay. Yeah, I agree. I agree. Who has the best food?
SPEAKER_01Egypt, hands down. No, no, no, Dubai, Dubai is uh very close second just because the food is amazing, but food culture in Egypt is uh crazy. You can actually get a full meal at 3 a.m. just using your phone. Um I think Egypt has the best food, and you can't find everything in Egypt. So I I'm not specifically talking about Egyptian cuisine. I mean food. Food is the best in Egypt, I guess.
SPEAKER_00So that's a fair answer. And okay, just a couple more. Uh who has the funniest people? Oh, Egyptians. Egyptians are the funniest, of course. And what about the kindest people?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I think uh yeah, I think it's Egypt. It's Egypt, definitely. Okay. Uh and the smartest people? Yeah, I gotta go with Germany.
SPEAKER_00Okay, and the last wow, okay, and the last question I have is the best weather.
SPEAKER_01Uh I like Egypt. I love the UAD, even though summer is really hot, really hot, but I I love Egypt. I love the weather in Egypt because right now it's just a dream to go to Egypt. And uh Egyptians complain about cold, but the cold in Egypt is nothing compared to anything, you know, from the west, for example. It's really nice and cozy, and I love it.
SPEAKER_00This is a little bit of a loaded question because I, you know, I had never been to Egypt, but I've been to Germany and the Netherlands and Dubai, and I always talk to Iman about where maybe we would like to live someday. So I kind of want to feel you out a little bit to see where we're gonna go next together. Okay, uh just shifting gears, I do want to talk about you specifically, because I listened to some of your past podcasts, and I was most uh engaged when I hear things you talk about yourself, and I'm sure that your listeners will be as well. So I wanted to know what is your personal best form of self-care, yourself, when you're feeling down, when you're feeling not great, how do you take care of yourself and what works the best for you?
SPEAKER_01I guess the number one thing that always works for me is prayer, but the close second is probably reading and uh cooking. Like, I'm not someone who is um my activities are not over the top loud or super active. When I need to really take care of myself, I need me time and things where I can withdraw a little bit. So it's definitely reading, um drawing, and skincare later. Yeah, but I hate to say this because everybody is into skincare at the moment and I don't want to promote any type of skincare. But yeah, everything that really grounds me, you know, things that give me a sense of calm because I always feel my head is so full and so loud. My thoughts are so loud. So I need something that really grounds me and puts me back to the calm state.
SPEAKER_00I think what's interesting now because so many people talk about skincare or extreme exercise or going to the spa and like this is their self-care. And the reality is just it's literally just taking care of yourself and whatever that is that you need to take it. You know, I think that social media has transformed self-care into something that's um exorbitant and sometimes not achievable for so many people. Um and I wondered what you think about that. Yeah, I agree.
SPEAKER_01I think social media just promotes a totally unrealistic um way of life. People try to imitate almost what they see on social media because they think this is what makes them happy. Most of them don't really achieve what they see on social media because it's not real. But let's just say um they really get to use the products and go to places that they see on social media, they will quickly realize it doesn't really make them happy. And I have talked to multiple people, professionally and personally, who actually confirm that this is true. Even if you achieve or go to the places or buy the things you social on social media, it will not give you what you're looking for.
SPEAKER_00And so when you engage in prayer and reading and cooking and these things, you feel like this is really what helps you and what you would also recommend to uh your listeners or to your patients as well? Or do you feel like you know, obviously self-care is individualized for a certain degree, but what's something maybe that you would recommend to everyone to engage in in self-care that you know could benefit everyone?
SPEAKER_01See, that's a very tricky question because we are all so different. So whatever works for me might not work for you. And when I say, for example, prayer, other people would say, Yeah, but I'm not really religious, and then I would say, okay, try meditation maybe, but then you have those people who read don't find any type of peace when they do meditation because there are other things, um underlying issues they haven't really looked at. Because really going on a spiritual path, for example, takes a lot of discipline and takes a lot of um willpower, I think. So when I say prayer works for me, I'm not assuming that this is necessarily something that works for you. You really need to look inside yourself, and I know this sounds really cheesy, but understanding yourself also means to do a lot of um internal thinking and understanding what really moves you, what really uh makes you feel a certain way. And this is why I'm saying other people really find peace when they're really active. And if this is something that works for you, then great, go ahead and do that. I don't think that there's a universal thing that works for everybody, but I believe that if you have a spiritual connection to whatever it may be, I mean it's not a secret that I'm Muslim and I follow the uh I follow Islam, but I don't think that this is the only way to have a conversation with God. And I know this is very controversial, I will not go into too much detail because I'm not a preacher, but I do think um that connection is there and whatever works for you, try that, explore that and see if it works for you.
SPEAKER_00Iman, I know you work with atheists as well as very religious people and everyone along that spectrum. And I'm really curious, you know, obviously, prayer and uh kind of spirituality, if you tie those together, that's something that can help a lot of people with their mental health. And I wondered what is it that bridges that gap for people who are atheists, for example, with someone who is atheist, what can they do? Um, yeah, that's my first question. And I have a follow-up as well.
SPEAKER_01You know, if you look at it uh from uh just imagine it uh spectrum because even atheists have some type of connection to something. And I firmly believe if you fill that void with something, and it's going to be spiritual in any case, so if you explore that void, you will understand that there is something else that you need in order to find that sense of calmness that other people find in prayer, for example. Now, I have worked with atheists who came into my office, were at first super shocked that I'm hijabi because they were under the impression that I'm not. And I said, let's just give it a chance. I'm not here to convert you. Uh I have no interest in converting you. This is not my job. I'm here to listen to you and find out with you together what works for you. And I think a lot of people underestimate that void that I was talking about because when they are searching for something, and everybody is searching for something something, there's always that spiritual essence that comes along with it. And I think if you look at it from the perspective of okay, what do I really need, you will almost always find something that you would like to um consider bigger than you. So I had a lot of atheists talk about the universe that they don't really um believe in. They use that term's term anyway because there's just a lack of a better word. And then I was like, okay, let's just assume the universe is here to serve you. What would you ask the universe to do for you? And in that sense, you will always find out what that person needs and what they want. And sometimes they come up with the weirdest things, like I want a million dollars, for example. But then when we look underneath that request, the request, we find out it's not really about the million dollars. It's about what the million what they think the million dollars will get them. You know what I mean? It's always connection. I just want to highlight this. It's always connection, whether it is with other people or a higher power or whatever it is, it's always connection. People are always looking for connection.
SPEAKER_00Why do you suppose in the West, you know, I grew up in the Northeast of the United States, and many people there are agnostic or atheist. And it's almost like people in the Northeast tend sometimes to perceive religious people as being either uneducated or not really in the know. And I always found this really funny, especially since I moved away, um, that this is kind of like the intellectual elite, you know, people believe that, you know, atheism or being agnostic is really, you know, a smart choice. And I just find it interesting that they both find it is a smart choice and also it's the most can be not always, but it can be the most isolating choice. And that you talk a lot about connection with regard to that. And I think that sometimes those people are lacking connection. And I think that this sometimes can also perpetuate other problems that are prevalent in the Northeast, which is loneliness, depression, and sometimes, you know, looking to other things to fill that connection, just as you say.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I agree. I fully agree.
SPEAKER_00Uh, okay, so now what are your listeners really interested in, which is you? So I'm curious, what has something that you started or stopped since you turned 40 that has improved the quality of your life?
SPEAKER_01Oh I I stopped engaging in any type of drama. And I know it's funny because I thought I had stopped that way before, but I realized no, I had still a lot of drama in my life going on, coming from other people. And I really, once I entered 40, I was like, I'm not doing this anymore. I just can't, I don't have the capacity for that. Because also, I was pregnant when I was 40, so when I turned 40, I was just pregnant with my second. And um, it was a very hard pregnancy for me, and I just didn't have the head space for anything, and then I realized, oh my god, I didn't know that I allowed so much drama into my life, into my space. And it was very it was such a relief because I realized how much better my life had become after I cut all of these things out of my life. So yeah, I fully recommend everybody to do this. Look at your life very closely and understand what the drama is coming from and cut it out.
SPEAKER_00I think that's good advice. And uh okay, a little been switching years, but it's I'm really curious about this. Uh especially because I do think social media can perpetuate kind of like groupthink about things. And sometimes it is drama, but sometimes it's other things. And one thing I've been seeing a lot of recently, and I know we've talked about in the past, is ADHD. Like ADHD everywhere on social media, everyone thinks they have it now. You know, there's a huge spectrum. And I personally I've I get so much um information myself about how to operate, how to optimize, how to run my day in a more productive way. And I just wondered, why do you think ADHD is trending right now so much on social media? And how should we approach it when we see posts like this all over the place?
SPEAKER_01So there is an interesting part about ADHD, ADHD people really don't know about, um, which is basically tunnel vision and focusing on something like I I know a lot of people with ADD and ADHD when they are really, really interested in something, they become really obsessed with it. So I have had a very close friend in my past who randomly became obsessed um with hormones and how hormones uh hormones affect the human body. And at the end, I swear, I was like, I think now it's time to write a book about hormones because you really got all the information and you can do whatever you want about uh with this information. You know everything, and I was not kidding about it because she went to the library to read about hormones, to what she watched a billion documentaries about hormones, and then she basically debate with the documentary how the documentary was just wrong about the hormones. And she knew everything, and she had ADHD. And when you interact with her in in daily life, you would see how easily distracted she was. But when it came to certain topics. And she was really interested in them. She really dissected them to the and she broke it down to a bare minimum. So someone who is not interested in hormones, for example, would just understand the basics of hormones just when she was talking to you because she knew so much about it. So there is that thing. Most people don't really know that this is a huge part of ADHD. And what's happening at the moment is especially because social media is so fast, videos and reels and posts became so short. The attention span of people became also short. So when I don't know if you'd noticed, but I have watched um no, I listened to a podcast about film producers and filmmaking and actors. And the sad basically movies had to be much shorter, shorter than they used to be, because people don't follow anymore. And also they needed to dump down conversations and and um basically interactions, and or when something happens in the movie, they basically had to say it out loud because people use their phone when they are watching a movie, and they're not giving a movie the full attention anymore. So what people see as ADHD or ADD is basically just you got you got used to a very short attention span, and you are not using the full capacity of your brain anymore because everything is so quick, everything is so so um colorful and fast. And when you sit down and you basically want to read a book, for example, you struggle at first. Like you struggle to to finish the first page or the second page. Or sometimes people tell me they used to read three books a week, for example, and now they struggle with just finishing the first 20 pages without rereading them because they don't remember what they read. So a huge part of that is basically the use of devices, the use of social media. Now, ADHD is real. ADD is real. Um it's not something that I they take lightly. I know that a lot of people who have ADHD, and you can see it in children very easily. And this is something you really need to take care of. But at the same time, if you struggle with that and you're a little bit older, it's worth considering that all the influence that you have in your life in terms of electronics and devices and whatnot, it's worth looking at it and thinking for a while. Maybe if I cut it, cut these things out of my life for a week, maybe your attention gets better. And if it does, if it does, there is a huge probability that you actually don't have ADHD or ADD.
SPEAKER_00Do you suppose then that we aren't really increasing the amount of people with ADHD just by the societal pressures or I guess influences that we experience now, that's what's causing more people to have these ADD or ADHD-like symptoms. So you're not saying it's not increasing the amount of people with ADHD necessarily.
SPEAKER_01No, I no, no, no. I don't think that the amount of people uh well, I will also say that a lot of ADHD and ADD cases went on went unnoticed because people back then didn't have the tools to diagnose these conditions correctly. Same with autism, for example. Um but I don't think that the cases increased. I do think that the circumstances um we are in are supporting ADHD-like symptoms.
SPEAKER_00And it's really interesting. Um, and I think, you know, it's just something that everyone can benefit from, right? Like putting your phone down for a week or using the grayscale, for example, or leaving your phone in a different room, or, you know, other things like that can be so beneficial to your focus and ability to think clearly.
SPEAKER_01You you know, I I'm fully aware it's very hard to just switch off your phone for an entire week, but maybe just start with putting your phone or leaving your phone in another room when you go to bed. It will dramatically improve your sleep and the way you behave before you fall asleep and the way you behave after you wake up. And that alone will give you so much energy and change your life in ways you really cannot anticipate. You really just need to try it for a week. I challenge everybody to try it in 2026 for a week.
SPEAKER_00Even I don't, you know, I'm I have three little kids, so I'm awake every night, multiple times a night, always nursing at night. And the nights that I don't pick up my phone and I just sit, you know, I fall asleep easier. My kids are more settled as well, the lights now waking them up. Um, you know, it definitely uh you can immediately see an effect of that. And I'm sure if you do it night after night after night, the cumulative effect would be dramatic as well. Yes, I agree. Um, and I know you've spoken about this particular topic probably ad nauseam at this point, but I'm really curious. So I do have to ask you, what do you think, if any, will be the ultimate downfall of AI? Do you think there's going to be one event that brings down kind of AI? Or do you think it will be a long succession of things? Or, you know, I know you've spoken about this, but I want to give you the option. Do you think it will thrive and improve all of us forever and ever and ever? What do you think?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's a very complicated topic. I'm really so for those people who don't know, I did my PhD thesis in AI and um the effects on society it might have. And then that was before ChatGBT just emerged out of nothing. And when ChatGBT came, I was kind of shocked. Like everybody else who had to do with the field or worked in the field or knew about the field, because it was really quick. We nobody anticipated ChatGBT to be the way it is, but at the same time, it's also not as powerful as people think. For me, when I look at ChatGBT, it's basically um Google on steroids. So anything you want to know, you can ask ChatGBT, but it will not replace um human interaction. This is also why um AI-generated tools for psychology or uh people who tried to replace their therapists with ChatGBT ultimately failed because that human aspect is missing. And you will learn very quickly how that human aspect is so important for human interaction. But at the same time, when I look into the future, I don't know if this is something that is um replaceable or dangerous. I guess what is the when I think about the downfall of AI, I basically think, okay, they the only thing that might stop AI is basically a war on resources. Basically, I know this is very dramatic, but what I mean by that is that we don't simply don't have the electricity for it anymore. As simple as that. And and if that doesn't happen, um, I don't believe that there will be some type of a copypse, for example, where AI just takes over the world. But I do believe that it will change society as a whole, and I also do believe that people will leave tech companies, and I also think that the importance of tech will become less, even though I know this is a contradiction, but people will go back to in order to make money, people um will go back to using their hands and offer products where you actually need your hands, you know what I mean? Yeah, because because for a while everybody was just gravitating towards tech and big tech, and now you see the trend as kind of reversing, and people start um opening small businesses, and they just go back to being more create creative and using their creative skills. And I think this is definitely an area where people will just go back to because they have no choice. AI will definitely take over a lot of things people do in day-to-day in big tech. I do believe that. But at the same time, I don't I don't see robots taking over the words, word, you know. So it's very complicated. I don't have a straightforward answer, but if you ask me what can stop AI, it's definitely a war on resources.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, listen, you know, I worked in uh obviously I worked in uh big tech for several years, and I'm very familiar with, for instance, like content moderation, right? And I think that even though people think AI is better than humans and they they are going to replace their jobs, personally, I don't see it anytime in the in the near future, uh, simply because the decision making that you have to make really does have human elements and cultural elements. And I just don't think that ChatGBT specifically has this level of nuance and understanding and cultural context that it can come up with again and again and again and again. And you see that when you see it make repeated decisions or you ask again and again and again to make the same choice and it changes its mind or whatever. And I think that humans actually have a unique ability that we undervalue when it comes to things like you know, content moderation specifically, which employs so many people globally. Um anyway, bringing it to you, how do you use AI and how do your patients use it? And I know it can't replace therapy, but what are some things that you think are are good uses of ChatGBT, for example?
SPEAKER_01Here is what many people, for example, don't know. Um, we had in the last two years an increase of people coming to therapy because chat GBT completely messed them up. This is the negative, yes, this is the negative side of ChatGBT where people were just basically speaking to this tool and they didn't turn off memory, so they would be just ChatGBT was just collecting data on them and then giving them advice based on um conversation they had before, and it created this echo chamber where they basically always agreed with the person they were uh uh the tool. Yeah, Chat GBT was always agreeing with the person they were talking to, and or it was talking to. And then in the end, it basically just made everything worse because therapy is not only about um cuddling you or embracing you or motivating you. No, it's also about confrontation and telling you when something isn't right, and it's also about encouraging you to um to use critical thinking to understand your life better and to look for better tools. That's very uncomfortable. And ChatGBT doesn't do that, you know. And therapy is not meant to be like the space where oh, you are always happy. In fact, I guess if you ask 90% of my patients, I will tell you there were a time sessions where they actually hated me just because of the confrontation they had in that session and urging them to own their own life and feel that they have to be accountable for their own um actions and life. Well, but you also asked me what is a good use for ChatGPT. And I think this is something I really believe in, but we still don't have a refined tool that does that for us. Basically, to have a tool that psychologists can use and send it to their um potential petitions and tell them, hey, speak to this tool for a while so I can figure out what type of therapy form you might need, what type of treatment you might need. So basically, doing all the groundwork that you have to do before you can actually start proper treatment. And I think I would really love to see that. And I think that is something that you definitely can accomplish.
SPEAKER_00But don't you think there's a human element of trust? Like inherently, when you're speaking to a computer, I mean, over time, you can build trust with a machine because you know, there's no judgment, right? And I think this is probably the biggest appeal with talking to AI. It's if no one's gonna judge you for your own thoughts, your actions, you know, and that sort of gives you freedom to open up. But at the same time, one of the essential elements of having a human therapist is that you are uh mutually opening up a little bit at times, you know, like you're you're sharing information, you see a person, you see their physical, facial reactions, you hear the tone of their voice. You know, there's so many elements that I think are important in having a human being as your therapist. And um, it's just it's essential, I think, uh to have a real person there. Um, but when I went, you know, I just recently this week came across a woman that's a mom and she was using ChatGPT for a glow-up, right? So this is like such a cheesy term, I'm sorry, but glow up in the sense that like it she asked ChatGPT to tell her something to do every day to make herself feel better. And I wondered, what do you think about things like that? Or is that even in itself a slippery slope?
SPEAKER_01No, I don't think it's actually uh great because ChatGPT is familiar with cognitive behavior therapy. So cognitive behavior therapy is basically training you to um build new habits that are good for you. So obviously, if ChatGBT tells you you have to eat every day a bar of chocolate, that would be really questionable. So that's not good for you. But if ChatGBT is, for example, telling you, hey, make sure you go out every day and go on a walk, yes, I can totally get behind that. But at the same time, it's very, very complicated because I believe the more data you feed a machine about your life, the more exposure you have. And I know I have spoken about this a lot in the past, but I think you really need to be very stingy with the information you give the internet. There's already so much about us under internet flow, especially for us millennials, I feel, because we grew up with this with technology evolving very quickly, and we just fed the internet so much information about ourselves, specifically um sites like Facebook or Twitter. And sometimes when I look back at the things that I posted on Facebook, I I create it's like, why did I ever share this on Facebook? You know? And I feel that type of information is important. And people will tell me, I have nothing to hide. Yes, maybe you have nothing to hide, but what you don't understand is the companies gather this type of information uh for the very least to sell you things, you know, and uh and sell you things that you don't need. Like they want you to chase happy happiness in turn in in trying to buy more and get getting more. So just for that, but like worry about your bank account, you know. Don't give the um tools so much power power over you because they know exactly what you're looking for. I use ChatGPT without memory, and I um I often take um ChatGPT for rides, so I just feed ChatGPT with totally false information just to see if they can figure out the right information or not. So I test the tool a lot. Um, but at the same time, I also like ask ChatGPT like, okay, give me what are 20% from the sum, for example. And then I say, oh, that's not accurate, and then they then ChatGBT tries to correct itself. And it's really funny, you really have to try this, and then you will realize that that tool is really not as smart, as smart as it seems. I find is um very dangerous. Just don't feed the internet too much of your information. Yeah, I agree. And do you know I think I think you you can actually tell us more about that because you have been in the field, and I guess you saw how much information people were feeding the internet.
SPEAKER_00I mean, really, when you think about big tech, this is what is capital is information about yourself. And so if you think about how like Facebook or Instagram or TikTok, how do they make money? It's really just because you're giving them information and they're trading that information with other people. Um another big danger that I think is essential to consider when you're using ChatGPT or you know, any other media is uploading photos of yourself or your family can be very, very dangerous for many different reasons. Yeah, it's you know, I work specifically in child safety. And now with the existence and prevalence of AI, it becomes much, much more risky to upload pictures of your children, especially um, you know, now that they are little and that that photo can live on in perpetuity on the internet. So, you know, it's definitely something to think about, think twice about before you do that. Do you ever use AI for cooking? Oh, yeah, all the time.
SPEAKER_01All the time. That's the easiest thing. Like I use Chat GBT often. It's not like that. I don't use the tool or Claude, I also dive into Claude. This is not uh um an advertisement, by the way. These are really the tools I that I use. I asked them for recipes sometimes, I ask them for the weather. I'm that random, and you know that about me, Amanda. I'm so random. I think about so many things during the day, and yeah, I outsource my random thoughts to ChBT and yeah.
SPEAKER_00Um okay, man, let's see. I have a question for you. What's your so so tomorrow is your real birthday, right? Or today. No, tomorrow. And and so it's really your birthday. Oh yeah, today. Yeah, we are recording what the day before.
SPEAKER_01Yes.
SPEAKER_00Well, I just wonder, you know, your birthday is placed at such a time around the new year where it's perfect to reflect on the year past and it's perfect to reflect on the year ahead. And um I want you to think about what is one hope you have for yourself now in the year ahead, looking forward.
SPEAKER_01Uh, you know, Amanda, I was just thinking since the pandemic, the um it it it's just such a difficult time for a lot of people since 2020. Now, during the pandemic, I actually had a blast. I love being at home with my family, but I recognized how difficult life has become ever since the pandemic. And for 2026, I'm just hoping for peace. And I mean that my heart is speaking when I'm telling you I hope for peace. And I hope for peace, not only um for words to add, but also in my my own life. I just feel so overwhelmed at times and overstimulated. So, this is the one thing that I will actually really work for. I will try to minimize as much as I can um to to have too many conflicts and debates. And um, yeah, this is basically something. Maybe this is also because I'm turning 43. I'm just not into a lot of things anymore, but yeah, I'm looking for peace.
SPEAKER_00So you think that for you and for other people to achieve that, you think just not engaging is the best choice, right?
SPEAKER_01No, of course, engage because I think connection, human connection is very important. But choose your battles wisely, and there is no life without hardship. This is a design I really want you people to understand. This life, the the ultimate design of life is yes, it can be beautiful and happy and and joyful, but it comes with hardship. There is no life without hardship. And I have dealt with princesses and sheikhs and and really wealthy people and the poorest of the poor, and I'm telling you, everybody is carrying and carrying their own baggage. So yeah, just embrace hardship and know it's part of the design. Verily, through hardship comes ease.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Yes. Well, I'm really happy that it's you know your birthday and that you know you had me interviewing you and this podcast just makes me feel so joyful um to be a part of you know your world and your life and to be interacting with your viewers in such a way. And I just wondered last question is if you have anything you want to share to your listeners, you know, for the upcoming year, what's a message you want to share, share with them um as they enter into this new season, this new year, uh, and approach the year ahead.
SPEAKER_01You know, I want everybody to find a way to engage with themselves a little bit more. So whether it is through journaling or prayer or self-discovery in any type, uh in any way or shape or form, just try to do that in 2020. Understanding yourself is the most powerful tool. When you understand yourself, you will also understand who the people you want to have in your life, and you will also start attracting them because you will also um be very selective um with who or what you're giving your energy to. So I really want to invite everybody to do some introspection and understand what really moves them, what makes them sad, what makes them happy. And the more you do that, the better you will become, and also your environment will benefit from that. You will benefit from that. And if you want to start to do that um with um using tools like journaling, go ahead. But there are so many ways where you can do that. So I really want people to try that. And maybe you want to try therapy too. As I always say, um, everybody should try therapy at least once in their life, and if they do that, they will discover so many things about themselves. That's wonderful advice. Thank you so much. Amanda, I'm so happy you did this with me. I'm so so happy you agreed. This was amazing. This was one of the this is one of my most favorite conversations, easily.
SPEAKER_00Thank you so much, Iman. I think you are um such a gem and such a special person, and I think that your listeners and the world is so much uh, you know, are so blessed and so um lucky to have you here with us. So thank you. So sweet of you. All right, guys.
SPEAKER_03All right, bye. Hey, thank you so much for tuning in, and hopefully, you will tune in again next week. It will be another episode talking to or about clients of mine, and you can find us on social media on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram. The handle is always @saidintherapy. Thank you so much.