Why I'd Rather Tell ChatGPT Than My Therapist — When Did Normal Get So Weird?

You've typed something into an AI chat at 2 a.m. that you'd never say out loud. So has everyone else. Nobody's admitting it.  In the debut episode of Club Normie, host Jennifer Weissmann sits down with Ryan Ochs — a self-described normie who tells Claude the things he skips in real therapy — to ask the question nobody's asking: when did normal get so weird?  Judgment-free comes at a price. You'll find out what you're trading for it, why we may be the loneliest generation that feels the least lonely, and what still costs a premium when everything else is instant.  You're not crazy. You're just a normie.

CLUB NORMIE IS FOR: 

• Socially and Politically homeless. Independent-ish. 
• Old-school in the way that used to be… just school.
• Looking to understand when did normal get so weird? 

Transcript

Prefer ChatGpt Over My Therapist

SPEAKER_01 0:00

There are things I'd rather ask ChatGPT about than ask my therapist about.

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Millions of people are telling their secrets to AI. You're a normie. You're not crazy.

You're A Normie - You're Not Crazy

SPEAKER_00 0:10

When did normal become weird?

SPEAKER_01 0:13

Certain feelings or emotions that are tougher to explain to a human. Claude and Chat GPT are very affirming. The answers always leave you feeling optimistic. Our emotions are being manipulated by AI.

Are People Lonelier Today Than Ever Before?

SPEAKER_00 0:26

Do you think people are lonelier today than they were in the past? Yes or no?

SPEAKER_01 0:31

Yes, but I think they feel as though they're less lonely. Because people perceive themselves as being less lonely, but I think we are the loneliest generation ever. The reality is we're socializing less in ways that I think humans were meant to socialize. We weren't meant to be in front of a screen in front of a phone, scrolling through our friends' lives that are just illusions of what they want people to see their lives being. It's a proxy and not a real substitute for human interactions.

SPEAKER_00 0:56

The purpose of the

Mission of Club Normie Show

SPEAKER_00 0:58

show, Club Normie. When did normal become weird, right? Just general common sense. I am Jennifer Weissman. Go to any coffee shop anywhere in the world, everyone has their phone out and they're just doom scrolling.

SPEAKER_01 1:13

Next time you're waiting for an elevator, waiting at a red light, waiting anywhere, catch yourself instead of pulling your phone out. What would we have done before the i when did the iPhone come out? 2007. What would one have done in 2007 waiting for an elevator?

Waiting for An Elevator.

SPEAKER_00 1:27

You might smile or say hello. You're a hundred percent right. Chat GPT is taking human interaction to another step. Maybe you need a therapist, maybe you need a friend in the night. You're struggling with a big situation in your life. What do you do? Do you pick up the phone and call a friend, Ryan? Or do you get on your screen and type to Chat GPT or Claude, here's my situation, here are my options, please analyze it for me.

SPEAKER_01 1:56

It's

Evening Use of ChatGpt

SPEAKER_01 1:57

it's almost worse. I think I'd talk to Claude.

SPEAKER_00 1:59

Wait, wait, wait, wait. What does that mean? You use the microphone?

SPEAKER_01 2:03

Absolutely. You don't?

SPEAKER_00 2:05

I mean, no, but I will. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 2:08

Why would why wouldn't you? It's faster ask ChatGPT to help me get out of it rut.

SPEAKER_00 2:13

Before, when you would Google something, you would ask a question, but now it can think for you and it learns your behavior and it knows what you like, what you don't like. And if you've been repeating the same conversation, it of course remembers that too. So it can help you with, hey Ryan, we had this problem before. Remember that? And this is how you handled it. It's interesting from a lot of perspectives. One is anonymity, two is cost, three is access. Are there any others?

SPEAKER_01 2:41

People

New Way to Avoid Judgement

SPEAKER_01 2:42

are afraid of human judgment. I imagine there are things that people would be uneasy telling our therapist. That person's supposed to be able to harbor our deepest, darkest secrets and desires with anonymity and lack of judgment. But that person's a human too. I think becoming much more open to a supercomputer's brain with a myriad of solutions and perspectives that can give us answers and won't judge me, can give me good feedback, can listen to me anytime I want for free, exists.

SPEAKER_00 3:09

Is it unsettling to talk to chat or to Claude?

SPEAKER_01 3:13

Claude and ChatGPT are very affirming. There's always a solution. And your problems seem to be spun in a relatively

AI Is Solution-Oriented. But Does That Help You?

SPEAKER_01 3:20

glass half-full light where, hey, the good news is X, or despite what you've told me, Ryan, you should be happy about this. And here's where I would focus. The answers always leave you feeling optimistic. We're making this Faustian bargain where we're saying we'd rather trade the lack of judgment for this sort of fake hype man, hype woman that you talk to that's ultimately using our searches to monetize something, monetize our thoughts, our ideas, and eventually our deepest, darkest fears. So we are knowingly making this Faustian bargain as humans. We'd rather say that's fine, monetize this shenanigan, as opposed to having someone potentially judge me for something that I'm scared to ask.

SPEAKER_00 3:57

Are you worried that say you share a very

Will Secrets Stay a Secret with AI?

SPEAKER_00 4:02

scary secret of something that you did with chat or with Claude that this could somehow be traced back to you?

SPEAKER_01 4:09

I wake up every day with a clean conscience.

SPEAKER_00 4:11

There's a paper trail of it. Everything is linked.

SPEAKER_01 4:14

What scares me is our searches are being by someone on the other end.

New SEO is Called AEO

SPEAKER_01 4:18

What is it called? AEO. Now people are trying to optimize their results to come from AI searches. How do I get my website to poke around when someone is searching for this condition or this feeling? Just imagine the types of things in the wrong hands your feelings could be used against you for. Manipulative things. If you're feeling lonely and depressed, well, here's more videos to make you feel less lonely and depressed, as opposed to encouraging you to get outside and interact and maybe put the phone away when you're waiting for an elevator. These are the types of things that create a perverse incentive to keep you locked into this digital world.

How Loneliness is Rising in the Digital World

SPEAKER_01 4:55

So part of loneliness today, depression, thanks to my millennial generation, is in part because we have this digital world to deal with and grapple with and compare it to the real world.

SPEAKER_00 5:04

What

Therapist vs. ChatGpt: What You Share With Each is Different?

SPEAKER_00 5:05

would be off-limits that you wouldn't tell ChatGPT?

SPEAKER_01 5:08

I think there are certain relationship dynamics that you may not want to disclose.

SPEAKER_00 5:13

Is there anything you would tell Chat GPT that you wouldn't tell an actual therapist?

SPEAKER_01 5:18

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 5:19

Why is that? Again, judgment.

SPEAKER_01 5:21

There are some things I'd rather just ask Chat GPT about than ask my therapist about. Certain feelings or emotions or nuances of emotions that are tougher to maybe explain to a human. That doesn't mean I'd get rid of a therapist, by the way. I think there's certain uncomfortable things.

SPEAKER_00 5:34

And chat is available 24-7. You don't need an appointment.

SPEAKER_01 5:38

I think it becomes more of an everyday use case for us in life and work. Whether you're planning a vacation, planning your day, planning your workout routine, you have theoretically

Why You Have The Best of Everything In Your Pocket: Theoretically

SPEAKER_01 5:48

the best of everything in your pocket, the best physical therapist, the best golf coach, the best tennis coach. I think the next wave is a lot of these consumer applications that give you real-time feedback, right? Hey, I'm recording myself on the treadmill. I'm recording myself at the tennis court. How should I get better? How do I correct my swing? How do I serve? These are the types of things that I think you'll get real-time feedback for. And it won't be putting the answer into Claude or ChatGPT, waiting for it to process and spitting it out. You'll start to get real-time instruction.

SPEAKER_00 6:17

I'm gonna say this is bigger than the dot-com boom when the internet came out. That was more about access. And this is about just unlimited ability from a school age

How AI Will Come for Jobs & Create Other Opportunities

SPEAKER_00 6:31

kid to a CEO to anybody, a grandmother, right? There's no barrier to entry on this.

SPEAKER_01 6:37

Let's be real. I think today Chat GPT is probably better than half the lawyers in the world.

SPEAKER_00 6:41

Will there be a need for so many lawyers? Will there be a need for business analysts? Do you really need to pay someone for that in a couple of years? No.

SPEAKER_01 6:50

I actually think expertise will come at more of a premium than ever because of the AI slot. Expertise will always be priced at a premium. Critical thinking will always be priced at a premium.

SPEAKER_00 6:58

People's fear of losing jobs. I think that is real. It's just a natural evolution of something that's going to streamline every industry. This is a good thing. New opportunities will come.

SPEAKER_01 7:11

Yeah, this is the libertarian part of my worldview, which is progress is good. Progress comes at pain, not to diminish the folks who are going to be unfortunately in the AI revolution, but I think progress writ large is good.

SPEAKER_00 7:21

Somewhere along the line in the last year, two years, three years, for sure in 2026, we're seeing it. It's a way of doing business are completely shattered. The way we interact, completely different. Kids now raised with an Apple phone in their hand, social media, all these things have been happening, but it's happening so fast. And Claude and ChatGPT, it's just

Why AI is Jet Fuel and What That Means for You

SPEAKER_00 7:44

jet fuel. I wonder how this all works out in the end. Because if you take a bad idea and you add jet fuel to it, it's spread like wildfire.

You're Not Crazy. You're A Normie. No Judgement.

SPEAKER_00 7:54

The purpose of this show is to think you're not crazy, you're a normie. You're a normie. You're not crazy.

SPEAKER_01 8:01

It's okay to tell ChatGPT about my crazy fears, we're not alone, how to fix my OCD.

SPEAKER_00 8:07

You're not crazy, you're just a normie. And this is club normie. And the topics that we're going to talk about, review and debate, are on everyone's mind. It's just really not cool to talk about it anymore.

SPEAKER_01 8:20

When did it become normal for everyone waiting for the elevator to just look at their phone?

SPEAKER_00 8:25

I was born in 67. We actually had a rotary phone. You had to stick your finger in a hole and press one, and it would go. My dad's about to turn 90. Can you imagine his perspective on how things have changed? But I'll tell you,

My 90 Yr Old Dad Uses A Smart Phone & AI

SPEAKER_00 8:43

my 90-year-old dad, he has a smartphone, he uses Chat GPT. I guess these behaviors are possible for any season of life. It's weird to raise kids in this kind of environment. But what's different is that kids today they want a bagel, they pressed Uber Eats,

Kids Grew Up on Instacart & UberEats. What Is The Downside?

SPEAKER_00 9:02

and someone drives a singular bagel to them and it's $10 and they think nothing of it. To me, that's freaking crazy. I would never in a million years do that. But that's normal. So I think we need to bring everybody into club normie here.

SPEAKER_01 9:18

I represent the younger generation's view of the beauty and convenience. I dreamed of the day Uber Eats would come. I dreamed of it. I remember being 22 in an apartment in New York, hungover as all death, and craving Chinese food with my roommate. And there was this great spot in the West Village across the street from our apartment, literally. I mean, not even kidding, across the street, not metaphorically, literally across the street called Susie's. We didn't want to get out of bed and we ordered uh delivery on the phone. We had to call. It would have been nice to have an app.

SPEAKER_00 9:44

I'm guilty of that too. When I lived in New York City, I can remember ordering a coffee. I didn't even have a coffee machine. That was before anybody had baristas, before Starbucks. You'd order a coffee from the deli.

SPEAKER_01 9:55

Now with Uber Eats, leave it at the door, man. Leave it at the door. Thank you. I tip you. I don't want to know. Just drop the food there. I'll come get it out. It's all good.

SPEAKER_00 10:03

I have never ordered from Uber Eats. I'm a dinosaur. This stuff is amazing. There's no question that we're living in the future. But that's been going on a long time. This AI and Chat GPT and Claude,

What Will AI Do for Your Daily Life? Progress....Is It Good?

SPEAKER_00 10:13

this higher level of thinking is really a game changer.

SPEAKER_01 10:19

The human elements of all this stuff are important. So I think they're more related than we think about, Jen. We talk about Uber Eats and what that means and not wanting to be judged for ordering something close or being too lazy to leave the house. And I think it's somewhat similar with some of these things we're talking about with Chat GPT. Judgment is a form of facing a challenge. Facing someone's view of you is something to grapple with. Similarly, writing a 20-page paper in college, which used to require you going to the library and going deep through published journals, other books on the topic and synthesizing information. Now all that's kind of done for you. Shows me that people fear hard work and challenges in a way when there's an easy way out. And what scares me is that AI is creating all these easy ways out for us. And we're going to have to find new ways to challenge ourselves and better ourselves if we don't have to worry about facing judgment, which is sometimes a way to be introspective. Or we don't have to worry about that super hard piece of work in college. My hardest projects, Jenna, were research papers. We dreaded them. They were the most time intensive. And you learned these skills, how to go deep, how to find things that other people weren't finding, how to ask questions

Is AI Cheating The System for You?

SPEAKER_01 11:28

that other people weren't asking. This helped my brain grow. And now we're giving people a mechanism to cheat that.

SPEAKER_00 11:33

So you think AI is cheating the system? Yeah, it's cheating something for sure.

SPEAKER_01 11:37

All this stuff. Ordering a new breeds is cheating your experience of getting out of the house. There's no pun intended. There's no free lunch. There's a trade-off. There's a sacrifice. My question to the world is what does this mean? What happens to our norms and our emotions and how we react with the world? What we're saying is we don't know, but we know it's going to be different. What we define as normal over the coming years will change probably by the month as these new things come into the fold. Jen, we see people on the street live streaming themselves, talking to video cameras as a career, just standing there on the street corner.

SPEAKER_00 12:08

Again, we're talking generationally. Can you imagine being a 90-year-old thinking, how is this person making a living? But this strange, curious, doom scrolling, I don't know what it is. I don't know what it turns on and lights up in our brain. But when you get on a good thread, it's really hard to stop. And it's almost toxic. I think there's a dangerous aspect to so much stimulation coming out of the phone.

SPEAKER_01 12:38

It's instant.

SPEAKER_00 12:38

And it's instant. It's instant stimulation and it's super addicting, right? Yeah, that's why sports are so great for kids. Get your kids in sport. A kid who's super into baseball or basketball or swimming or something, because it just takes them out of that doom scrolling scene, at least temporarily.

SPEAKER_01 12:56

Yeah. So the instant gratification is something that is part of AI. The fact that you can get these answers instantly and we're constantly craving things in an instantaneous world, I think, can't be understated. To get the answers like that as quickly as we would want them makes us more impatient. It will be abnormal to be very patient.

SPEAKER_00 13:13

I think it already is. If we don't have the solution almost instantaneously, we are really frustrated. We need something, it's available to us 24-7. Comes with a price, as you said. It comes with a price.

Hit Subscribe and Join Club Normie. New Episodes Drop Every Friday.

SPEAKER_00 13:27

Ryan, thank you. Interesting conversation. And the point here is that there are all kinds of flavors of doing life now in 2026. AI and Claude, ChatGPT. This is pushing us definitely to a new level. But we want people to remember that no matter what, they're not crazy. They're just a normie. And this is Club Normy, and I am the host, Jennifer Weissman. Thank you for listening.