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At five in the morning on a Monday, former rugby international Ben Alexander woke up feeling overwhelmed and needing to talk to someone.
He had a great weekend with his family and was ready to give an important presentation at work the next day.
Instead of turning to a family member, friend, or helpline, Alexander turned to the AI chatbot, Pi.
“I just wanted to do really well (at the presentation) and I was feeling overwhelmed and not really sure what to do or how to prepare,” he said.
“By going straight to that chatbot at 5am on a Monday, when everyone else is asleep, I didn’t want to bother anyone.”
The chatbot helped Mr. Alexander understand why he was feeling overwhelmed and gave him some helpful suggestions for his presentation.
“Pi helped me clear my thoughts at the beginning of the week and I ended up having a good week, the presentation was great and I give him credit for helping me clear my thoughts at the beginning of the week,” he said.
Alexander retired in 2018 and played 154 games for the Brumbies and 72 tests for the Wallabies.
He has been very open about his struggles since his retirement, blogging on the Substack platform and interacting with his followers on X (formerly Twitter), where he posted a transcript of the January conversation with the chatbot.
“There’s just nothing to be ashamed of if you’re going through a rough patch, and I’m just doing my part to try to help people realize that it’s not that bad if you’re going through a rough patch or a bad time.” day”. said Mr. Alexander.
AI is only as good as its programming
Professor Jo Robinson is the head of suicide research at Orygen, a not-for-profit youth mental health service based in Melbourne.
He found it interesting that the former rugby player turned to AI.
“I think it’s fantastic that he (Alexander) has had such a positive experience with this,” Professor Robinson said.
“Technology isn’t going anywhere. It’s only going to get more sophisticated and more immersive as time goes on, so I think as professionals we have to engage with it.”
However, Professor Robinson offers some words of caution when turning to technology to help with mental illness.
“They (chatbots) are only as good as the content they can use or the people who program them, and I would be a little concerned that there is some bias there,” he said.
The future of mental health
Ella Johnson is studying a bachelor’s degree in psychological sciences and is interning at Headspace Broken Hill.
Johnson is also part of the organization’s Youth Reference Group, which has members between the ages of 16 and 24.
Before learning that Alexander used AI, he hadn’t heard of anyone using it to start a conversation.
“I did a little exploring myself and used one of the AI services and found it to be quite impressive. I was pleasantly surprised,” Ms Johnson said.
While it can be a good way to start the conversation, Johnson believes chatbots won’t replace the human connection of therapy.
“I think I interpreted it (AI) myself… (as) more of a diary app,” she said.
“You can let off steam and it’s a form of journaling that, because it’s pretty well established, can be really effective.
“But having that real-time validation when you’re in a pinch and need that support can be really helpful, obviously not replacing the professionals because they’re necessary in every situation.”