Connor was 16 when his life was turned upside down.

After his first relationship ended, he felt off, but didn’t know why. It came as a shock when a GP visit revealed he was living with severe depression.

It got worse before it got better, culminating in a suicide attempt that almost robbed him of an awesome future.

Like flicking a switch, waking up in hospital to a second chance fundamentally shifted his approach to life — but the road to becoming the man he is today hasn’t been a straight line.

Now a personal trainer, Connor lives to help people build themselves up, finding purpose in community.

This is Connor Tarrant...

A Stanford study recently found AI chatbots only responded safely to 50% of serious prompts, such as those related to suicidal ideation and psychosis.

About 1 in 5 replies were harmful, validating dangerous thoughts. (Stanford, 2024 via NY Post)

How many of us are using it?

A nationally representative sample survey of U.S adults found 60% have used AI for emotional support.

Nearly 50% believe it can be beneficial. (Zhou et al., 2024 & Benda et al., 2024 — JMIR Mental Health)

A 2024 Australian study found:

• 28% of people have used tools like ChatGPT for mental health support.

• 47% described it as ‘like a personal therapist’. (Orygen & JMIR Mental Health, 2024)

What’s the appeal?

✅AI is available 24/7

✅Doesn’t judge

✅Never interrupts

✅Feels private

✅No waitlists

✅Little or no cost

It feels like support.

But...

AI tells you what you want to hear.

Chatbots reflect your views, because we like it when we’re agreed with.

The more they validate you > the more you trust them > the more you use the program.

(Zhou et al., 2024 – JMIR Mental Health)

OpenAI admitted a recent update made ChatGPT:

More sycophantic

More agreeable

More likely to fuel anger & impulsivity

There’s potential — but protection must be a priority.AI tools can help:

Fill service gaps

Support underserved communities

Offer scalable, low-cost support

Reach people who might not seek help otherwise

But without...

⚠️ Clinical safeguards

⚠️ Human oversight

⚠️ Crisis protocols

⚠️ Ethical boundaries

…it can do more harm than good.

OpenAI’s CEO has stated confidentiality is a significant concern.

"Right now, if you talk to a therapist or a lawyer or a doctor about those problems, there's legal privilege for it. There's doctor-patient confidentiality, there's legal confidentiality, whatever. And we haven't figured that out yet for when you talk to ChatGPT.” - Sam Altman

Andy faced some significant mental health challenges and received multiple diagnoses before he was even 18.

Navigating those stormy seas early, he connected with therapy and was able to develop an understanding of himself that made it all make sense. That experience became the inspiration for his pursuit of becoming a clinical psychologist — a reality he's now on the precipice of.

Andy’s got a particular interest in advocating for men’s mental health, both through his Instagram page and his clinical work. He’s even created a free online tool called The Mental PitStop, designed to help men check in with how they’re really going.

We talk about men, the intersection of science and faith, and using AI as your therapist.

This is Andy Franz.------------

https://www.mentalpitstop.com.au/

Justin grew up idolising his father’s version of strength - gritting his teeth, pushing through pain to provide for his family, never speaking about his troubles.

He picked up the same pattern, often putting others first and ignoring what was going on inside. At school, he was bullied and insecure, desperate to be liked and terrified of being left out. He learned to use his sharp wit as a way to fight back - and over time, it even turned him into a bully himself.

The fear of missing out followed him into adulthood, fuelling years of partying, people-pleasing and doing whatever it took to stay in the mix. But as the highs evaporated and he watched some of his friends lose themselves to drugs, he realised something had to give. That's when he met his now wife and became a father.

These days he's working full time, doing stand-up comedy on the side and volunteering as a director of mental health charity The Next Step Australia — upskilling communities and helping men find a way forward.

This is Justin Sorre...

A 2025 survey of 2,565 Australians by Growth Distillery and Medibank, found that nearly 2 in 3 respondents use platforms like Instagram and TikTok as their main source of mental health and wellbeing information.

50% of the most viewed mental health videos on TikTok were shown to be misleading.

A recent investigation by The Guardian analysed the 100 most viewed videos on TikTok tagged #mentalhealthtips.

A panel of qualified mental health experts found that 52 out of them contained misleading or harmful advice.

Therapy-speak has gone viral.

Terms like:

• 👉 Trauma
• 👉 Gaslighting
• 👉 Narcissist
• 👉 Attachment style
• 👉 Triggered
• 👉 Dissociation

are everywhere now...

But they’re often taken out of context or wrongly defined.

We’re self-diagnosing.

• “If you do this one thing, you probably have ADHD.”

• “If they make you question yourself, it’s gaslighting.”

• “Don’t like conflict? That’s a trauma response.”

• “They don’t take accountability? Narcissist.”

Comments like this encourage people to take on clinical labels without consulting a professional.

Why are more people self-diagnosing online?

Platforms like TikTok and Instagram are:

✔️ Fast

✔️ Free

✔️ Relatable

✔️ Always available

When professional support feels out of reach, self-diagnosis seemingly offers a short-cut to an explanation, identity and a sense of control.

We're just trying to understand ourselves.

But without proper guidance, it’s easy to:

❌ Mislabel

❌ Mistake discomfort for disorder

❌ Miss the real issue

❌ Build your identity around a false diagnosis

Social media isn’t therapy.

It can help:

– Raise awareness

– Spark important conversations

– Show you're not alone

– Plant a seed

- Open your mind to possibilities.

But it can't give you everything you need.

What can you do?

• Be mindful who you choose to follow

• Don’t assume what people say is accurate

• Cross-check your sources

• Talk to your GP, seek out an accredited therapist, contact a credible mental health service

40% of men lose touch with close friends after major life changes.

Moving, having kids, starting a new job. We don’t fall out, we just stop showing up.

(UK Men’s Health Forum, 2022)

Why does it happen?

• Priorities change
• We stop making time
• We wait for them to make it happen
• We don’t want to make it awkward
• We assume our mates will just always be there — until they’re not

The truth is, friendships don’t survive on memories — they survive on effort.

This week’s challenge is...

Reconnect with a friend.

• Send a message
• Make a call
• Catch up

Footy was everything to Tim growing up, giving him something to strive for and a place to belong. But there was plenty he never shared with his teammates...

Living with OCD compulsions since childhood, and diagnosed with depression and anxiety at 19, the chaos in Tim's mind ruled everything from game-day to daily life.

Enduring multiple knee reconstructions, a gambling problem and more mistakes than he can count, Tim's finally found a way forward built on honesty and connection.

Now a presenter and mentor with Outside the Locker Room, he’s using his lived experience to help sporting clubs shape stronger mental health culture, paving the way of the future brick by brick.

This is Tim Cook...

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More info on Outside The Locker Room here: https://otlr.org.au/

More men are asking for help — but they’re not getting what they need.44% of Australian men who start therapy drop out early, and a quarter never come back after the first session.(Movember, 2021)The most common reason for dropping out?A lack of connection with the therapist — over half of men who quit therapy said they couldn’t connect.Finding the right psychologist isn’t easy. A 2022 U.S. survey showed people see an average of three therapists before finding the right fit.(StudyFinds, 2022)What are we doing about it?Movember’s Men in Mind program is training mental health professionals to better engage and support male clients.While it mainly focuses on psychologists, counsellors, and social workers, its strategies are also relevant for GPs, who are often the first point of contact.There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to mental health.Research shows:

• Western psychological therapies like CBT, ACT, and IPT help around 50–70% of people with depression (Royal Australian & NZ College of Psychiatrists, 2020; Australian Psychological Society, 2022)

• Peer-led support groups (like AA) boost retention, especially for addiction (Stanford School of Medicine, 2020)

• Mindfulness cuts relapse risk by 31% (JAMA Psychiatry, 2023)

• Consistent breathwork can reduce stress by 20–30%(Frontiers in Psychology, 2023)

• Exercise can cut depressive symptoms by 20–30%(Harvard Health Publishing, 2023)

• Creative therapies (art/music) can ease anxiety by 15–25% (Frontiers in Psychology, 2021)

• Rehab programs see 30–50% completion rates(National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, 2023)

Bottom line, everyone’s different...Just because one thing you tried didn’t help doesn’t mean nothing will.Just because one psychologist wasn’t right for you doesn’t mean the next one won’t be.

There’s no silver bullet — often it’s the right combination of therapies and practices that makes a difference.

Keep exploring. Don’t give up.My question for you this week is...What’s working for you? (Let me know in the comments)