Anxiety has always been one of my favourite topics to explore. ChatGPT, on the other hand, is something I'm still learning how to feel about…And yet, the two seem to be crossing paths more and more.
I've had quite a few clients tell me recently that they've been talking to ChatGPT about their personal struggles, asking it questions about their emotions, relationships and anxiety.
And I have to admit, as a psychotherapist, I find this growing trend a little concerning.
Do I believe ChatGPT can help with anxiety? I believe it can, to an extent.
Can it replace psychotherapy? I don't believe so.
ChatGPT can offer coping strategies, help us put our feelings into words and encourage us to reflect on what we're experiencing. But anxiety isn't always something we can think or breathe our way out of.
Sometimes, understanding our anxiety means looking a little deeper. Exploring where it might come from, what we've learned about ourselves through earlier experiences, the beliefs we carry, and the ways we've learned to protect ourselves.
And while ChatGPT may help us reflect on some of these patterns, I believe working with an anxiety therapist offers something different: a safe, supportive relationship in which we can not only understand our anxiety, but also begin to experience and respond to it differently.
Anxiety Is More Than Something to Manage
In my work, I'm interested not only in helping people manage their anxiety, but also in understanding what might be sitting underneath it.
Why do I feel anxious even when everything seems okay? Why do I constantly worry about making mistakes? Why do I feel responsible for everyone else's feelings? Where did I learn that I always need to be in control?
Sometimes, anxiety is connected to our earlier experiences, including childhood trauma or emotional neglect, and the beliefs we've developed about ourselves along the way. It can also be linked to relationship difficulties, prolonged stress or burnout. Other times, it may be influenced by our current circumstances, physical health or biological factors. And often, it's not just one thing, but a combination of different experiences and influences.
Exploring these patterns takes more than simply finding the right answer. It takes curiosity, emotional awareness, and often, a safe therapeutic relationship.
The Power of Human Connection
One of the most important things therapy offers is something AI cannot replicate: the experience of being emotionally present with another human being.
For someone experiencing anxiety, regulating emotions can sometimes feel incredibly difficult.
We often learn emotional regulation through co-regulation - the experience of being with someone who is calm, attuned and emotionally available to us. Over time, these experiences can help us develop our own capacity to regulate emotions.
A therapist can offer a space where your anxiety doesn't need to be hidden, fixed or pushed away. Where it can be explored with curiosity and compassion, in the presence of another person who is genuinely there with you.
And sometimes, simply feeling safe enough to be vulnerable with another human being can be an important part of healing.
Therapy Is More Than Advice and Answers
A recent article by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) also inspired me to reflect on what makes human therapy different from AI.
The therapeutic relationship matters. Therapy isn't simply an exchange of information. So much of the work begins with the trust built between the client and therapist - a safe space where we feel heard, understood and accepted without judgment. We are emotional human beings, and we naturally long for connection, love and belonging. Sometimes, the experience of being genuinely seen and understood by another person can be therapeutic in itself.
Therapists notice more than words. A change in someone's voice, a hesitation, a shift in posture, or an emotion that appears while talking about something seemingly unrelated can all offer valuable information. While AI can respond to what we share, a text-based conversation cannot capture the full richness of our non-verbal communication.
Context matters. Understanding someone's anxiety means understanding the person experiencing it - their relationships, history, childhood experiences, circumstances and wider environment. There is often so much more beneath the surface than the immediate problem we describe. And not everything about a person's experiences, emotions and patterns can be captured in a few sentences typed into ChatGPT.
Professional judgment and safeguarding matter. Therapists work within ethical frameworks, seek supervision, recognise the limits of their competence and have responsibilities to respond appropriately when someone may be at risk. And to borrow a phrase from the BACP article, which has become one of my favourites: “AI doesn't know what it doesn't know.”
AI can generate helpful responses and offer valuable information, but it doesn't carry the same professional responsibilities or offer the same human relationship as a qualified therapist.
So, Is There a Place for ChatGPT?
I believe there is.
It can be a useful tool for learning about anxiety, exploring coping strategies, finding language for difficult feelings or preparing questions to bring into therapy.
But I would see it as a complement to human support, rather than a replacement for it.
Because sometimes what we need isn't another explanation, another technique or another answer.
Sometimes we need to experience what it feels like to be heard, understood and accepted by another human being.
And that experience, in itself, can be deeply therapeutic.
With National Counsellors Day in Australia coming up on 27 October, I wanted to take a moment to acknowledge the value of the therapeutic relationship and the many counsellors and psychotherapists who offer this space every day.
In an increasingly digital world, I believe genuine human connection remains as important as ever.
If anxiety has been taking up more space in your life than you'd like, you don't have to navigate it alone. I offer anxiety therapy for women in Brisbane and online across Australia. Together, we can explore not only how to manage anxiety, but also what might be sitting underneath it, you are welcome to book a discovery call or a session here or explore more resources around anxiety here.
