Could Ai be driving a mental health crisis we're not prepared for?

It’s so easy to get knocked off centre, especially this digital era. In the past our beliefs of the ‘right’ way to do something were only challenged when we looked to our neighbours and saw a different behaviour. They were further challenged when we travelled to a different counties and experienced different cultures. As we broadened our horizons we broadened our perception of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ and how we ‘should’ be. It was a positive thing. We let go of some of our constrictive beliefs and opened our mind and our hearts to other ways of being. As we processed what we experienced we we opened our minds to how things ‘should’ be, adjusted what we felt to be right to us whilst accepting that others saw and experienced life differently. We developed.

But that was in the past. Today we are surrounded by so much that is fake. And the troubling thing is that these fake images are being touted as not only real but desirable, superior to what we’re able to be or do. And that can be very confusing.

Absolute perfection doesn’t exist, I can’t because there is no singular definition of perfection. Perfection is a personal feeling towards something, it’s perfect in our eyes and any imperfections  it does have just add to its charm. But in todays society where we’re bombarded from so many sides with computer generated definitions of perfection its easy to start doubting ourselves.

We are all imperfect, after all we are human. Our imperfections are what make us unique, our imperfections, our differences make us who we really are. So its no wonder when we look out on the world and see so much ‘perfection’ not only in images, as we’ve grown used to in advertising, but also in text, in audio and video, It’s easy to lose that inner trust that who we are really are is enough.

Al has changed the landscape of what we see around us on a daily basis. Much of the content we see is generated by AI, many of the images manipulated by AI, the sounds enhanced by AI. 2025 has been a pivotal year in the generation of AI material. Whole populations have access to LLMs for free, and the many (possibly even the majority) of us are using them in some way in what we produce. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against AI to make our lives simpler and drive technological and especially medical advances. But I do believe we are paying high a cost for the benefits it grants us on a fundamental identity level and I believe it’s fuelling a mental health crisis we’re unprepared for.

I remember this first time I used AI to re-write some piece of text I’d written and as most people I was impressed. I liked the way it made me sound, more polished, more sophisticated, more perfect. And the more I associated with this improved version of what it had drafted the less ‘perfect’ I felt I was in myself.

That’s why I believe we’re facing a bigger mental health crisis than we’ve had before.  Because not only are we loosing touch with who we are on the inside, any connection we do have with ourselves we’re associating with being less or lacking.  We all know that AI makes mistakes, we‘ve all laughed at the images where its got it hilariously wrong; the extra digits or appendages spawning out of images in unlikely places. And most AI generated text still needs to be edited to bring it in line with our tone of voice. But every time we use it to create something in seconds that would normally take us minutes or hours, something which is superior than our final product, we’re subconsciously telling ourselves that we are less.

We may feel bolstered by the polished words it produces for us, but on the inside our inner confidence is gradually being eroded. It’s subtle at the start but when used consistently over time the constant comparison between its work and our own starts to destroy our inner trust as well as our confidence in ourselves. I believe much of the work I do both on myself and with my clients today is in part repairing the damage done by this constant barrage of ‘perfection’.

When I help my clients connect to their inner knowledge, I help them stand in their own truth and lead teams with something deeper than just polished words and imagery. And when they experience that their team feels it, too.

We are all perfectly imperfect. Its our imperfections make us unique. AI by contrast is imperfectly perfect. It looks polished and shiny, but it lacks depth.

To be able to stand in a room and lead with confidence you don’t need polish you need depth. When things go wrong, which they invariably do in life; depth, connection with your inner self, access to your wealth of knowledge and experience, trust in who you are as well as your ability to get yourself, your team, your company out of what ever situation it finds itself in… that depth knowledge of will pull you and your team out of the situation, not surface shine.

If you’re not feeling the connection to your inner confidence in the rooms where you’re meant to be leading with authority.

If you feel like you’re faking it and you’re exhausting yourself trying to keep up appearances.

If you’ve lost connection with your inner truth belief in yourself… I can help you reestablish that connection so that you can lead others with natural gravitas.