Sorry, I know I i have already written a blog on AI but another idea sprang to mind around AI and Technology.
Of course technology connects us in more ways than ever — messages, photos, updates, videos, notifications. Everything is right there, all the time.
And while it can be useful, even comforting, it can also start to take up more space than we realise.
Ever opened your phone “just for a second,” and suddenly 20 minutes have vanished? (Yes more times than i would like to admit)
We all have. You start by checking one message, then scroll, scroll, scroll — and by the time you look up, you feel wired, flat, or oddly empty.
It’s not your fault.That’s by design.
Artificial intelligence sits quietly behind every feed, learning what makes you pause, what you click, what keeps you looking. It knows your patterns better than you do. And it’s all wired to give your brain tiny hits of dopamine — that “just one more scroll” feeling.
It’s clever, convenient, and often invisible — and it’s designed to keep us engaged.
But engagement doesn’t always mean fulfilment.
A bit about dopamine...
Dopamine is a chemical messenger in the brain that helps control pleasure, motivation, and reward. It’s what makes us feel good when we achieve something, eat tasty food, or experience something enjoyable.
In short: dopamine = brain’s “feel-good” signal.
Dopamine isn’t about pleasure — it’s about wanting.
It’s the reason you check your phone when you’re bored, anxious, or tired. Every new post or ping gives you a micro hit of excitement — a little burst of “maybe this will make me feel good.” So we scroll, tap, refresh — chasing that next small reward that never quite fills us.
Thus the calm never lasts.
Instead, we end up overstimulated, restless, and strangely disconnected.
When our brains are constantly chasing small bursts of reward, it becomes harder to focus, relax, or simply be.
...Makes me wonder the impact on children (but that is a whole new topic).
AI and emotional design
AI doesn’t just respond to us; it learns from us. The more we interact, the more it refines what to show us — keeping us online longer. It understands what grabs our attention: emotion, novelty, outrage, beauty, fear.
Thus... AI-driven apps are built for engagement — not wellbeing. And yes the same goes for AI (chatGPT), its there for engagement. They keep us hooked by triggering curiosity, emotion, and comparison. The result?
Many people end up feeling anxious, numb, or constantly “on.”
What begins as distraction or think something is helping us can slowly become disconnection — from ourselves, from quiet moments, from real rest.
How many of us describe feeling busy but empty, connected but lonely, stimulated but exhausted. It’s not that, were just “addicted to phones” — it’s our nervous systems are overloaded.
When we don’t give our minds space to rest, we lose touch with stillness, reflection, and our deeper needs.
The emotional cost of constant stimulation
When our attention is always pulled outward, including reliance on ChatGPT we lose touch with our inner world and ourselves.
It becomes harder to concentrate, to be still, or to notice how we really feel.
The nervous system doesn’t get to reset; it stays in a low-level state of alert — always waiting for the next thing.
In comes the cycle=
1. AI Suggests / Engages → You see content tailored to your interests.
2. Mini Dopamine Hit → That satisfying “like,” scroll, or discovery triggers a small pleasure response in the brain.
3. You Keep Searching / Scrolling → Your brain wants more of that feeling.
4. Repeat → The AI notices your clicks and shows more content, keeping you in the loop.
Long term issues that present:
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Anxiety and overstimulation — the mind never gets quiet.
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Difficulty being present — attention feels scattered and restless.
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Sleep disruption — blue light, dopamine cycles, and mental noise all play a part.
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Emotional numbness — constant input leaves little room for reflection or feeling deeply.
We start to confuse connection with consumption — but they aren’t the same.
Reclaiming your attention
Technology isn’t the enemy. AI, screens, and social media can be powerful tools when used with awareness. The challenge is finding balance — creating moments of pause in a world designed to keep us scrolling.
A few simple ways to begin:
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Notice your patterns — when do you reach for your phone most? What emotion drives it?
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Set boundaries — small ones, like screen-free meals or no-scroll mornings.
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Replace the “quick scroll” with something grounding — a breath, a stretch, or a moment outside.
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Allow silence — it can feel uncomfortable at first, but it’s often where we find clarity again.
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Reflect gently — how does technology make you feel, really? Energised, connected, drained, numb?
- Don't rely on it- Remember your own skills, your own judgement, your own ability to think, create, and solve problems. AI can be helpful, but it can’t replace your insight, your experience, or your human intuition.
At the end of the day, the best ideas, the most meaningful connections, and the real growth come from you — not the algorithm.
A gentle reflection
AI may shape what we see and how we interact, but it can’t offer what we most need: presence, empathy, and genuine human connection.
Therapy is, in many ways, the opposite of the algorithm. It slows things down. It invites reflection instead of reaction. It helps us notice what’s real beneath all the noise — our feelings, our needs, our humanity.
Because in a world that’s always asking for our attention, taking time to turn inward isn’t selfish — it’s essential.
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