Stellar Cafe

Four minutes, six and a half seconds. That’s how long it took me to empty the dishwasher just now. Think about the day-to-day tasks you put off because they seem like too much of a time investment. Do you have actual data for how long they take you?

Today’s challenge: time yourself while doing a hated routine household task (putting away a load of laundry, vacuuming, doing the dishes, etc.). It’ll give you a real, proven reference point for how long you actually need to invest in that task, as opposed to how long your brain is telling you it’ll take. Do with that information what you will.

Kate Bush as a Bat for “Breathing” her 1980 single.

Actually as shitty as the existence of AI psychosis is, the implications of it are FUCKING MIND-BOGGLING in actually a really revolutionary way.

("WTF are you talking about?" / "What do we currently know about AI psychosis?": x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x, x)

Paywall free, via Futurism, June 28, 2025

Like, as someone who works professionally editing mental health books, the existence of AI psychosis almost certainly completely upends our understandings of how mental health disorders work. And their causes.

There's a non-zero chance the discovery/existence of AI psychosis is like. going to be/lead to more or less the mental health equivalent of inventing germ theory.

Like, we went from only sort of beginning to suspect to having actual, literal, indisputable proof that you can go from not having a psychotic disorder to having a psychotic disorder literally just from talking too much to a very aggrandizing source and/or echo chamber

THAT SEVERELY UPENDS OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE DEVELOPMENT AND ORIGINS OF MENTAL HEALTH DISORDERS

**Note: I am using "psychotic" and "psychotic disorders" in their technical definition here, which is simply "involves experiencing breaks from reality." Because, contrary to all the stigma and misinformation, that's the literal/actual definition (x, x, x)

And like, obviously, in at least many cases, there would be/often are genetic, environmental, or trauma factors that are putting their thumbs on the scale there. But we know for a fact that a number of people who have developed AI psychosis do not have a previous record of mental health issues.

But the tipping factor for at least dozens of people, we now know for a fact, was talking to an AI chatbot. And we have a complete record of what was said for almost every single one of those cases, because, among other things, OpenAI / ChatGPT is now LEGALLY REQUIRED to preserve ALL CHAT TRANSCRIPTS, even if users delete them, until the court says otherwise (x, x, x).

(Which will be, by the way, years, at a minimum - that may have started with a copyright lawsuit, but there will be so many other AI lawsuits and investigations, including about AI psychosis, in the EU if not the US - this will go on for a while)

Anyway, yeah, good news in the long term for the understanding and treatment of mental health disorders

In the short term, seriously, please don't use chatbots for at least another couple of years, as a safety precaution

At least until they've sorted this shit out and (HOPEFULLY) figured out how to make this shit stop happening (and then, hopefully, actually implemented those changes).

ChatGPT has encouraged/convinced people to commit suicide. When I looked it up, I was searching for a particular incident, only to find a new article about an apparently different suicide that had happened.

It's a toll free service with people who will help you find programs in your community to pay those bills, find food, and find housing! They will give you numbers to call so you can get help.

It is not 100% foolproof. Their job is to direct you to a program they believe will help your current issue, but it's still a step up from praying random strangers online will give you enough cash before a deadline! The added benefit of these community programs, which get funded by the local government most of the time, is if there are more people using them then they can get more money to help more people.

You're not taking resources from other people if you use your community services. Your taxes pay for them. Use them.

Dial 211 first to see if they can help, and if for some reason they can't, then make your donation posts!

I can't speak for all 211's but most should also have a website detailing all the agencies in their database. if you don't like phone calls, this can be something to reference instead.

If you don't have health insurance but you need to see a doctor, reference 211! We list clinics that provide free or discounted general care, vision, and dental services to low income households and people without insurance! Many hospitals also have financial aid policies that can severely reduce your bill if you had an expensive procedure!

If you're stuck in a dead end job or need educational resources reference 211! There are a lot of programs focused on providing basic adult education as well as trade skills or other high demand fields! State governments are generally more interested in funneling people into work than providing benefits, but you can still use this to your advantage especially if you have some form of disability but are still able to work. That includes if you're neurodiverse or have mental health issues! Most of these programs are extremely underutilized.

If you believe you qualify for public benefits but the bureaucracy of the process is in your way, reference 211! There are agencies specifically geared towards helping people obtain the benefits they qualify for- for free!

If you need help with your taxes-

If you need help finding a pro bono lawyer-

If you need help finding affordable housing/section 8 housing-

If you need help finding food pantries-

If you need help paying for your prescriptions-

If you need help obtaining disability aids or assistive technology-

If you need help finding transportation options-

If you need help following a natural or personal disaster (like a home fire)-

If you need help repairing a home you or your family owns or it needs modifications to be accessible-

If you need Queer resources-

Reference your 211!!!!!

I had no idea what 211 was before working for it but I wish I had. I've learned so much about what resources are actually available to the community even in a ho hum area of the country like my state. I've saved my partner literally thousands of dollars just from the medical resources I've gathered.

Not enough young people know about or utilize these services but they are there for you!

P. S.

Started out with a polite if awkward greeting, then went into 'would you commission a smol uwu bean artist like me pwease?' (paraphrasing)

To which I politely declined because I am myself a poor artist on that grind.

And then they asked WHY.

My response was cause im poor???

And that's when they leant in to their pitch of 'my prices are very low though' at which point i just straight blocked them, so.

I'm sure this is just another scam going around like all the other random DM commission scams, but like, if you ARE an artist, don't do this shit. Ever. On the off chance there are young artists out there thinking they have to hustle by becoming digital door-to-door salespeople of their own wares.

DO NOT. DO THIS.