5 Things You Can Do NOW to Address Feelings of Depression
- 6 days ago
- 4 min read
An AI-Integrated Emotional Wellness™ Perspective
By Mark D. Lerner, Ph.D.
Principal Consultant and Creator, AI-Integrated Emotional Wellness
If you’re reading this article, chances are that you—or someone you care about—are struggling with depression—persistent sadness, helplessness, hopelessness, fatigue, low motivation, apathy, and a tendency to withdraw.
Depression is now one of the leading causes of illness and disability worldwide. In response, many people are turning to Artificial Intelligence (AI) for accessible information and emotional support. Take a look at my recent article entitled Your New "Best Friend." Despite its helpfulness, AI has ethical and practical limitations that we shouldn't overlook.
AI-Integrated Emotional Wellness (AIEW), a concept that I introduced and have written extensively about with the National Center, is grounded in a simple but essential truth:
AI can provide immediate, accessible evidence-based techniques, strategies, and tools to address our feelings—but it can’t replace authentic human presence.
When we’re overwhelmed or emotionally distressed, information alone is insufficient—we need people. As Barbra Streisand sang in the 1964 musical Funny Girl, “People who need people are the luckiest people in the world.”
AI should be viewed as an adjunct—not a substitute—for professional mental health care and for meaningful relationships with our friends and loved ones.
Below are five evidence-based strategies from an AI-Integrated Emotional Wellness perspective:
1. Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle
There’s a well-established relationship between our minds and bodies. AI-supported tools can monitor physical activity, sleep, and nutrition, but human engagement, encouragement, and connection reinforce ongoing change.
As I've emphasized in other articles, AI can't
• Look at you with eyes filled with compassion.
• Hold your hand as your eyes pool with tears.
• Embrace you while you’re crying.
• Convey warmth through presence—without saying a word.
• Sit beside you and softly say, “I’m here for you.”
Equally important, we must acknowledge that as human beings, we’re fundamentally social creatures. This principle is at the heart of AIEW:
AI provides techniques. Human presence facilitates healing.
2. Practice Mindfulness and Journaling
Use mindfulness practices—such as guided breathing strategies. For example, close your eyes and focus only on your breathing. Inhale slowly through your nose for four seconds, filling your whole body with air. Hold for several seconds, and then exhale slowly through your mouth for six seconds. Repeat this three times. You'll feel the difference.
Grounding techniques that focus on what we see, feel, hear, smell, and taste—have been shown to help us stay in the present—and decrease feelings of depression. Try this:
• Name five things you see.
• Four things you feel.
• Three things you hear.
• Two things you smell.
• One thing you taste.
AI can guide these practices and make them accessible. What it can’t do is replace the emotional experience that occurs in the presence of another human being.
3. Seek Social Support
Consider using an online chatbot or a virtual therapist as an adjunct to mental health care. These platforms, especially those integrated with AIEW emulation, can provide 24/7 help when you need immediate support or when other options are not available.
Remember that depression can cause us to feel so alone. The presence of others is one of the best antidotes. Turning to family members and friends, a mental health professional, joining a support group, and connecting in person can be invaluable.
While AI can help in grounding with timely information, it can't replace our need for human connection—being seen, heard, and understood.
4. Address Your Negative Thought Patterns
Depression is often fueled by unhealthy thought patterns such as overgeneralization, magnification, distortion, and absolute thinking. I recall learning about these concepts in graduate school four decades ago with the work of the great psychiatrist, Aaron T. Beck, M.D.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is among the most empirically supported treatment modalities for depression and, in many studies, demonstrates outcomes comparable to or exceeding those of antidepressant medication.
AI can reinforce CBT skills by helping us recognize how our thoughts affect our feelings and actions. Lasting change, however, occurs within the context of trusted relationships—human presence.
5. Re-Engage in Meaningful Activities
Depression can compromise motivation and diminish our capacity for pleasure. AI can help prompt re-engagement in activities that can shift emotional states—walking, exercising, engaging in or watching sports, reading, listening to audiobooks, listening to music, cooking, digital photography, art, nature, or bird-watching.
AI can prompt and encourage these behaviors, but activities that involve other people offer something irreplaceable: shared presence, purpose, and connection.
Closing Thoughts
I believe the best way to address depression today is with a multimodal approach. AI-Integrated Emotional Wellness can provide accessible evidence-based techniques, strategies, tools, and support while recognizing the irreplaceable presence of people—including mental health professionals, family, and friends.
If you or a loved one is depressed, seek help like you would for any health issue. PsychologyToday offers an exemplary search engine to find mental health professionals with specific areas of interest and specialization in your area.
Finally, never underestimate the importance of turning to friends and loved ones—because at the end of the day, human presence is generally the best way of helping us when we're depressed.