Dear Reverend,
I think my friend is addicted to AI. She started using ChatGPT a while ago for work stuff like polishing up emails, but now it seems like she’s using it for everything. She’s even asking it for advice on her life. We’ll be having a conversation and she’ll casually mention that “ChatGPT says,” or “I asked ChatGPT,” like it’s a person she talks to. I’m concerned that she’s relying on it too much, but I don’t know what to do about it.
Sarah Connor (woman, 32)
Dear Sarah Connor,
I haven’t really messed around with ChatGPT or Claude or any of those AI bots. I guess I’ve just seen too many movies where that’s how the robots start their takeover. However, I do know that AI is becoming part of our reality, whether we like it or not.
An emerging phenomenon in that new reality is AI addiction, and research is under way. Chatbots are designed to keep users using them. Their immediate and seemingly empathetic responses to questions trigger a dopamine release in the human brain, much like any other addiction. The next thing you know, you’re hooked.
You should have a nonjudgmental conversation with your friend to find out how often she’s using AI and why. It’s possible that she’s simply enamored with the novelty of it. If that’s the case, perhaps more human interaction could help wear that off. Get her out for some real-world hangs and make them a No Bot Zone where you don’t talk about AI. Heck, go one step further and turn off your phones for a real old-fashioned good time.
If it seems that your pal may need more help identifying and addressing the problem, addictioncenter.com has a lot of information about AI addiction. There are also a number of online quizzes (theaiaddictioncenter.com) that can gauge a person’s AI dependency and suggest strategies to overcome it.
Good luck and God bless,
The Reverend
This article appears in April 22 • 2026.
