My anxiety GPT

Hi Non-Techies,

Today, I’m sharing a story about how AI helped me through an anxiety attack.

I’m not bashful about talking about my mental health, just like I’m not bashful about the fact that I sunburn easily or that my dog recently had an operation (don’t panic, she’s doing great). Like a lot of people, I think mental health ought to be talked about way more.

Still, it doesn’t usually come up in these newsletters. My aim is to airdrop bundles of Non-Techie value into your inbox, and talking about my life doesn’t always do that.

But I’m hoping today’s newsletter is an exception.

What’s that smell? Ah yes, it’s the familiar whiff of a fresh Venn diagram.

Meet my anxiety hero.

You probably already know that I love a custom GPT. From Calming Cassandra to Feedback Frank, I have a small but incredibly productive army of them ferreting away (I introduced some of them here, in case you missed it).

But I haven't introduced you to one of the most important ones (rude of me, tbh).

I built my anxiety hero to calm me down when I think I’m about to have a panic attack, which, as someone with an anxiety disorder, happens from time to time.

If you’ve ever had a panic attack, you’ll know the feeling. To be frank (not you, Feedback Frank, stand down), it feels like I’m about to die.

Verbal communication is really hard, but I’m usually able to press some buttons on my phone. My anxiety hero is trained to remind me of the stuff that I’m unable to remember in that moment.

Get me out of this taxi.

I needed my anxiety hero quite recently.

I was in a taxi somewhere between my house and a government training session when I started to feel the tendrils of a panic attack begin to take hold. This isn’t an inherently anxiety-inducing situation for me (I’m used to delivering these training sessions), but panic attacks aren’t exactly known for their considerate timing.

Here’s a snapshot of my thoughts in that taxi:

“Oh God, I need to get out of this taxi.”

“The training is the whole day, but there’s no way I can stand up in front of people.”

“I’m going to have to cancel the session last minute.”

The panic worsened, breathing became harder, and the familiar escalation from “I might be having a panic attack” to “I’m going to die” had begun.

A proper legend.

Luckily, I had the presence of mind to remember my anxiety hero - the custom GPT I built specifically for situations like this.

Here’s what it did:

• It reminded me of my grounding techniques

• It tailored its advice to my specific circumstances (i.e. being in a taxi with a stranger)

• It spoke in a way that got through to me even when everything felt blurry and heightened

And it worked.

Rather than offering generic advice (like a website might, for example), my anxiety hero could give me super tailored advice for the environment I was in.

It wasn’t saying “try to isolate a sound and focus on it”, it was saying “listen to the rain on the roof of the taxi. Look at how it bounces off the road”.

It was amazing. I got to the venue on time and delivered a full day of training. At one point, that felt totally impossible.

Build your own!

If there’s a message here, it’s that AI is for life, not just for business.

It doesn’t just help me to automate tasks, it helps me to disable late-night fire alarms (another story for another time), diagnose what’s wrong with my dog and, every now and again, even navigate anxiety attacks.

And people still wonder why I’m such a fan…

If you want to build your own GPT like I have, my GPT Builder is a great place to start for Non-Techies. Click the image below or scan the code if you’re feeling fancy to get it for free:

By the way, I'm joining a webinar panel on Friday, 25th July, 12:30 BST, called "AI on Trial" alongside Joe Glover (founder of The Marketing Meetup) and Harriet Meyer (journalist and creator of AI for Media). It’s all about how to use AI responsibly in your business. Here’s the link if you want to sign up!

Next week, I’ll be giving you a tour of my new AI Academy. I know what you’re thinking, but don’t worry: I promise you’ll get loads from it.

Speak soon,

Heather