A small new trial in bipolar depression found magnetic seizure therapy worked about as well as ECT, with fewer memory side effects. Promising, not proven. And news from Teva!

“The shorter timeframe is noteworthy and I don’t know why they’re doing this,” Steve Hutkins, who writes for Save the Post Office, told Democracy Docket.

CT-155, the schizophrenia app I wrote about, now has peer-reviewed Phase 3 results. Plus: what families should ask about TMS when depression won't lift.

This week: why a UCSF psychiatrist rejects "AI psychosis," magnetic stimulation for schizophrenia's thinking symptoms, and brain stimulation moving into the home. Caregivers, take note.

Diabetes got a market-share number. Schizophrenia got a shrug — one throwaway clause in a $39 billion "digital health" report, recycled across seven press releases without a single data point. If they won't even count us, why would they build for us?

Teva's new clinician site says most schizophrenia patients stop taking daily pills — and most relapse anyway. Here's why long-acting injectables deserve an earlier conversation.

Nearly 2 in 3 young adults face mental health distress. 1 in 8 teens now uses AI chatbots for support — up 50% in under a year. Congress is finally responding.

Shocking new data: nearly one in five pediatric psychiatric crises now involve digital media, and those cases are twice as likely to end in hospitalization. Caregivers, take note right now.

From a practical guide to a place in history: Connected Care has been accepted into the Library of Congress collection. I’m thrilled that this resource on technology, mental health, and everyday connection will be preserved for future readers.

27 years of hearing voices that said she wasn't worth living as a human being. Then she put on a VR headset and talked back. Five years later: silence, finally.

Neurotech is moving fast. What is it? Why do you care...if your loved one has serious mental illness...you might want to know.

Five states ban AI therapy. Others allow it with rules. Nobody agrees. Meanwhile, 1 in 6 adults — 1 in 4 under 30 — already quietly use AI for mental health help.

AI-AI-O. The new version of E-I-E-I-O. But, AI chatbots are increasingly under inspection for psychosis. GOOD.

This week: could Meta's landmark $567M ruling extend to AI chatbots? Plus, why the most rigorously tested AI therapist still isn't available — while copycats already are.

I recently posted this. Meta Just Lost a $567 Million Case. AI Therapy Chatbots Could Be NextThe most dangerous thing about your AI chatbot isn't what it says. It's that it's built to never disagree ...

Your Loved One's Psychiatrist Is Using AI. Does Anyone Know How?A story in this week's news should matter to every family navigating serious mental illness — yet most won't see it.--- A new report from Behavioral Health Business landed this week with a headline that stopped me cold: Behavioral Health Orgs Are Adopting AI Faster Than They Train Clinicians On It.

In this week's Connected Care Weekly, we explore the evolving landscape of AI therapy tools and the urgent need for regulations to protect your loved ones. A recent Forbes article echoes themes from my upcoming book, Connected Care, emphasizing the importance of questioning the safety of mental health apps. Additionally, new research reveals that patient data is being used to train AI without consent, raising critical privacy concerns. Discover the latest evidence supporting digital therapy and why it's essential to prioritize quality over quantity in mental health tools. Stay informed and ahead of the conversation!

If you're reading this, you're probably someone who loves a person with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or another serious mental illness. You're also probably exhausted, and looking for anything that helps. That's exactly who I write this for — because I've been there too. Here's what happened in mental health technology this week — and why it matters to your family.

This week: the evidence for digital mental health tools keeps getting stronger — but so does the question of whether we're building technology that actually serves people, or just technology that's easier to deploy.

Weekly recap of technology updates worth watching in the world of serious mental illness

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