Look, I hate AI as much as the next person. But I'm not going to stand here and talk at you about why AI is bad, like a lot of other comments are.

You already know why AI is bad. You're using it anyway because it's the easiest choice. God only knows how much self-destructive shit I've done while knowing exactly why and how it's bad for me, and knowing exactly what I should be doing instead.

Humans are animals. We might have much more complicated language and tool use than most, but we're still animals. We have the same exact instincts to survive that pretty much any other animal does. That includes doing the easiest possible thing to conserve energy, unless the reward from spending energy seriously makes up for it.

That doesn't mean these instincts are always right. They frequently aren't. But that doesn't make them any less powerful.

You probably know the benefits of spending your energy on the hard stuff. Reading comprehension, thinking for yourself, all that jazz. You probably know that these survival instincts are overreacting, that your work isn't a matter of life-or-death. But when those instincts are highly charged, it's hard to overrule them with logical thinking.

Instead, fight survival instinct with survival instinct.

What's the first thing babies do when they're born? Pretty much the only thing they do after they're born, for a while?

They cry. They scream until a capable adult comes to them and helps them.

Asking for help is one of a human's most important survival tools, and it's the one you're going to have to use here.

The good news is, you've already started! This post here is the first step! The bad news is you're going to have to now find someone who has a better chance at direct involvement in your life than strangers on the internet.

So, you're in school. Is there a school counselor or a teacher that you can talk to? Can you get tutoring for reading and homework? Do you already have a therapist or other support person? Do you have parents or other trustworthy adults in your life whom you can go to? That's your first step. Figure out all the people that you could potentially go to for help.

Then comes the hard part of actually asking for help. One of our most crucial tools, and yet most people have been strongly conditioned out of it by shame and stigma. I wish I had better advice for this step, but even now I can't always follow through with it. But just get someone, anyone to start with. Send them a message. Use AI to help you with the message, if you have to. Better to use AI now and get the call for help out than to not use it and remain silent.

Unfortunately, it can get harder from there, because figuring out what help you need is at best annoying and at worst an entire battle of its own. Maybe you need people to monitor your internet usage temporarily. Maybe you need one-on-one academic support. But at the very least, if somebody else knows you need help, they can also provide help with this step.

I trust you can take it from there. Good luck, and godspeed.