Reality television star Kim Kardashian has found herself at the center of an unexpected controversy after revelations about her struggles with artificial intelligence study tools coincided with renewed scrutiny of celebrity brain health assessments.
During a candid lie detector segment with Teyana Taylor, the SKIMS founder made a surprising confession about her bar exam preparation methods. Kardashian admitted she’s been relying heavily on ChatGPT to help tackle challenging legal questions, frequently photographing problems and uploading them for quick solutions. The results, however, have been far from helpful.
“I use it for legal advice,” Kardashian explained during the segment. “So when I need to know the answer to a question, I’ll take a picture and put it in there. They’re always wrong. It has made me fail tests.”
Rather than abandoning the faulty study companion, Kardashian described developing an unusual relationship with the technology. She confessed to arguing with the chatbot after receiving incorrect information. “Then I’ll get mad and yell at it — ‘You made me fail!'” she said.
Kardashian then added that the AI responds with reassurances: “And it will talk back and say, ‘This is just teaching you to trust your own instincts.'”
The entrepreneur dubbed ChatGPT a “toxic friend” but suggested the AI’s failures have become an unexpected source of motivation. “She’s teaching me a life lesson,” Kardashian said. “Then becoming my therapist to tell me why I need to believe in myself after they got the answer wrong.”
The admission comes as Kardashian continues pursuing her goal of becoming a certified attorney. She recently revealed on The Graham Norton Show that she expects to receive her bar exam results within two weeks, expressing her ultimate ambition to “give up being Kim K” to work as a trial lawyer.
The timing of Kardashian’s confession has sparked broader conversations about celebrity wellness trends, particularly regarding brain health assessments. Psychiatrist Dr. Daniel Amen has built a prominent practice around SPECT brain scans, attracting numerous high-profile clients including members of the Kardashian family.
Even pop star Demi Lovato talked about it in a conversation on The Joe Rogan Experience. Lovato opened up about her journey through addiction and recovery, discussing undergoing brain assessments and scans that revealed significant neurological damage from her 2018 overdose.
She shared the devastating consequences of her near-fatal overdose on her**n laced with fenta**l and cr**k. “The doctors told me I had 5 to 10 minutes before it was too late,” she revealed. The overdose resulted in three strokes, a heart attack, and multiple organ failure, leaving her with permanent brain damage that affects her daily life.
The most striking revelation was about her vision impairment. Lovato explained that she has significant blind spots in her vision, making activities like driving impossible. “When I’m looking at your eyes, I see your eyes but I don’t see your nose, your mouth, or even your microphone,” she told Rogan, describing the permanent damage. “It looks like I looked at the sun.”
Medical professionals told her that whatever vision remained after six months would be permanent.
Beyond the physical damage, Lovato discussed her complex relationship with addiction and recovery. She spoke about receiving a Vivitrol shot, which blocks opiate receptors in the brain, and how it also helps with her bulimia. The brain scan assessment she underwent helped diagnose her ADHD and provided insight into the neurological aspects of her eating disorder.
Lovato’s experience reflects the high stakes of brain health for those recovering from trauma. But some of the tools celebrities rely on — including the popular brain scans — are far more controversial beneath the surface.
Actor and director Mel Gibson recently sat down with Joe Rogan to discuss a transformative experience that helped him overcome severe post-traumatic stress disorder. During their wide-ranging conversation on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, Gibson opened up about seeking treatment from Dr. Daniel Amen.
Gibson explained that Dr. Amen, who works extensively with football players and others suffering from brain injuries, used radioactive tracers to photograph his brain. Upon opening Gibson’s file, the doctor’s immediate reaction was concern, asking Gibson if he was okay. When Gibson responded that he thought he was fine, Amen moved closer and delivered startling news: Gibson had “the worst case of PTSD I have ever seen,” even worse than combat veterans.
The revelation was overwhelming for Gibson, who admitted he broke down emotionally. “I started to well up,” he recalled, acknowledging that he wasn’t okay. He described spending extended periods in what he called his “animal brain”—a constant state of fight or flight where sleep was impossible and social interactions became difficult.
“If anybody looks at you the wrong way you want to bite them,” Gibson explained, adding that this mental state led to socially unacceptable behavior.
According to Gibson, what made Dr. Amen’s approach unique was his rejection of psychiatric medications in favor of natural remedies and oxygen therapy. The treatment protocol was surprisingly straightforward: fish oil supplements, vitamin B complex, and forty sessions in a hyperbaric chamber, with two to three sessions per week minimum.
Gibson emphasized that Amen explained the concept of neuroplasticity—the brain’s ability to heal itself—and assured him that even significant brain damage, including holes from concussions, could be repaired.
Gibson attributed his brain damage to years of playing rugby from age thirteen through his late teens, during which he suffered multiple knockouts on the field. The scans revealed his brain looked like “swiss cheese,” with numerous holes throughout. Yet Amen’s treatment protocol proved remarkably effective. “It fixed my head,” Gibson stated simply.
Stories like Gibson’s have fueled Dr. Daniel Amen’s reputation as a miracle-worker of the mind, especially among celebrities. But while the testimonials are compelling, the science behind Amen’s claims tells a very different story.
Dr. Daniel Amen has become one of America’s most recognizable psychiatrists, appearing on major TV shows, writing bestselling books, and building a network of brain scanning clinics across the country. But according to Dr. Sulman Aziz Mirza, a triple board-certified psychiatrist, there’s a serious problem with Amen’s signature diagnostic tool: SPECT scans that claim to diagnose mental health conditions may have no scientific validity.
The doctor talked about it in a recent YouTube video.
SPECT stands for single photon emission computerized tomography, a brain imaging technique that shows blood flow patterns. Dr. Amen has built his entire practice around these scans, claiming they can diagnose conditions like ADHD, PTSD, anxiety, and depression. He presents them as providing “tangible evidence” of mental health problems.
However, the American Psychiatric Association conducted a study in 2018 concluding that no brain scans are useful for diagnosing mental health problems.
The criticism from medical experts has been harsh. Dr. Jeffrey Lieberman, former president of the American Psychiatric Association, called Amen’s work “the modern equivalent of pseudo-color phrenology.” Neuroscience professor Martha Farah and psychologist SJ Gillihan stated there’s “a lack of empirical validation” for using SPECT scans to diagnose mental health issues. Retired family physician Dr. Harriet Hall pointed out that Amen “charges patients thousands of dollars to inject them with radioactive compounds” with “no credible evidence that it adds to the diagnostic or treatment processes.”
The concerns extend beyond questionable science. SPECT scans expose patients to radiation, which is particularly worrying given that tens of thousands of individuals, including many children, have undergone these procedures. A first visit with SPECT scans at Amen Clinics costs approximately $4,000, typically paid out-of-pocket since most insurance plans refuse coverage.
Dr. Amen’s controversial claims don’t stop at brain scans. He promotes seven types of ADHD, each requiring different treatments—a classification system not recognized by any major psychiatric organization. The scientific consensus recognizes only three types: inattentive, hyperactive, and combined. Tufts University psychiatry professor Daniel Carlat called Dr. Amen’s “misinterpretations with SPECT scans for ADHD spectacularly meaningless.”
Perhaps most troubling is the financial conflict of interest. Dr. Amen operates a supplement company called BrainMD, selling products he claims improve brain health.
Dr. Irving Kirsch compared selling unproven treatments to being “a snake oil salesman,” while Dr. Robert Burton said he was “appalled” by what Amen sells online. Treatment plans from Amen Clinics reportedly include recommendations to purchase his supplements, books, and DVDs.
The reach of Dr. Amen’s empire is undeniable. Beyond his clinic network, he’s appeared on shows like The View and CBS This Morning, received celebrity endorsements from Khloé Kardashian and Justin Bieber, and partnered with PBS for programming that critics call infomercials disguised as educational content. Dr. Lieberman expressed concern that PBS airings provide “a stamp of scientific validity to work which has no scientific validity.”
The real danger lies in patients delaying evidence-based treatment while pursuing unproven methods. When desperate people trust flashy marketing over solid science, they risk their health and financial wellbeing.