Semicolons are for two independent clauses that go so well together they can't be put into different sentences or even separated by a conjunction. Em dashes are for an important aside that would be diminished by parentheses. I like them both, but they can't be substitutes for each other.

I feel like sharing this fun fact in the month of Pride and not including a link is vaguely biphobic. :P

I hate AI mostly because of the blatant theft and environmental impacts. But a small, petty, part of me is pissed because I love using a good em-dash when the situation calls for it, and now I feel like it makes my long form writing look fake.

Note: I did not say this to a client! A friend had just shared that their therapists thinks they should be a therapist.

Whoa! You are absolutely right :)

Right? We had been talking earlier in the session about the ways that making the world more accessible for neurodivergent folks often make it easier on neurotypical folks too so when we segued over to talking about eating meals with others, this realization came to me.

I love it! I also used the phrase "grown ass man" today albeit in a different context (we were talking about respecting the autonomy of someone making a decision that client didn't agree was the best call.)

I know someone who works in a field that utilizes AI and they straight up said the data from the recordings would be used to train the programs. It would have the identifiable info stripped out first (allegedly).

All these EHR's offering this for free? They want the data. I don't trust it at all.

I think the decision is specifically on the healthcare provider side. I don't know if the insurance coverage will change.

I am planning on sending postcards to employees - at their jobs, not trying to find out where they live - to encourage them to complain to their bosses.

UPMC is an insurance company headquartered in Pittsburgh. They also own a variety of healthcare facilities from Urgent Care to Hospitals. Most locals have insurance through them so you can use their facilities. It was already pretty gross.

Note, that was specifically for PA. I didn't look at their national data over time.

Gender Affirming Care Saves Lives.

And trying to force kids back in the closet will lead us to a lot of dead kids.

I am not going to sugarcoat this. UPMC will be directly responsible for dead children.

I don't know what enough about their raw data to know how exact this is, but when I look at the Trevor Project data over the last few years, the percentage of LGBTQIA+ youth in general and trans teens specifically who contemplated suicide and who actually attempted have been trending downward.

I am struggling to create the postcards I am making because the facts keep depressing the hell out of me.

JAMA published research in 2022 that showed youth receiving gender affirming care, including puberty blockers and HRT, had a 72 percent reduction in odds of suicidiality. (More)

I want lots of big boots but my atm says no.

I have both friends and clients (I'm a therapist) who receive Ketamine treatment to treat (treatment resistant) depression and had positive results. It could be good to get the word out about that aspect.