• -Tools such as artificial intelligence are key in the prevention of this type of disorders, since it allows us to understand the context of each person, such as their abilities, personality and needs, and based on this, create completely personalized socio-emotional training for each individual.

Mental health in Colombia has become a topic of growing concern. According to the latest survey by the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, 66.3% of Colombians affirm that they have faced a mental health problem at some point in their lives. This percentage is considerably higher among women, reaching 69.9%. In fact, within the age group of 18 to 24 years, 75.4% of women report having faced such problems. This shows the high burden of mental illness, particularly among the young population and the female gender. 

However, in the face of these challenges, and in the midst of the rise of artificial intelligence, technology promises to become a great tool to prevent these conditions. Andrés Gómez, co-founder of Bumii, a pioneering platform in socio-emotional education for the prevention of mental disorders, points out that in most cases, diseases such as depression or anxiety usually occur as a result of poor management of emotions after what A person experiences a change in their life.

“Prevention in mental health focuses mainly on the generation of emotional competencies such as self-control, empathy, assertiveness, among others. These skills allow people to better handle the different challenging situations that life brings, and thus avoid the development of mental disorders. Situations such as work pressure, anxiety in the face of different circumstances, and even sadness due to losses, require these skills for their identification and management. This is where technology plays a fundamental role, since it allows the creation of personalized training programs in emotional competencies, which would otherwise have to be done manually and wastefully,” Gómez points out. 

According to the expert, tools such as artificial intelligence are key in the prevention of this type of disorders, since it allows us to understand the context of each person, such as their abilities, personality and needs, and based on this, create completely socio-emotional training. personalized for each individual. 

“For example, if someone faces the challenge of improving communication and understanding of their adolescent children's feelings, through platforms like Bumii, artificial intelligence can facilitate specific training in which they are taught to use the interests and preferences of their adolescents. children to establish assertive conversations. These conversations will not only help understand adolescents' emotions, but will also promote healthy alternatives to validate and manage these emotions,” says Gómez. 

Socio-emotional education has traditionally been addressed through open talks, primers, massive videos, and a large amount of generic material. However, this approach fails to connect emotionally with people on a massive scale and does not lead to the necessary understanding. Which is reflected in the alarming figures of mental disorders not only in Colombia but globally. 

That is why today, through platforms based on generative artificial intelligence, they seek to create content that does establish an emotional connection with the public. Through digital tools like Bumii, which create personalized stories starring the same reader, addressing their interests and personal situations, people can develop emotional competencies and promote changes in attitude. These contents, based on psychological evidence, have the potential to reach a large number of people and lead them to better understand their emotions and the value of managing them.