How "Therapy Culture" Swung WAY Too Far the Other Way Now, with Jonathan Alpert

Added: 2026-05-23

[00:00:00]So it used to be in the country, you know, stiff upper lip, you know, you're fine, you're fine. And then we kind of realized, well, that doesn't work for everybody. Some people actually do need to talk about their problems. And we had more psychotherapists pop up and more counseling pop up and people started to use them. And how did we get from that to everyone is overly therapized and has got their prescriptions for their boundaries, their me time, their safe spaces to where you can't even talk to some of these young people because they're so obsessed with their latest disorder or how something you've done has crossed some imaginary line that they've created in order to foster their own happiness.

[00:00:42]>> Well, and you're spot on with that.

[00:00:43]Everything's a disorder. We have therapists that are uh pathizing everything. Had a bad day at work? Well, you must have a toxic work environment.

[00:00:53]Your boss is a jerk? Well, he must be a narcissist if he's if he's demanding. Or your boyfriend's not acting the way that you want him to. Well, he must be a narcissist as well. So, we have therapists.

[00:01:05]>> Every one of my friends who has an ex-boyfriend thinks he's a narcissist.

[00:01:09]Like, it's very funny. It's a common theme.

[00:01:11]>> Well, and it's an overdone theme. And uh my profession is to blame for that. We have therapists who are using these clinical terms so loosely and then it's migrated and found its way into social media. So we have uh you know you name it, your favorite influencers out there just spewing absolute nonsense and labeling everyone as ADHD or toxic or narcissist or bipolar or borderline. Uh so it's a huge problem in our in our society. I have patients that come in to see me for the first time and they say, "I think I'm bipolar," or, "I think my girlfriend is borderline." And I said, "Well, why do you think that?" Well, uh, my influencer that I follow, uh, said that. And they put out these checklists, five signs that you might be ADHD or five signs that your boyfriend's a narcissist. So, again, this starts in my profession. And I have colleagues that are putting this nonsense out