Bronwen Clark is the author of Don’t Be Weird: A Memoir of Food and Feelings. She joins us to share experiences of bad therapy from her healing journey that include being kicked out of eating disorder treatment for being too depressed – only to almost be kicked out of mood disorder treatment for being too eating disordered. This is a compelling story of trauma and resilience. Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy...
Jun 29, 2020•58 min
Paul Gilmartin is a former stand-up comedian and host of the widely popular Mental Illness Happy Hour podcast. We speak with him about his journey with clinical depression, insights on mental health and psychotherapy from ten years of hearing others’ personal stories, and his own experiences of very bad therapy. Plus, Paul shares his thoughts on self-obsession and the quest for fame. VBT in Focus is a series of sporadic episodes in which Carrie and Ben have the privilege of chatting with their f...
Jun 22, 2020•1 hr 4 min
In today’s episode, our guest J shares two experiences that highlight the difficulties therapists can have in intercultural therapeutic relationships. We also speak with Dr. Pamela Hays about the ADDRESSING model and other strategies therapists can use to mitigate the impact of their cultural biases in session with clients. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access to bonus episodes or by making a one-time contribution via PayPal . Sh...
Jun 15, 2020•1 hr 12 min
Ben and Carrie discuss their commitment to making this podcast an antiracist space. Show Notes: Webinar – Ask the Experts: Treating Mental Health in the Black Community I’m a Black Therapist…& Yes, it matters. Stamped from the Beginning – The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America Why I Left My White Therapist How Therapists Drive Away Minority Clients Black People Go To Therapy, Too: Session 2 – Kellen Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Tell Us Your Story...
Jun 08, 2020•35 min
Candace Newmaker was a 10-year-girl who tragically died in the process of rebirthing therapy, a variation of a pseudoscientific treatment of childhood trauma known as attachment therapy. This episode comes with a big trigger warning. If you were in a room where a child was being suffocated, would you do anything to stop her death? Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access to bonus episodes or by making a one-time contribution via PayP...
Jun 01, 2020•51 min
This week’s guest Adam shares his experience of seeing a therapist for five years without any noticeable benefit. When should clients – or therapists – start to wonder if it’s time to end the therapeutic relationship? As it turns out, there’s a lot of research suggesting that therapists need to do much more than simply wait for their approach to start working…including accepting the likelihood of treatment failure. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Pat...
May 25, 2020•1 hr 6 min
Deliberate practice is an emerging (and sometimes abstract) concept of psychotherapist development. Tony Rousmaniere and Alex Vaz are working to transform these ideas into concrete practices. This episode is an exploration of the theory, adaptability, and future of deliberate practice. Plus, Alex leads Carrie in a live demonstration of a deliberate practice exercise with Ben playing the role of a challenging client. VBT in Focus is a series of sporadic episodes in which Carrie and Ben have the p...
May 18, 2020•1 hr 8 min
Conversations about death, dying, and bereavement can be difficult, but they are often an important part of the therapeutic process. Dr. Michael Morad-McCoy joins us to share his experiences with “not very helpful” clinicians who were unable or unwilling to explore dark areas, and we discuss how therapists can best support their clients in a time of ubiquitous grief and loss. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access to bonus episodes...
May 11, 2020•45 min
The American Psychological Association commissioned a task force in 1993 to determine how to scientifically evaluate psychotherapy treatments. A controversy immediately ensued. Carrie digs into the literature on the history and effectiveness of empirically supported treatments to figure out what this suggests about best clinical practices. Note: this is not an ad for CBT. Pardon the slight background noise in Carrie’s audio; this is resolved after eight minutes. Thank you for listening. Support ...
May 04, 2020•59 min
In this week’s episode, Samuel discusses his experiences with conversion therapy in Provo, Utah. This is a beautiful story of resilience, compassion, and thriving. Thanks to our listeners, experts, and most of all the inspiring guests who have shared their stories with us for 50 episodes. It is a privilege for us to be a part of this growing community. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access to bonus episodes or by making a one-time...
Apr 27, 2020•50 min
Therapist defensiveness is a recurring theme in stories of bad therapy. In this week’s episode, Suzanne shares her experience with a therapist whose defensiveness was expressed in gratuitous displays of power and dismissive remarks. Plus, Dr. Nathan Castle rejoins the show to explore the topics of defensiveness, radical acceptance of clients, and the importance of transparency. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access to bonus episod...
Apr 20, 2020•1 hr
This week’s story from Ashley has all the markings of bad family therapy. But did the interventions work? Ashley shares her experience as a teenager in crisis being threatened with inpatient care and alarms on her door, and Angela Caldwell makes us question everything we know about what constitutes good therapy. Is it OK to trick clients if it leads to successful outcomes? Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access to bonus episodes or...
Apr 13, 2020•54 min
A satanic panic in the early 1980s culminated in the McMartin Preschool abuse trial, the then-longest and most expensive criminal trial in American history. The trial centered around 359 allegations of ritualistic satanic child abuse and concluded with zero convictions and a new understanding of the unreliability of recovered memories. The satanic panic has subsided, but its indirect effects are still present today in how therapists work with childhood trauma. Thank you for listening. Support th...
Apr 06, 2020•1 hr 1 min
This week’s story from Alison is a throwback to high school and all of Carrie and Ben’s greatest fears around teenage embarrassment. We discuss interventions that are better left unsaid (telling an underage client to share romantic feelings with her softball coach) and others that have questionable validity (House-Tree-Person and Rorschach tests). Plus, what does modern science have to say about Instagram Face? Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon...
Mar 30, 2020•44 min
Scott Miller and Daryl Chow return to the podcast to discuss their new book, Better Results: Using Deliberate Practice to Improve Therapeutic Effectiveness. Topics include the importance of targeting individual strengths and deficits in a system of learning, how to get out of the performance zone, the significance of a coach, and ideas for changing the ways in which psychotherapy is taught. VBT in Focus is a series of sporadic episodes in which Carrie and Ben have the privilege of chatting with ...
Mar 23, 2020•56 min
What should therapists know about working with individuals with disabilities? In this week’s episode, Joy Wolf joins us to share her personal story about two therapists who responded to her disability in very different yet similarly problematic ways. We also discuss the impact of privilege, therapist uncertainty, and the limitations in how we are trained to work with clients with disabilities. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access...
Mar 16, 2020•41 min
An urgent conversation about the role of therapists in doing the most public good during the coronavirus outbreak. Pat Wiita, MD and Farah Zerehi, MS explore the science, needed actions, and social justice implications of the pandemic, and Ben Caldwell, PsyD discusses what you need to know about shifting your practice to telehealth services. Please share this episode anywhere you feel it might make an impact. If you have expertise or information related to the pandemic that you feel is important...
Mar 13, 2020•50 min
This week’s captivating story from Paloma brings together themes of postpartum depression and therapist specialization. Paloma offers insight into the harmful impact of societal narratives about motherhood and Curt Widhalm rejoins the podcast to explain what specialization actually means – and when it’s just a marketing tool with dangerous consequences. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access to bonus episodes or by making a one-tim...
Mar 09, 2020•54 min
Philip Zimbardo rode the impact of the Stanford Prison Experiment to international renown. Perhaps he forgot to mention that his famous research was more performance art than psychological experiment. In our eighth of twelve history episodes, we look at the common narratives and impact of the SPE, and then consider recently uncovered evidence to the contrary. Plus, Carrie makes sense of Zimbardo’s 7,000 word response to the new criticisms. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a ...
Mar 02, 2020•58 min
This week’s story from Farah touches on many common themes of bad therapy: disempowerment, unsolicited advice, misrepresenting qualifications, and more. We explore how early-career therapists can be transparent about their lack of experience while still creating client buy-in, what research suggests about giving advice to clients, and the importance of feedback. Plus, Carrie reflects on the gender power dynamic on this podcast and between male therapists and female or non-binary clients. Stay tu...
Feb 24, 2020•1 hr 18 min
Today’s guest Danny shares his outrageous experience of being told to urinate in a cup so his therapist could test if he was really gay. And that’s just the beginning of the story. We also speak with Dr. Joe Kort to explore best practices for working with the LGBTQ+ community, the need for humility and curiosity in a time of rapidly changing relationships to identity, and the diagnoses that stigmatize and marginalize members of this population. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becomi...
Feb 17, 2020•1 hr 4 min
Today’s guest Kat shares her experience with a therapist who was unnecessarily cruel in her approach to treatment. In trying to make sense of this behavior, Carrie and Ben consider the research on how and when therapeutic relationships get fractured as a result of divergent interpretations of the same significant events in therapy. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access to bonus episodes or by making a one-time contribution via Pay...
Feb 10, 2020•51 min
In 1964, Dr. Everett Shostrom had a brilliant idea: record short videos of the same person receiving therapy from three top psychologists. These videos are colloquially referred to as the Gloria tapes, and the story behind the therapy is astounding. Coercion, human ashtrays, lawsuits, Fritz Perls being a massive jerk, and more! This is episode seven in our monthly look at bad therapy through the decades. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to rec...
Feb 03, 2020•52 min
In the UK, anyone with $16 can become a certified psychotherapist and begin seeing clients immediately. If this sounds surprising, imagine how clients feel when they have a bad experience and realize their therapist is not governed by any regulatory body. BBC presenter Jordan Dunbar joins us to share his own stories of bad therapy and his surprising findings from investigating the lack of regulation around UK mental health services. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly...
Jan 27, 2020•41 min
In America, psychotherapist licensure requirements vary – often absurdly – from state to state. What does not vary is the need for periodic license renewal, an otherwise mundane fact that holds foreboding significance in our guest Dee’s story. Join us for a surprisingly interesting exploration of licensure requirements and the consequences of practicing without authorization. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receive access to bonus episodes...
Jan 20, 2020•38 min
The exploitation of uneven power and emotional vulnerability is, of course, not limited to the field of psychotherapy. Today’s guest Megan shares her experience of very bad pastoral counseling, and we speak with the Reverend Meredith Harber to explore the nuances of Megan’s story and what proper pastoral care looks like with a contemporary understanding of power dynamics, boundaries, and gender norms. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly subscriber on Patreon to receiv...
Jan 13, 2020•55 min
The first Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-I) was published with the intention of creating standardized language for mental abnormalities. It was also basically a war department bulletin. The controversial compendium is responsible for many important contributions to the fields of psychiatry and psychotherapy, but it also legitimized new forms of oppression and stigmatization in the name of normalizing judgments. This is part six of twelve monthly episodes revisiting ba...
Jan 06, 2020•45 min
Today’s story from T is a cautionary tale about a therapist causing harm by blurring boundaries around texting, personal space, and self-disclosure. Carrie and Ben attempt to hold space for T’s experience while seeking a middle ground in their differing perspectives about her therapist’s behavior. One thing is certain: if a therapist has a sexual dream about a client, the therapeutic relationship is not the place for processing. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthly sub...
Dec 30, 2019•42 min
The absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. In today's episode, the absence of bad therapy is indeed evidence of bad therapy as our guest Eric joins us to discuss the impact of showing up for multiple sessions only to discover that the therapist is nowhere to be found. Plus, we talk about therapists going to prison, cars exploding, and Ben unveils the six-word joke that will single-handedly change the future of psychotherapy. Thank you for listening. Support the show by becoming a monthl...
Dec 23, 2019•39 min
Jon Hook, PhD student at Western Michigan University, is contributing to research on how the coding of session transcripts to determine therapist attachment styles can be used to facilitate better client outcomes. He joins us to discuss the significance of therapist attachment and shares his story as a client of two therapeutic alliances that were anything but securely attached. Show Notes: Support Very Bad Therapy on Patreon Donate to Sojourner Truth House Therapist Attachment-Related Behaviors...
Dec 16, 2019•43 min
