Very Bad Therapy

Sep 18 2023 150 ep. 67 mins 2.3k

Very Bad Therapy Podcast artwork

Very Bad Therapy is a closer look at what goes wrong in the counseling room - and how it could go better - as told by the clients who survived.

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147. Termination Session

Sep 18 2023 45 mins

Thank you for listening!

146. Patreon Selects: Carrie-Ben Therapy (aka CBT 2.0)

Sep 04 2023 71 mins

Carrie and Ben create their own model of therapy. Goal setting! Psychoeducation! Exploitation and worrisome sales tactics! What does it say about psychotherapy when our progressively cynical efforts to develop a modality end up mirroring some of the norms in our field? This episode is evidence-based and supported by neuroscience. Thank you for listening. To support the show an

145. Patreon Selects: Book Review - All Therapy Books

Aug 21 2023 91 mins

All therapy books have an oddly similar message: *This* form of therapy is the one that truly matters, and *this* science/philosophy/whatever is the key to understanding how human psychology actually works. These narratives can’t all be true, so are they all simply bullshit instead? We read through Scott Alexander’s legendary blog post, Book Review: All Therapy Books, and disc

143. Patreon Selects: Fun With the Psychology Today Profile Generator

Jul 24 2023 77 mins

Life can be hard at times. Do you want to feel more visible and important in your relationships? Are you curious about why every Psychology Today profile looks the same? We get silly with the incredible Therapist Generator and learn all about treating sunroof addition with truckload therapy and registered turtleneck therapy. The therapist profiles are fake, but our desire to meet

142. VBT Study Hall: Client Testimonials and Reviews

Jul 17 2023 80 mins

Social proof has become a crucial element of consumer decision making in the Internet era. So why don’t the vast majority of therapists ask their clients to give testimonials or leave reviews? We ponder the frustrating tension between psychotherapy ethics codes and literature on marketing in the 21st century, and we do our best to advise therapists about what to do in response to

141. “Not All Christians…” (with Josh Foster, LCPC)

Jul 03 2023 88 mins

What is religious trauma, and why do some therapists refuse to work with clients who use that language? In today’s episode, Jeremy speaks about his experiences with therapists who felt the need to defend their faith in session, and we are joined by Josh Foster, LCPC to discuss the complicated intersection between evangelical Christianity and ethical psychotherapy. Thank you fo

140. VBT Study Hall: What Does “Trauma-Informed” Mean?

Jun 19 2023 78 mins

Trauma-informed therapy is…what, exactly? And is trauma actually stored in the body, or is that just a clever narrative that a few enterprising gurus have used to sell books and trainings? We dig deep into the research on trauma to answer these questions and more, and Carrie introduces her breakthrough trauma-focused treatment: dog therapy. Thank you for listening. To support

139. Politics in the Therapy Room (with Dr. Ben Caldwell)

Jun 05 2023 87 mins

Let’s get controversial! Is it a good idea for a therapist to project their own political views onto a client? For today’s guest Ruth, the answer is a resounding “no.” We hear her story of a therapist who took her political advocacy too far, and Dr. Ben Caldwell rejoins us to explore the ethics of discussing politics in therapy. Plus, how can therapists know if they are tra

138. Patreon Selects: Is EMDR a Cultish Pyramid Scheme?

May 22 2023 72 mins

No, EMDR is not a cultish pyramid scheme. With that out of the way, why is EMDR training so expensive when its theoretical foundations are supported by dubious (at best) research? In this clickbaity-titled episode, Angela Nauss, EMDRIA-certified LMFT, joins us to describe the experience of paying thousands of dollars to “watch the dumpster fire from inside the dumpster.” Please

137. VBT Study Hall: Evaluating Research

May 15 2023 91 mins

How do we know which psychotherapy research is trustworthy? Dr. Alex Williams and Dr. John Sakaluk help us search for evidence in all the logical places: the replication crisis, RCTs, qualitative studies, dolphin therapy, Canadian football, researchers fighting Connor McGregor, and of course, EMDR. This episode is brought to you by MR. BEAR (Meta-analysis, Registered, Big sample si