Very Bad Therapy

Ben and Carrie have a new podcast! It's called Learn Psychotherapy, and we're inviting you to listen and practice along to develop your therapy skills.

Learn Psychotherapy: Website / YouTube / Apple Podcasts / Spotify

Skill Criteria for Soliciting Client Feedback:

1. Begin with a short response, reflection, or validating comment.
2. Ask the client for feedback about some aspect of therapy that is related to the subject of the client statement.

Thanks for joining us to develop your therapy skills just a little bit beyond where they were yesterday. Visit Sentio University to download the client statements, sample responses, and skill criteria for this episode. To start the practice section, skip ahead to 26:42.

Instructions: We encourage you to learn by trying this skill yourself. Pause the episode after each client statement and try to improvise a response that meets the skill criteria and feels authentic to you. Have fun, and happy learning!

We're long overdue for a good old-fashioned Q&A episode. You've sent in your questions, and we're here to opine about everything from the importance of therapists getting their own therapy to the curious reluctance of the mental health field to embrace social psychology. Plus, we begrudgingly discuss the latest TikTok therapist drama to make a point about when it might be better to actually reject client preferences in session…or something like that. Social media is the worst.

Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy Patreon community. Today's episode is sponsored by courtmandatedtraining.com.

Join our charity drive! We are matching up to $6,000 of your donations to the world's most effective charities. To contribute, visit GiveWell.org and use the fundraising code VBT.

Introduction: 0:00 – 13:10

Part One: 13:10 – 1:18:43

Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Bookshelf / Tell Us Your Story

What happens when a therapist and client have two very different conversational styles? Therapists can try to build rapport in many ways, which unfortunately is reflected in our guest Ben's experience of being given terrible advice mislabeled as psychoeducation. Whether a client is talkative or reserved, one thing is for sure: randomly praising Donald Trump as a paragon of confidence is curious at best.

Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy Patreon community. Today's episode is sponsored by courtmandatedtraining.com and The Organized Therapist – Social Media for Therapists.

Join our charity drive! We are matching up to $6,000 of your donations to the world's most effective charities. To contribute, visit GiveWell.org and use the fundraising code VBT.

Introduction: 0:00 – 9:31

Part One: 9:31 – 39:55

Part Two: 39:55 – 1:15:01

Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Bookshelf / Tell Us Your Story

Show Notes:

• Episode 73 – Silence in Therapy: What's the Story? (with Dr. Gene Combs)
• Hidden Brain – Mind Reading 2.0: Why Conversations Go Wrong

Dr. Robin Hanson is an associate professor of economics at George Mason University and the coauthor of The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life. He joins us along with guest host Dr. Alex Williams to explore what clients are subconsciously signaling when they seek therapy – and what therapists are signaling to others when they enter the field. Plus, why is feedback-informed treatment similar to paying a friend $100 for a home-cooked meal?

Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy Patreon community.

Introduction: 0:00 – 4:54

Part One: 4:54 – 1:18:27

Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Bookshelf / Tell Us Your Story

Show Notes:

• Robin Hanson: Contact / Twitter
• Alex Williams: Contact / Twitter
• The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life

When does somebody officially become a client of therapy? And what happens if, before that distinction is made, crises occur and the therapeutic relationship unravels? Our guest Neith shares her experience navigating this scenario, and Dr. Ben Caldwell explains why little of this is clear cut, but some of it is clearly bad. Plus, we introduce a new segment: Is It Bad Therapy?

Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy Patreon community. Today's episode is sponsored by The Organized Therapist – Social Media for Therapists.

Introduction: 0:00 – 7:16

Part One: 7:16 – 44:14

Part Two: 44:14 – 1:25:45

Part Three: 1:25:45 – 1:27:52

Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Bookshelf / Tell Us Your Story

Show Notes:

• Donate to Strays Hope for Life Rescue
• Burbank Public Library
• SimplePractice Learning
• Ben Caldwell Labs
• Psychotherapy Notes
• Duty to the Patient – When Does it Begin?
• When Does Therapy Begin?
• In Case of Emergency: The Professional Will
• SimplePractice Learning Professional Wills
• SimplePractice Professional Will Template

On Very Bad Therapy, we seek to understand what it's like for clients to have bad therapeutic experiences. Should we focus more on the therapists' side of the story? Dr. Patrick Wiita joins us to continue our conversation from the end of episode #72 to discuss some very interesting questions:

• Are we doing a disservice to our listeners by not considering the "bad" therapists' point of view?
• What are we suggesting by being unquestionably validating of our guests' stories?
• Is it even possible to have this podcast if we challenge our guests' perspectives?

Plus, Carrie finds deep meaning in a breakfast sandwich.

Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy Patreon community.

Introduction: 0:00 – 3:57

Part One: 3:57 – 52:28

Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Bookshelf / Tell Us Your Story

Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is considered the front-line treatment for borderline personality disorder. What exactly is DBT, and why is it nothing like the invalidating experience that Amy describes in today's episode? To accept and change the reality of bad DBT, we speak with Fred Kutnick, LCSW about the propositions of good DBT.

Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy Patreon community. Today's episode is sponsored by The Organized Therapist – Social Media for Therapists.

Introduction: 0:00 – 7:17

Part One: 7:17 – 44:17

Part Two: 44:17 – 1:23:33

Part Three: 1:23:33 – 1:26:01

Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Bookshelf / Tell Us Your Story

Show Notes:

• Donate to Dallas Dog – Rescue. Rehab. Reform.
• Fred Kutnick, LMSW: Website / Email
• Persuasiveness: An underappreciated characteristic of effective therapists.
• Expanding Systems Thinking: Incorporating Tools from Medical Sociology into MFT Education and Research

Thomas Lennon is an acclaimed actor and screenwriter, best-selling novelist, and most importantly, Carrie's long-time friend. We break from our usual format to chat with Tom about his good experiences in therapy, the impact of fame on mental health, and Metallica getting family counseling together. This was a fun conversation – maybe next time we can talk with Paul Rudd!

Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy Patreon community.

Introduction: 0:00 – 5:42

Part One: 5:42 – 48:19

Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Bookshelf / Tell Us Your Story

Show Notes:

• Thomas Lennon: Twitter / Instagram / Amazon

Carrie and Ben are joined by Dr. Will Dobud to discuss two burning questions: is good therapy just the absence of bad therapy, and should we ban the use of cognitive behavioral therapy? We explore the importance of teaching people to think about psychotherapy models differently, the appeal of bringing therapy back to its pragmatist roots, and what the biased origins of personality tests can teach us about taking precautions when using theories of pathology. Plus, what can we learn from the wonderful history of smoke enemas?

Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy Patreon community.

Introduction: 0:00 – 5:43

Part One: 5:43 – 1:08:24

Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Bookshelf / Tell Us Your Story

Show Notes:

• Adventure Therapy Collective Podcast
• Which Theoretical Orientation Should You Choose?
• MFT California
• The Problem With Personality Testing

Beth is a self-described therapy failure expert. She joins us for the whole episode (and more!) as we discuss her personal bad therapy experiences, what therapists think of clients who disclose their stories of bad therapy, why therapists often struggle to provide specialized services, and the fact that some therapists simply aren't good at making their clients feel understood.

Thank you for listening. To support the show and receive access to regular bonus episodes, check out the Very Bad Therapy Patreon community.

Introduction: 0:00 – 7:53

Part One: 7:53 – 53:02

Part Two: 53:02 – 1:41:23

Part Three: 1:41:23 – 1:44:32

Very Bad Therapy: Website / Facebook / Bookshelf / Tell Us Your Story

Show Notes:

• Donate to METAvivor
• People Who've Been To Therapy Are Sharing What They Wish They Knew Before Starting, And It's Sparking An Important Conversation