
Bad Therapy
Why the Kids Aren't Growing Up
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Narrated by:
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Abigail Shrier
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By:
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Abigail Shrier
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER.
From the author of Irreversible Damage, an investigation into a mental health industry that is harming, not healing, American children
In virtually every way that can be measured, Gen Z’s mental health is worse than that of previous generations. Youth suicide rates are climbing, antidepressant prescriptions for children are common, and the proliferation of mental health diagnoses has not helped the staggering number of kids who are lonely, lost, sad and fearful of growing up. What’s gone wrong with America’s youth?
In Bad Therapy, bestselling investigative journalist Abigail Shrier argues that the problem isn’t the kids—it’s the mental health experts. Drawing on hundreds of interviews with child psychologists, parents, teachers, and young people, Shrier explores the ways the mental health industry has transformed the way we teach, treat, discipline, and even talk to our kids. She reveals that most of the therapeutic approaches have serious side effects and few proven benefits. Among her unsettling findings:
- Talk therapy can induce rumination, trapping children in cycles of anxiety and depression
- Social Emotional Learning handicaps our most vulnerable children, in both public schools and private
- “Gentle parenting” can encourage emotional turbulence—even violence—in children as they lash out, desperate for an adult in charge
Mental health care can be lifesaving when properly applied to children with severe needs, but for the typical child, the cure can be worse than the disease. Bad Therapy is a must-listen for anyone questioning why our efforts to bolster America’s kids have backfired—and what it will take for parents to lead a turnaround.
©2024 Abigail Shrier (P)2024 Penguin AudioListeners also enjoyed...




















Critic reviews
"Every parent should read this."—Elon Musk
“Essential reading for parents, teachers, and mental health professionals.”—Richard J. McNally, PhD, professor of psychology at Harvard University
“Shrier persuasively and forcefully demonstrates how mental health professionals (and some parents) often make things worse for the kids and adolescents they aim to help."—Elizabeth Loftus, distinguished professor of psychological science at University of California, Irvine
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This therapy trend in adolescence was pretty new when I was a kid and I soaked it up at my middle and high schools. while I was having troubles and I do think it helped to talk with somebody, having my own kids has really changed how I see things. I love how the author points to fostering indepence in youth rather than the full focus of our love as parents seeking to disect and direct every emotion of these budding people. It's a solid reminder of how intense life is - experience changes things and we're meant to learn and gain resilience, not be protected from every discomfort. I posted a recommendation on my FB page and promptly received warnings about the author's problematic position as she isn't one to affirm the current social trends. "Phobic" this and "lack of" that. Honestly, as a kid, if somebody other than my dad were to tell me that life is hard occasionally and you've just got to suck it up... it may have helped! 🤷🏼♀️
Compelling
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Insightful like surgery to a societal cancer
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changed my entire understanding of being a parent
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Content
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Every parent should read
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Brings up very valid points
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Every parent should read
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A must read for all parents
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Excellent journalistic work
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Stellar book that every teacher must read!
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