Nearly a third of American women seek therapy. Whether seeking help with anxiety, depression, work stress, or relationship problems, tens of millions of women are seeking help.
But what happens when the professional you turn to to solve your problems ends up becoming a problem themselves?
On social media, women share their therapy horror stories, including paying practitioners hundreds of dollars an hour just to fall asleep during sessions, victims blaming their clients or their simply say to “get over” their problems.
A 31-year-old New Yorker told DailyMail.com that one of the first times she visited a therapist in high school, the provider fell asleep in his chair “just when I was finally able to find the courage to talk about something that had happened.” volume.’
Amy Nordhues, author of Prayed Upon: Breaking Free from Therapist Abuse, said in a TikTok: “There are so many bad therapists out there”
Amy Nordhues said her therapist fell asleep during one of their sessions while she was describing “a very painful story.”
Not only was it awkward, it was extremely discouraging.
And she’s not the only patient “whose trauma wasn’t entertaining enough to keep the therapist awake.”
Amy Nordhues, author of We Prayed: Freedom from Therapist Abusesaid in a TikTok: “There are so many bad therapists.”
Ms Nordhues said her therapist fell asleep during one of their sessions while she was describing “a very painful story”.
“She had the nerve to question me,” Ms. Nordhues said in the video.
She added: “On top of that, she said, ‘Well, I’ve heard this story a million times.’ »
Lauren Accolla, a licensed marriage and family therapist, described three major red flags to watch for when seeing a therapist: lack of progress; the therapist shares too many personal details or crosses boundaries; and the practitioner does not disclose training or licensure information.
In an example of blurring the patient-provider boundary, Ray Yasmine described his horror therapy story on TikTok: “I saw my first long-term therapist when I was a teenager. I trusted him with all my courage.
“When we ended the therapeutic relationship, she invited me to her house, took me out to eat, and on the day I was leaving the state for graduate school, she took me to get tattoos matched together.
“My current therapist, who she referred me to, later reported her (but had no repercussions) and only at 26 years old. [years old] I realized how wrong it all was.
“The tattoo is now covered.”
Dr. Liz, who is a psychologist herself, said in a TikTok that she had her own experiences with “really toxic therapists,” including those who pushed the boundaries of the clinical relationship.
On TikTok, Victoria Vance said a therapist she saw as a child for her anxiety told her to “pray to God about it.”
Dr Liz said: “Therapists make mistakes, and that is human of us, but these are obviously unacceptable. »
The psychologist said she had therapists flirt and push romantic and sexual boundaries with her, take her partner’s side in couples therapy and “ghost” her, ending suddenly and abruptly. unexpected to any communication, without warning or explanation.
In some cases, therapists react without compassion, give bad advice, or minimize the patient’s feelings and experiences.
TikTok user Brianne Olsen described her “worst therapy experience ever” in a video, saying her therapist told her: “It seems like you have everything going for you, you have no reason to ‘to be sad.”
The therapist also dismissed his symptoms of depression and his previous diagnosis of ADHD.
She ended the appointment by telling Ms. Olsen to “cheer up.”
Ms. Olsen said the experience made her not want to return to therapy, but commenters, some of whom identify as therapists, told her to “give up.” [the therapist]not therapy.
Reddit user azmasaco wrote that her therapist told her to “clean the slate” and start trusting her husband again after years of physical and emotional abuse and infidelity.
Another wrote that their therapist told them to “stop being sad and talking to people,” even though the person suffered from depression and social anxiety.
Reddit user FutureMailCarrier wrote that his therapist’s advice for solving his problems was to “Face your fears.”
On TikTok, Victoria Vance, the daughter of a therapist, said a provider she went to as a child for anxiety told her to “pray to God about it.”
“That was not the answer I expected,” she said.
User MeltyMermaid97 commented that one of her therapists said it was her father’s fault he got cancer.
Another added that her therapist told her to “stop acting out” when she suffered a mental breakdown during one of their sessions.
In another case, a Reddit user’s practitioner told her she would “miss the attention” one day after she revealed a man followed her around a store blowing her kisses, waving and asking her for her number even after she asked him – shortly after she was harassed. by another man.
Redditer Wackydetective said: “About a year before my dad died, they convinced him to go to therapy. He was a retired trucker with a dirty mouth. My brother disappeared 10 years ago after my mother died. It was my father’s greatest sadness.
” The therapist told him, “I think it’s time to accept that your son is dead. “
WrestlingWoman also commented: “This is the first time I’ve seen one. I had never opened up before and decided to give it a fair chance. I answered all his questions and told him what happened to me when I was a child.
“His response to my trauma: “Why aren’t you over it yet? Other people have had it worse than you and they are over it.”
Dr. Danna Bodenheimer, a therapist in Philadelphia, said, “Therapists can be incredibly dangerous, and in fact, if they’re not constantly and vigilantly monitoring themselves, there’s a good chance they’ll do something wrong.” harmful because they are made to feel dangerous. of power and a false sense of expertise towards the people they work with which often leaves the person feeling like they don’t know themselves.
She said it was important for therapists to be “human” and engage with their clients in a way that lets them know “they’re sitting with a real person.”
Despite the multitude of bad advice and unprofessional behavior, therapists and patients emphasize the importance of therapy and explain that it may take some time to find a provider you feel comfortable with.
But, many add, it’s ultimately worth it.
