Bad Therapist

At a moment when therapy speak has made it into the mainstream and trauma is a national preoccupation, it’s high time to examine the shadow side of mental health.Bad Therapist Podcast takes an amused, informed look at the bad actors mucking around in the world of psychology. Cads, opportunists, and charlatans have been a part of this field since the beginning; some of them have even made lasting contributions to the field. Co-hosted by psychotherapist Ash Compton and journalist Rachel Monroe, both big fans of therapy and big critics of those who abuse its insights, Bad Therapist delves into two centuries of sketchy behavior, spanning everything from questionable nineteenth-century hypnotists to the TikTok-famous therapy hustlers.

Recent Episodes

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Recent Reviews

💫avonlea✨

Bad Podcast, not Bad Therapist

This is one of the most poorly researched and annoying podcasts I’ve heard on this topic. Such nonsensical and rambling mean girl talk. They have no firsthand experience of the people and coaches they disparage. Like they just searched the internet for bad reviews and stories and then “report” on them.
likethatbutbetter

Mean girls ignore research

Dismayed, esp. by the coaching episode. I’m not a fan of certain people discussed but there’s a ton of research on the efficacy of coaching; given the hosts’ backgrounds, I expected more than a mean-girl bashing (criticizing looks, decor, etc—ugh!) toward an entire industry. Lost a listener.
Horsefan101ggggg

Ash in fact is a bad therapist

Believing in Freud and also not seeing how the term “emotional labor” can apply outside of the workforce (especially since the term’s originator also wrote a book called “The Second Shift” that is very much about exactly this) is wild. This is the very image of a person who will do like 30 minutes of research on a topic, come up with a bad opinion that she believes is better than a poorly defined internet strawman of her own creation, and then present herself as a (fake) expert for her own (unsuccessful) attempt to profit from it.
Freedomnow44

Love this podcast!!

Bad Therapist is a must-listen! The hosts are incredibly knowledgeable while keeping conversations approachable and engaging. They break down complex mental health topics with clarity, humor, and real-world insight, making every episode both informative and relatable.
Chris J LCSW

So good!

Smart, funny and so insightful. As a therapist who has seen some wild and horrible things over the years , it is great to have Ash and Rachel give brilliant critiques (with just the right amount of snark) about some of the worst aspects of the field.
Liz Donadio

Bad Therapist is a Good Pod

The hosts have great chemistry & banter, I love how the conversations veer from cultural analysis to history lessons to jokes & back again. The theme music rules, too.
mudcop

Great podcast

I love how these two women talk to each other. Their deep friendship is obvious. However, they both say “like” way too much.
Matty T89

Instant Favorite

Discovered from the crossover episode of You’re Wrong About and then immediately downloaded all the episodes and gobbled them up. Great addition to the YWA family. Everyone I know should reset their boundaries (teehee) and listen to the therapy speak episode.
Orangelife4eva

Lightness and Levity

Great insights, background and I laugh so hard.
p_ jones

So Bad

Recipe for podcast disaster: 2 or more hosts trying to outdo each other with the bad jokes. This had so much promise.
Gennanicole

Smart and Insightful

I really enjoy their keen insights about mental health. Looking forward to more!
nielsenwithane

Spot-on analysis and so fun

I listen to many podcasts and this is a new favorite for me!
Dgtoob

A gem

I could listen to them banter all day.