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:
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"Abigail Shrier is the smartest and most courageous reporter in the country. There’s a high cost to telling the truth, but for parents and kids, the rewards are beyond measure. Five stars."
— Caitlin Flanagan, staff writer at The Atlantic
Shocking, revelatory, and eminently important, Bad Therapy had me gripped from the first page. Abigail Shrier is an exquisite writer and a courageous voice. A must read!
— Amy Chua, Yale law professor and author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother and The Golden GateEssential reading for parents, teachers, and mental health professionals.
— Richard J. McNally, PhD, professor of psychology at Harvard UniversityShrier 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, IrvineA powerful critique of a culture in which ‘traumatic’ describes anything from horrific abuse to your new laptop going on the blink.
— Elizabeth Gaufberg, MD, associate professor of medicine and psychiatry at Harvard Medical SchoolA dazzling combination of investigative reporting and story-telling. A groundbreaking book.
— Gerald Posner, award-winning investigative journalist and author of PharmaBe the first to write a review about this audiobook!
Abigail Shrier is a writer for the Wall Street Journal. She is a graduate of Columbia College, where she received the Euretta J. Kellett Fellowship; the University of Oxford; and Yale Law School. She lives in Los Angeles, CA.