Psychobabble

SPONSOR: Get 15% off OneSkin with the code HANNAH at https://www.oneskin.co/HANNAH  In this episode, we look at the Mackenzie Shirilla case as a starting point for a broader question: how do we understand female physical violence? The discussion moves from the details of the case — including Shirilla's behavior before and after the crash, the public reaction, and the question of remorse — into a w...

Modern dating has become increasingly expensive for men — not only financially, but emotionally, socially, and psychologically. In this episode, I look at the inflation of chivalry: the way ordinary courtship has turned into elaborate performance, "princess treatment," promposals and endless proof of male devotion. What is the problem with this? We also look at the rise of "the ick," and what that...

Get 15% off OneSkin with the code HANNAH at https://www.oneskin.co/HANNAH #oneskinpod  On June 3, 1968, Valerie Solanas walked into Andy Warhol's studio and shot him. Decades later, she has become a feminist icon, her SCUM Manifesto is taught in universities, and Hollywood celebrated her life in a major film that is now returning to theaters in a new restoration. How did an attempted murderer beco...

Most treatments for Borderline Personality Disorder focus on emotional dysregulation. The goal is to reduce distress, self-harm, anxiety, and crises. But that misses the mark. In this episode, I argue that modern psychiatry has adopted a model of Borderline Personality Disorder that is incomplete. By focusing almost exclusively on suffering, it neglects the maladaptive strategies harm others. I al...

What is the real difference between a psychopath, a sociopath, and antisocial personality disorder? In this episode, I respond to Dr. Ramani's claim that "psychopaths are born and sociopaths are made" and explain why that framing is far too simplistic. I also explain why cold psychopaths unsettle us so much and how antisocial personality disorder fits into this.    

In this episode, I break down the red flags of narcissism in women and why female narcissism is often much harder to recognize than male narcissism. Women are taught from very early on to speak the language of empathy, compassion, healing, boundaries, emotional safety and self-awareness. But that does not necessarily mean the underlying personality is agreeable, sacrificial or kind. In many cases,...

Postpartum depression is real, and in some cases it can be severe and even dangerous. Mothers who are struggling deserve compassion, support, and proper care. But what happens when a normal, difficult transition into motherhood increasingly becomes viewed through the lens of pathology? In this episode, I explore the rise of postpartum depression as a cultural phenomenon, the expansion of screening...

Is feminism really a movement for equality or could it be something else entirely? Evolutionary psychologist Dr Dani Sulikowski joins me to discuss if feminism may be best understood as a form of intrasexual competition between women. Let me know what you think in the comments. Follow Dr. Dani Sulikowski: https://x.com/DrDaniS   https://substack.com/@drdanis CHAPTERS: 01:05 Feminism as a form of f...

In this episode, I look at the mechanisms behind female grievance culture: externalizing blame, turning victimhood into identity, and rewarding antagonism through therapy-speak and social media. I argue that when ordinary disappointment is constantly translated into harm, trauma, invalidation, gaslighting or exploitation, this prevents maturation. When they are trained to scan for injury, keep sco...

For decades, feminist literature has claimed that feminist identification is associated with better psychological well-being in women. But what exactly was being measured and did those measures tell us anything serious about women's adjustment to adult life? In this episode, I look at the gap between self-reported empowerment and broader indicators of functioning: marriage, fertility, divorce, emo...

Prevention matters because once these patterns are learned, they are extremely difficult to undo. I am not convinced we can confidently call them curable. This is a practical look at what could make a difference, first at the individual-level, and then at a societal level. Listen to ad-free epsiodes of Psychobabble by subscribing on Substack! Chapters:  00:00 The Missing Piece: Prevention 00:28 Th...

At first, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy sounds like good therapy: calm tone, validation, "skills," the language of care. But if you look closely, something very different is happening. In this video, I break down a real clip of a DBT therapist and show how what is presented as "help" can, in practice, reinforce the very behaviors it claims to treat. We'll go beyond the surface, beyond self-repor...

What if borderline and vulnerable narcissism are the same traits—just executed differently? Using a real case, I break down the strategy behind. Want ad-free episodes? Go to the Psychobabble Substack and subscribe!  https://hannahspier.substack.com/  

Borderline Personality Disorder is usually framed as the result of trauma: a broken attachment system, a damaged patient reacting to early wounds. This is inclomplete. Borderline traits persist not because they are purely pathological, but because, in many contexts, they are functionally effective. This epsiode goes into the problem of the "invalidation environment" theory of Marsha Linehan, and t...

What was presented as an investigation into the subculture of the "Manosphere" felt like something else entirely. In this panel discussion, I'm joined by Janice Fiamengo, Tom Golden, and Jim Nuzzo to react to the new manosphere documentary and discuss what this actually was, what they got right and what they missed. We also touch on a new trend - Alpine Divorce. Want to listen ad-free? Subscribe o...

Borderline Personality Disorder is routinely explained as trauma response. In this episode, I look at the evidence behind that assumption. It matters because bad causal stories produce bad therapy. Become a Psychobabble Insider and join us for Live Clinical Sessions twice a month! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit...

This isn't about calling women "crazy." It's about recognizing the strategy behind the "aura" and the patterns of behavior that society often fails to warn men about. As a mother of two sons, I am seeing these dynamics play out more than ever, and it's time for a clinical and social autopsy of the high-conflict personality. Become a Psychobabble Insider and join us Sunday the 12th of April for a L...

Are we misdiagnosing female predators as "patients"?In this video, I explore a provocative but clinically grounded theory: that Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD) is often the female expression of Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD). While we have no trouble identifying the "Language of Force" in the male predator, society often falls for the "Language of the Heart" when it comes to women. U...

ADHD did not expand by accident. In some U.S. states, nearly 1 in 5 boys have been diagnosed. Adult diagnoses continue to rise. The standard explanation is simple: "It was always there — we're just recognizing it now."But genuine medical conditions do not behave this way. In this episode, I trace the historical evolution of ADHD from a rare and severe childhood condition to a lifelong, broadly def...

ADHD is officially classified as a neurodevelopmental disorder: a lifelong brain condition said to be present from birth. But despite decades of research, there is still no biomarker, no diagnostic brain scan, and no consistent neurological abnormality that can reliably distinguish an "ADHD brain" from a normal one. In this video, I examine why adult ADHD diagnoses have surged, especially among wo...

I am joined by ​⁠Janice Fiamengo, ​⁠Tom Golden, and James Nuzzo to analyze a "folder of awful" containing various feminist buzzwords and social media trends. If you want to go deeper, here is the recording from a live session with Psychobabble Insiders ,. These live discussions are where we can slow down, go through the clinical details, and answer questions directly. If you'd like to listen to th...

Obesity is increasingly explained through hormones, genetics, metabolism, and microbiomes. These explanations sound compassionate, scientific, and non-judgmental — but they often fail to explain what we actually observe and definitely fail those who want to lose weight. Become a Psychobabble Insider and join us this Saturday the 14th of March at 3 PM Eastern for a Live Clinical Session on psychiat...

To question a diagnosis today is to trigger a moral reaction. In contemporary psychiatry, diagnostic categories no longer function merely as clinical tools. They increasingly operate as moral identities, conferring legitimacy, status, and exemption from blame. When criteria are questioned, the response is often not clinical disagreement but moral accusation. Upgrade and join us this Saturday the 1...

I explain how traits once understood as borderline pathology were gradually laundered into bipolar disorder — through expanding criteria, rapid cycling, and the replacement of personality with biology. This isn't about denying suffering. It's about why diagnosis matters, how boundaries collapsed, and what it costs. Upgrade and join us this Saturday the 28th of Febuary at 3 pm Eastern for the next...

Most so-called "high conflict" divorces are not what people think they are. The term suggests two volatile adults locked in mutual chaos. But in a significant subset of cases, what looks like dysregulation is strategic. It is controlled, reputationally aware, and often concealed behind the language of concern, therapy, and child wellbeing. In this episode, I examine how some separations become are...