The Therapy Trap, the Cultural Reset, and What Might’ve Been if We’d Listened to the Other Guy
Think You Just Need More Therapy?
Recently, I sat across from a dear friend, who – over a long coffee get together – shared her concerns for her adult daughter. She confided, “I’m just worried about her. She’s overworked both at her job and also being a single mom to three kids, then add to that, the divorce.”
I sympathized, remembering my own struggles post divorce nearly two decades ago. So, I asked, “I kn0w she has you, but does she have a strong support network of friends? I know mine were invaluable as I navigated my days of juggling all the hats.”
She grimaced as she said, “Not really. But she has been going to therapy.”
My eyebrows shot up. “Not a fan of therapy, I take it?”
She went on to hurriedly explain that she didn’t have anything against the idea of therapy, if it was productive. Then she leaned in closer and said, “But the thing is, all they ever do is talk about the problems. Week after week. And when I asked her what she’s learned from it – meaning, you know, problem solve – she went on and about finding root causes and digging deeper, and… ugh. I’m sorry, it just all sounded so circular. Oh, and he wants her to go on antidepressants!”
She didn’t need to explain her frustration and concern. I understood… and agreed.
And? It got me to thinking: Why does every solution seem to require more sessions, more medication, more talking about the problem instead of just solving it?
So, I decided to dig deeper into finding the answers to that very question. Turns out, my curiosity led me on a path to learning about the legacy of a man who may have done more to shape (and break) modern America than most presidents. And, a man who had a completely different idea that might have led society down a very different (and healthier!) path.
The men? Sigmund Freud and Alfred Adler.
Freud vs. Adler: The Therapy Fork in the Road
At the dawn of modern psychology, two men stood at a crossroads:
One wanted to free people from their past.
The other wanted to keep them there.
Let’s meet them.
Sigmund Freud
Austrian neurologist, born 1856.
Saw human behavior as driven by unconscious desires, mostly sexual and aggressive.
Famous for: the id, ego, and superego, Oedipus complex, and a lifelong vendetta against religion.
Believed that trauma and dysfunction lived buried in your psyche, and the goal was to dig it up… forever.
“Religion is a mass delusion,” he said.
“Dreams are the royal road to the unconscious.”
Translation: Everything is your parents’ fault, you’re probably repressed, and also—God isn’t real.
Alfred Adler
Also Viennese, also Jewish, but radically different.
Believed in free will, purpose, and personal responsibility.
Focused on what he called “striving for significance”—our God-given desire to contribute, connect, and grow.
His therapy style? Encouragement-based, goal-driven, and solution-focused.
“Trust only movement. Life happens at the level of events, not words.”
In other words: You’re not broken. You’re just not done yet.
Why Freud Won (and Why We All Lost)
So here’s the million-dollar question:
Why did Freud become a household name while Adler got buried in textbooks?
Simple. Freud’s theories were:
Profitable 💰 (endless therapy = lifelong clients)
Political 🧠 (made people easier to manage)
Compatible with Big Pharma 💊 (symptoms > solutions)
Convenient for breaking the family unit 🏛️ (parents = the problem)
Let me ask you this…
Who benefits from:
Teaching women their children are burdens?
Telling men their masculinity is toxic?
Pathologizing normal sadness and selling pills for it?
Blaming childhood instead of building character?
👉 The people who want you dependent.
Freud’s model justified the mass breakdown of the American family, removed God from the equation, and gave rise to government-guided mental health policies rooted in victimhood instead of victory.
The Culture Freud Helped Create
Let’s connect the dots:
| Cultural Shift | Freudian Fuel |
|---|---|
| “You’re a victim of your trauma” | Personal responsibility disappears |
| “Parents mess you up” | Family is suspect |
| “Repression is bad” | Restraint is mocked |
| “Therapy is essential” | Healing becomes a subscription |
| “Morality is relative” | Truth becomes optional |
Now couple that with:
Public school indoctrination
Feminism 2.0 (“You don’t need a man!”)
Hollywood normalizing dysfunction
Pharma ads in every commercial break
Freud didn’t just influence psychology. He helped create the emotional scaffolding of secular America.
What If We’d Chosen Adler?
Let’s play “It’s a Wonderful Life: Psychology Edition.”
If America had embraced Adlerian values:
Therapy would be short-term and goal-oriented.
Mental health care would look like coaching, not confessional booths.
Families would be the solution, not the scapegoat.
Faith would be seen as strength, not delusion.
Kids would be raised to overcome, not overanalyze.
Instead of a culture addicted to diagnosis and dependency, we might’ve built a society of people who knew how to take a hit, get up, and grow stronger.
Sound familiar?
“We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” — Romans 8:37
What Can We Do About It Now?
Because I know what you’re thinking:
“Okay Elsa, cool history lesson. Now what?”
Here’s what we can do—no therapy bill required:
🔎 1. Question the Narrative
Just because it’s been normalized doesn’t mean it’s right. If the system says you’re broken, but God says you’re redeemed… who do you believe?
🙋♀️ 2. Choose Empowering Voices
Follow teachers, counselors, and leaders who point you to purpose—not pathology. Look for Adler-inspired, solution-focused, biblically grounded truth-tellers.
🧒 3. Raise Resilient Kids
Adlerian parenting aligns with the Bible: encourage, equip, and correct in love. Don’t raise victims. Raise problem solvers.
💬 4. Tell the Truth with Grace
Not everyone’s ready to hear this. But someone out there is desperate to break free from the lie that they’re doomed to be who their trauma says they are.
Be the light that says, “Hey… you can change.”
“Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” — Romans 12:2
Final Thought
Freud may have hijacked the mental health conversation, but he doesn’t get to write the ending.
That’s God’s job.
And spoiler alert? He’s in the restoration business.
So if you’ve felt broken, confused, or like the system wants to keep you small—you’re not crazy. You’re just waking up.
And that?
Is the most dangerous thing you can do in a culture built on control.