Partisanship and polarization are everywhere in America these days, from classrooms to board rooms. Americans are sorting themselves into worlds separated by their political beliefs.
Why would therapists’ offices be any different? One reason: Therapists seem to be overwhelminglyliberal. Do people struggling with mental health issues need to agree with their therapists’ political views to find help?
Do conservative therapists have a different perspective on mental illness from their liberal counterparts? What would a conservative therapist say about the anxiety that followed, for some Americans, the election of Donald Trump?
As part of It’s Not Just You, Times Opinion’s project on mental health and society in America, the writer Meghan Daum spoke with Dea Bridge, a therapist in Grand Junction, Colo., who lists her services on conservativetherapists.com, which helps conservative patients find treatment with politically sympathetic professionals.