A psychologist has claimed that if you watch or listen to true crime stories as a way of relaxing then you may need some serious trauma counseling.
Some people are enthralled by true crime, whether it's bingeing a popular Netflix series like Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, or anxiously awaiting updates on a real-life news story...
However, expert Dr. Thema Bryant - who specializes in family, marriage, and sexual therapy - has shared that there's nothing healthy about being invested in that particular content.
Speaking to Mel Robbins on her podcast, Bryant revealed those who consume depictions of crime, harm, and attacks may do so because the trauma of it all is "familiar" to them.
Watch Bryant on the Mel Robbins podcast below:
"If your idea of relaxing before you go to sleep is to watch three episodes of Law and Order I would encourage you to think about 'why is trauma relaxing to me?'" she asked the audience.
The interviewer questioned her about the responses people in therapy have when asked about their "connection" to true crime, and the expert said: "Some of us grew up in high stress, so people mistake peace for boring."
But Bryant encourages people to "lean into the discomfort" of "boring" so they can come home to themselves, adding: "It may be a good time to reprogram your nervous system. Peace may seem unfamiliar and feel boring but you are worth of it."
Upon seeing the video - which has almost 90,000 views - many users flooded the comment section with their shock at the revelation. One person wrote: "Gut drop…… Off to journal."
Another user said: "Wow that is exactly what I watch to relax. This was so enlightening," while a third commented: "Daaaaaammmnnnmn that caught me off guard. Just wow."
Meanwhile, others explained why they watch violent media. One user shared that the trauma "isn't relaxing" to them, but it's more so "the justice the characters/real people often get that I never did in my own life".
A second person interjected that they don't resonate with the brutality, but instead enjoy solving the "crime/puzzle" and "problem," while one last user added: "Most people just like suspense and drama. Some people like the investigative puzzle. Others like to understand criminal behaviors more."
Dr. Elizabeth Jeglic - a professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice - explained to Crime Reads why trauma survivors may find true crime depictions fascinating."Anecdotally, some people are drawn to the study of psychology to understand themselves and heal themselves," the clinical psychologist said. "We have many people in psychology programs who have a history of active mental illness."
Jeglic stated that people who have a history of trauma might be drawn to true crime "to kind of re-experience those traumatic situations in a safe environment where they have more control".
So, if you can't unwind without watching Netflix's Making a Murderer series or a few episodes of Law & Order, then you may need to do some thorough evaluation...
