There have been numerous pieces published by secular media outlets and influencers lately warning of the rise of “therapy speak.” While hard to define, you could loosely say that it is the prescriptive use of psychological and therapeutic terms in everyday language to describe one’s experience, identity, and the various situations in life. You hear it most in the overuse of words like “trauma,” but it shows up in many other places. Shame, attachment, inner child, trigger, holding space, gaslight, anxious, depressed, narcissism, boundaries, vulnerability, PTSD, OCD, self-care. The list of these words and phrases seems nearly endless and, more importantly, suddenly ubiquitous in the lexicon of the average Millennial and Gen Z person today.
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Ian Harber
Ian Harber is the Director of Communications and Marketing for Mere Orthodoxy. He is the author of the book, Walking Through Deconstruction: How To Be A Companion In A Crisis Of Faith (IVP '25). He has written for The Gospel Coalition, Mere Orthodoxy, RELEVANT, and more. Ian lives in Denton, TX with his wife and two sons.
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