Portrayals of Mental Health and Therapy in the Media: An Interview with Danah Davis Williams, LMFT

Portrayals of Mental Health and Therapy in the Media: An Interview with Danah Davis Williams, LMFT

Curt and Katie interview Danah Davis Williams, LMFT on the portrayals of mental health and therapy in the media. We explore responsible portrayals as well as the harmful practices that some writers and studios engage in. We also talk about the opportunities for modern therapists to have an impact on how diagnoses and mental health treatment are represented on film and television.

Transcripts for this episode will be available at mtsgpodcast.com!

An Interview with Danah Davis Williams, LMFT

Danah Davis Williams is a Licensed Psychotherapist, an Actor, a Psychological Creative Consultant, a Podcast Host and current Past President of the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT).

As a therapist, Danah is in private practice in Santa Barbara, California (California Coastal Counseling) where she specializes in helping people break destructive patterns of coping through the use of practical, evidenced-based coping skills and personal process. She is extensively trained in Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) and Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT).

As a consultant, Danah provides personalized psychological consultation for filmmakers, executives and creatives committed to socially responsible, captivating storytelling through authentic characterization of mental health, its treatment and interpersonal impact. She runs a psychological consulting business helping entertainment industry leaders ensure accurate representation of mental health: working with filmmakers, writers, execs, and high-profile actors from networks like FX, CBS, ABC, NBC, Freeform and MGM.

What does the media get wrong when portraying mental health and therapy?

• Inaccurate portrayals of diagnoses
• Manipulative or unethical therapists
• The problems with “guilty pleasures” that include inaccurate or harmful portrayals

The opportunities for therapists to be creators and consultants

• Translating clinical work into consulting and creating
• Vulnerability when sharing journey as a therapist
• Using skills from practice building to create opportunities as a creator
• The process of consultation for scripts and what to consider when providing feedback
• Ethical thoughts related to representations
• How to build a network and consulting business

How the storytellers look at mental health and healing

• The silver bullet that “heals” the client
• Inaccurate portrayals of therapy or healing and the impact on clients
• Ethics to consider (especially given you’re not acting within your profession with an ethical code)
• The challenges of unscripted shows

Shows that get it right when it comes to mental health and treatment

• This is us – Toby
• Comprehensive and realistic, tapping into lived experience within actors and/or writers
• The attempts to portray diversity and the experience of marginalized communities and their interaction in the mental health system

Diversifying Media and the Portrayals of Mental Health and Therapy

• Ava Duvernay’s Array program
• Michael B Jordan hiring students and mentoring the next generation
• Decreasing stigma for folks who have not typically sought mental health services

How to advocate for accurate mental health portrayals in the media

• Calling things out on social media that are good and things that are done poorly (or are harmful)
• Content creation about shows you watch (like blogs, articles, etc.)
• Discussing content in sessions to help process what folks are viewing or their own experience
• Not watching or purchasing tickets to content that is harmful (not reinforcing “guilty pleasures”)