97. Healthcare Ethics & Philosophy with Jennifer Lahl, Karen King, & Jake Wiskerchen

Today I welcome back former guests Jennifer Lahl, Karen King, and Jake Wiskerchen for a collegial group chat. We catch up on their latest projects, including Jennifer’s new documentary on detrans men, The Lost Boys: Searching for Manhood, and Karen’s Ideological Oasis group for counseling graduates and interns.

We dive into the topics of distress tolerance, emotion regulation, and parenting. We also touch on the latest news, including the recent New York Times article on detransitioners Stephanie was featured in and the growing backlash against the medicalization of gender dysphoria. Throughout the episode, we examine the underlying philosophical and societal issues that contribute to the current state of mental health care.

Jennifer Lahl is an author, filmmaker, and founder of The Center for Bioethics and Culture Network. Her films include Trans Mission: What’s the Rush to Reassign Gender? (2021), The Detransition Diaries: Saving Our Sisters (2022), and The Lost Boys: Searching for Manhood (2024). Her new book, The Detransition Diaries (co-authored with Kallie Fell, from episode 60) also came out this year. She was originally featured in episode 52, Surrogacy: Liberation or Exploitation? with Jennifer Lahl.

Karen King is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in Washington who provides clinical supervision, ketamine-assisted psychotherapy, and education on psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. She created The Ideological Oasis, a place where interns and graduate students can find support and clinical clarity through group and individual mentorship. Find her offerings at Ideologicaloasis.com and more about her psychedelic work at karencking.com. She was originally featured in episode 81, The State of Psychedelic Therapy in 2023: Karen King on Ketamine, MDMA, & Institutional Capture.

Jake Wiskerchen is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in Nevada; founder and CEO of Zephyr Wellness; and host of the podcasts Noggin Notes and Guns and Mental Health. In partnership with Walk the Talk America, he offers low-cost CEU trainings to therapists on cultural competency in working with firearms owners. He was originally featured in episode 2, Jake Wiskerchen, LMFT: Demystifying Firearms and Other Taboo Topics in Mental Health.

Books mentioned in this episode:

• Irreversible Damage by Abigail Shrier
• Feminism Against Progress by Mary Harrington
• The Detransition Diaries by Jennifer Lahl and Kallie Fell

All books mentioned on this podcast can be found at sometherapist.com/bookshop or by following the Amazon affiliate links here. Either way, purchases support the show. Thank you!

00:00 Start

[00:02:33] Surrogacy and exploitation.

[00:05:01] Detransitioning and mental health.

[00:08:56] Erosion of medical ethics.

[00:12:06] Therapy ethics and ideologies.

[00:16:30] Ethical base and biological reality.

[00:19:37] Mental health professionals and detransitioners.

[00:24:05] Medical scandals and public awareness.

[00:27:43] Lack of preventative care.

[00:30:08] Compassion and enabling the problem.

[00:34:21] Unconscious sadism in our culture.

[00:37:06] Shifting Philosophical Perspectives.

[00:41:30] Ethical codes in counseling.

[00:45:36] Seeking consent in ethical debates.

[00:48:11] Medically transitioning children at 15.

[00:54:26] Psychedelics and disindoctrination.

[00:56:08] Exploring unconventional therapeutic practices.

[01:02:03] Unlocking the potential within.

[01:04:10] Threats to establishments and effectiveness.

[01:08:09] Our essential nature.

[01:11:37] The process of self-discovery.

[01:15:36] The duties of adolescence.

[01:20:54] Calling to task the medical profession.

[01:24:40] Creating parallel economies.

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Show notes & transcript provided with the help of SwellAI.

Special thanks to Joey Pecoraro for our theme song, “Half Awake,” used with gratitude and permission.

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