Episode
From the Archive: Lori Gottlieb — What Your Therapist Is Really Thinking
- Podcast
- The James Altucher Show
- Published
- Mar 14, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 3290
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Summary
A Note from James: I’ve been in therapy for more than three decades. Different therapists. Different kinds of therapy. Different crises. And one question has always fascinated me: What is the therapist actually thinking while I’m sitting there talking? Are they bored? Are they judging me? Are they secretly Googling me? My guest today, Lori Gottlieb , knows the answer—because she’s both sides of the story. She’s a psychotherapist, author of the bestselling book Maybe You Should Talk to Someone , and the writer behind the popular advice column “Ask the Therapist.” But what makes Lori unique is that she’s willing to pull back the curtain on therapy itself: what therapists think, what patients hide, and why people keep repeating the same patterns in relationships and life. This episode originally aired several years ago, but the ideas still feel incredibly relevant—especially now, when conversations about mental health are everywhere. So if you’ve ever wondered what’s really happening on the other side of the therapy couch, this conversation is for you. Episode Description: Psychotherapist and bestselling author Lori Gottlieb joins James to discuss what really happens inside therapy—and what both therapists and patients often misunderstand about the process. Drawing from her book Maybe You Should Talk to Someone , Lori explains why therapy isn’t just about venting problems but about understanding the patterns that drive them. James shares his own experiences as a long-time therapy patient, raising questions many people quietly wonder: Do therapists judge their patients? Do they get bored? Do they Google the people they treat? Lori answers candidly, discussing the hidden dynamics of therapy, the emotional complexity therapists carry home with them, and why the most importan…