Why I’ve Held Back on Solo Episodes Sharing My Mental Health Expertise

About two years ago, I had a thought-provoking conversation with a fellow therapist about the challenges of referring clients with personality disorders to specialist services. This sparked the idea of recording a podcast episode on narcissism and dual diagnosis, as I’ve had extensive experience working with these patients in specialised settings, including prisons. So, I sat down and recorded what I thought would be a valuable resource for the public, drawing from my direct clinical experience. However, when James, who handles editing, called after doing some research, he informed me that the internet was already saturated with content on narcissism. This came as a surprise since I don’t spend much time browsing the web; in my downtime, I prefer listening to music, tuning into Smooth Radio, or enjoying time with family.

When James sent me links to these channels, I found they largely focused on love relationships with narcissists, often without any clinical experience behind the claims. It was disappointing to see so much misinformation being spread by people who were self-diagnosing others and conflating narcissism with personality disorders, which is simply inaccurate.

Despite these reservations, we went ahead and posted the episode. To our surprise, a few weeks later, James received messages from listeners who had left comments on a well-known psychologist’s channel, praising my content. However, they also noticed that this psychologist seemed to be using my insights without credit, even incorporating niche elements of my work—like the folklore behind the Wren’s story—into her own content. It was unsettling, especially when she twisted the original tale to fit her narrative. This not only revealed how she perceived me, a lesser-known creator, but also reflected her mindset about "owning" certain topics, especially ones where I bring direct clinical experience.

The story of the Wren is quite niche. I discovered it years ago in a rare book in Austria, and it’s hardly mainstream knowledge. Seeing it appropriated so blatantly felt like a professional slight. I spoke with another content creator who told me this sort of thing is common; stealing ideas and repackaging them as one's own is, unfortunately, the dark side of the content world. James’s take was that we couldn’t expect credit from someone who may already have narcissistic tendencies herself—especially since she had a much larger platform and likely believed no one would notice.

This situation reminded me of the workplace dynamic where colleagues take credit for your ideas, passing them off as their own to get ahead. It was disappointing, especially since I hold myself to a different standard; I believe in giving credit where it’s due. However, I can’t expect everyone to operate with the same integrity. As a result, I shifted my focus to solo episodes on spirituality—an area where I felt more confident that my content couldn’t be easily co-opted.

I still get frequent requests to share my expertise on mental health, but instead, I've been featuring guests with rich personal experiences and professional insights. This approach allows me to offer value to listeners without risking the theft of my hard-earned knowledge. I've even written drafts on niche mental health topics that I know would be impactful, but I hesitate to release them, aware that they could be misappropriated by others. My years working in specialist services put me in a unique position to share insights that go beyond surface-level understanding. I've been in those intense, often heart-wrenching situations—diagnosing, attending court hearings, leading therapy sessions, and walking with patients through their journey of recovery. It’s a level of expertise that can’t be replicated without the same in-depth clinical experience.

For now, until I have a shift in perspective about sharing content that could be taken without credit, I’m holding back on those solo episodes. I’d love to offer that knowledge, but I don’t feel comfortable doing so at this point. Fortunately, there are countless other topics I’m passionate about that I can explore with my incredible guests, who bring their own wealth of wisdom and unique experiences to the table.

What do you think? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

My Video mentioned: https://youtu.be/mleb3DPEKJI?si=N0JZXxewu2E7I0qn