I’m thrilled to be a part of a generation that has shifted the way we discuss and understand mental health. The continued destigmatization of therapy is vital work, but that doesn’t mean traditional therapy is the best or only suitable course for mental health maintenance. For me, I know it isn’t, because I’ve already found the avenue that allows me to stay present, manage my anxiety, and work through past traumas, and I actually enjoy it! Here’s why I don’t go to therapy and just watch Frasier re-runs instead.
A lot of people will say that you don’t need a specific reason to start therapy and that anyone would benefit from it, but why I would do something that works for anyone when I can do something that specifically works for me, such as watching the witty and pedantic talk show radiotherapist Frasier Crane dole out advice to listeners while dealing with his own share of problems in this personal life? I’ve heard friends extoll the cathartic relief of talking through a loaded memory with a mental health professional, but what about the cathartic relief I feel when Niles comes on screen in my Frasier re-run and I shout “Niles!” at the screen?
In addition to the clear efficacy of watching Frasier re-runs in place of psychotherapy, the former is considerably more affordable. Even with insurance, those one-on-one, “personalized” therapy appointments can cost you, whereas I can watch random episodes of the hit series Frasier on the Hallmark Channel for free since my roommate has cable that I don’t help pay for because I said I wasn’t going to use it. And watching America’s sweetheart Kelsey Grammar breathe life into a Cheers spin-off for over a decade has honestly made me a better, more accountable person.
Finally, I’ll say what everyone’s thinking: Does therapy really work? No one knows. Its success rate is impossible to determine, but Frasier, a show that ran for 11 damn seasons and won 36 fucking Emmys has clearly proven its worth, and may in fact be therapy’s greatest contribution to society. So you can keep going to your weekly talk therapy appointment, but when it comes to my tossed salad and scrambled eggs, I’ll be tuning in to the Seattle-based mental health expert with pizazz: Dr. Frasier Crane. It works!
