STRANGE MIND PODCAST

Stockholm syndrome is one of the most famous concepts in psychology, but there's a problem: it isn't an established psychiatric disorder, and the science behind it is surprisingly weak. In this episode, we trace the bizarre origins of Stockholm syndrome to a 1973 Swedish bank robbery, explore how Patty Hearst brought the idea into the American spotlight, and examine why victims of abuse, coercion, and captivity sometimes appear to bond with the people harming them. Is this really a psychological syndrome, or have we spent fifty years putting a questionable label on human survival?

People are making friends with AI, falling in love with it, and sometimes grieving when their chatbot suddenly changes or disappears. In this episode, we explore the rapidly growing world of AI companionship, why our brains can form surprisingly real attachments to something we know isn't human, and what happens when a chatbot becomes a friend, therapist, romantic partner, or the person you talk to more than anyone else.

When does saving things cross the line into hoarding disorder? In this episode, we get inside the psychology and neuroscience of hoarding, why people can become intensely attached to possessions, and how hoarding differs from OCD. From homes buried in literal tons of clutter to too many animals living under one roof, we explore why letting go can feel almost impossible, even when the consequences become dangerous.

You can be walking, talking, texting, and making terrible decisions, all while your brain has quietly stopped recording the night. In this episode, we explore the neuroscience of alcohol-related blackouts, the difference between fragmentary brownouts and complete en bloc blackouts, and how alcohol disrupts memory formation. Then we take it somewhere much darker, with a real murder case in which the killer claimed to have been in an alcohol blackout, raising a disturbing question: what happens when someone commits the unthinkable and genuinely can't remember doing it?

Looksmaxxing has gone from an obscure internet term to a full-blown beauty obsession, complete with mewing, facial exercises, jawline hacks, ratings, and increasingly extreme ways to “improve” your appearance. In this episode, we break down what looksmaxxing actually means, where these trends came from, and why the pursuit of a better-looking face can quickly turn from harmless grooming into obsessive body checking and unrealistic beauty standards.

Postpartum depression and postpartum psychosis are often talked about as though they're interchangeable, but they're very different conditions. In this episode, we break down PPD versus PPP, what psychosis actually looks like, what's happening in the brain and body after childbirth, and how a loving mother can become so disconnected from reality that she does something completely unimaginable. We also tackle the myths, the new treatments, and why understanding the difference can literally save lives.

A doctor with an ice pick, a Nobel Prize, and thousands of altered lives. In this episode, we explore the desperate conditions that made lobotomy seem like a miracle, the doctors who championed it, and how Walter Freeman turned a radical brain surgery into one of the most infamous treatments in psychiatric history.

In this episode of Strange Mind, we dive into: William Scoville's infamous brain surgeries on both his wife, and H.M. (Henry Molaison); the devastating memory loss of Clive Wearing; and the different types of memory that make up who we are. We break down anterograde and retrograde amnesia, episodic, semantic, procedural, explicit and implicit memory, and explain how you can lose one kind of memory while another remains completely intact.

AI psychosis sounds like science fiction, but increasingly, clinicians and researchers are examining what happens when intense chatbot interactions become tangled up with delusions, paranoia, and distorted beliefs. In this episode, we explore how AI can reinforce a person’s reality rather than challenge it, and what happens when the chatbot becomes part of the delusion itself.

What happens when “I want to look better” turns into “I need to change my body at any cost”? In Part 2, we get into muscle dysmorphia, sometimes called “bigorexia,” and the disturbing ways body image obsession can push people toward increasingly extreme attempts to change their appearance. We explore why someone can be visibly muscular and still feel painfully inadequate, how the pursuit of an ideal body can become compulsive, and what happens when people take cosmetic procedures into their own hands with DIY surgery. Because when the problem is how your brain sees your body, changing the body doesn't always fix the problem.

Everyone has something they don't like about their appearance, but when does insecurity become body dysmorphic disorder (BDD)? In Part 1, we explore how BDD differs from ordinary insecurity, why it is classified as an obsessive-compulsive and related disorder, and what neuroscience reveals about the way the BDD brain processes faces, visual details, and information about appearance. This isn't simply about vanity or low self-esteem, it's about an obsessive cycle of perception, attention, and distress that can make a perceived flaw feel overwhelmingly real.

This week and last, we're diving into Dissociative Identity Disorder—the psychology behind "multiple personalities," why the name changed, the truth behind famous cases like Sybil and Billy Milligan, and what modern science actually says about one of the most misunderstood disorders in psychiatry. As always, it's strange, fascinating... and unsettling.

This week and next, we're diving into Dissociative Identity Disorder—the psychology behind "multiple personalities," why the name changed, the truth behind famous cases like Sybil and Billy Milligan, and what modern science actually says about one of the most misunderstood disorders in psychiatry. As always, it's strange, fascinating... and unsettling.

Alice in Wonderland Syndrome is a rare neurological condition that can make people perceive their body, other people, objects, distance, or even time in bizarre and unsettling ways. In this episode of Strange Mind, we explore the fascinating neuroscience behind AIWS, examine real-life cases, and discuss why the brain can sometimes create experiences that feel like an absurdist fairytale.

In this episode of Strange Mind, we explore factitious disorder (formerly known as Munchausen syndrome), a complex psychiatric condition where individuals fabricate, exaggerate, or even induce symptoms in order to assume the role of a patient. We dive into the history of the syndrome, examine disturbing real-world cases of medical deception, and explore the psychology behind a disorder that challenges our understanding of identity, attention, and the need to be cared for.

In this episode of Strange Mind, we explore clinical zoanthropy, a rare psychiatric syndrome in which individuals believe they have become, or are in the process of becoming, an animal. From people convinced they are wolves, poultry, cats, or even gerbils, these extraordinary cases challenge our understanding of identity, perception, and reality itself. We examine the neuroscience, psychology, and documented case studies behind one of the rarest and most fascinating delusions ever recorded.

Most of us spend our lives trying to learn new skills—but a rare few are born with extraordinary abilities that seem almost impossible. In this episode of Strange Minds, we explore the fascinating world of savant syndrome, from the real-life inspiration behind Rain Man to individuals with astonishing gifts in memory, mathematics, music, and art. How can someone struggle with everyday tasks yet perform feats that leave experts speechless? Join us as we examine one of the most mysterious and remarkable conditions in psychology.

Explore Koro, a rare culture-bound syndrome involving an intense fear that the genitals are retracting into the body and may disappear. In this Strange Mind episode, we break down reported outbreaks, psychological and cultural factors, and how anxiety and body perception can spiral into extreme panic.

Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder - Part 1
In this episode of Strange Mind, we explore three subtypes of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, including a woman consumed by compulsions around sweets, a disturbing case involving sexual intrusive thoughts and religiosity, and a “just right” presentation where everyday actions had to feel perfectly correct or they couldn’t continue. It’s a look at how OCD doesn’t always look like cleaning and checking — sometimes it shows up in unexpected, intense, and deeply disruptive ways.

A darkly fascinating dive into what happens when the brain’s “control center” goes off-script. In this episode, we explore frontal lobe disorders through some of the strangest and most unsettling cases in neuroscience—from Phineas Gage and his personality-altering injury, to bizarre clinical stories where damage to the brain reshapes behavior, impulse, and identity in unexpected ways. These are the cases where people don’t just change—they become someone else, revealing how fragile the line is between who we are and what our brains allow us to be.