Pour a glass of bourbon and settle in: Shrink the Nation returns with a clinically sharp (and frequently ridiculous) take on why so many Gen Z men are gravitating toward a harder-edged identity—where UFC/WWE aesthetics bleed into politics—and why the answer isn’t mockery, it’s empathy. Between Jefferson’s Reserve and a tall pour of Elijah Craig (yes, including the “fish barrel” origin myth), we trace how belonging, agency, and meaning got scrambled for young men—and how to unsnarl it without turning every disagreement into a cage match.

Dr. David, Rob, and Keith dig into the numbers (think: “65% not in relationships”) and the culture—Testo-Rage-Max jokes and all—while refusing the easy dunk. We map the psychology: how the non-college cohort became the swing lane, and how a myth-making machine (hello, WWE) offers black-and-white hero stories that feel like a rite of passage—even when they don’t deliver intimacy or purpose.

Pop Culture & Historical References:
• Willard Galen’s The Male Ego (with Rob’s combat-zone “book under the bed” origin story)
• Joseph Campbell on the loss of unifying myths (a.k.a. why we’re story-poor)
• Robert Bly’s Iron John and the missing rites of passage
• Mr. Rogers (as proposed walk-in music… and maybe a better model of strength)
• A-10 vs. F-35 (close air support and why modern “war myths” feel different)
• Ukraine’s trench reality and the search for a genuine shared purpose

Episode Highlights:
• What’s actually shifting: identity and culture more than stated ideology
• Why “belonging” beats “being right,” and how dominance never produces intimacy
• Mentors > algorithms: replacing 4chan/8chan rabbit holes with real guidance
• The empathy move: acknowledging the void (work, purpose, partnership) without pandering
• Why WWE-style mythmaking feels good—and how to build healthier rites of passage
• The “work as meaning” argument—and why the cool kids work

Prescription:
• If you’re not old enough to work, volunteer—try a local food bank (we shout out Feed My Starving Children) to feel purpose and community.
• Read Starship Troopers (the book, not the movie) for a clearer picture of duty and leadership.
• Consider service (yes, even the Army)—structured challenge can forge confidence and connection.

Plus: A frank detour through incel/sigma-alpha jawline nonsense and why the intimacy you want will never come from dominance—or from doomscrolling.

Join us for bourbon-fueled group therapy for America’s exhausted middle—equal parts compassion and provocation—where masculinity, myth, and mental health get the straight talk they deserve. Stick around for walk-in music picks (Shinedown’s “Sound of Madness,” anybody?) and some merch/newsletter teases.

This episode is for education and entertainment; it is not medical advice.

"Got Thoughts? Outrage? A Diagnosis of Your Own? Send us a text"

Support the show

Shrink The Nation is where America lies on the couch — and we pour the bourbon.
Hosted by board-certified psychiatrists and mental health pros with backgrounds in military, media, and systems thinking, we break down the psychology behind politics, culture, and public dysfunction.
Smart. Funny. Clinically sharp. Slightly buzzed.

Subscribe, rate, and share if you’re part of the exhausted middle looking for sanity in the noise.

For feedback or hate-listening invitations, hit us at socials@shrinkthenation.com.

Follow us everywhere: @shrinkthenation on X, Instagram, Facebook and Bluesky

Shrink The Nation — On the Couch With America.

Pull up a seat—and maybe a plastic cup—because Uncle Sam is back on the couch, Old Crow Bourbon in hand. Not the fancy small-batch bottle… the gallon jug that once fueled the likes of President Ulysses S. Grant and Mark Twain, courtesy of Dr. James Crow’s 19th-century chemistry wizardry.

David and Rob blend history, psychology, and bourbon-soaked banter to dissect America’s collective unconscious, borrowing from Carl Jung’s big ideas: archetypes, the shadow, and the midlife transition. We trace the U.S. from rebellious young upstart (with a little help from Lafayette, France’s creepiest-but-most-useful friend), to reluctant World War hero, to the aging protagonist in need of a rewrite—picture Superman III’s brooding bar scene with Old Crow in the glass.

The question: can America gracefully step out of the hero archetype and into the wise mentor role? Or are we clinging to the cape until we turn into a parody of ourselves? Along the way, we take hard looks at the national “shadow”—slavery, inequality, and the gap between our founding ideals and lived reality—and call out our habit of slapping an Instagram filter over the whole thing.

This episode isn’t therapy, but it is an 80-proof reflection on what it means to be authentically American: proud but self-aware, fierce but adaptable, able to laugh at our own glorious clusterf*** of a national identity while still aiming for something better.

So pour a drink, settle in, and join us as we wrestle with the big question: what does Uncle Sam want to be when he grows up?

"Got Thoughts? Outrage? A Diagnosis of Your Own? Send us a text"

Support the show

Shrink The Nation is where America lies on the couch — and we pour the bourbon.
Hosted by board-certified psychiatrists and mental health pros with backgrounds in military, media, and systems thinking, we break down the psychology behind politics, culture, and public dysfunction.
Smart. Funny. Clinically sharp. Slightly buzzed.

Subscribe, rate, and share if you’re part of the exhausted middle looking for sanity in the noise.

For feedback or hate-listening invitations, hit us at socials@shrinkthenation.com.

Follow us everywhere: @shrinkthenation on X, Instagram, Facebook and Bluesky

Shrink The Nation — On the Couch With America.

Shrink the Nation drags America onto the therapist’s couch for a bourbon-fueled, no-bullshit exploration of national identity, collective anxiety, and the messiness of being the world’s aging hero.

If the United States walked into therapy—boasting “I’m the greatest country on earth, but I feel divided and lost”—what would its psychological profile look like? The docs break down America’s diffuse identity disorder, hero complex, and midlife crisis, pulling zero punches and pouring plenty of Cooper’s Craft (and Tin Cup, with a drive-by from Dunkin’ Donuts).

Drawing on Carl Jung’s hero archetype, the crew unpacks why America is stuck between wanting to be “king of the hill” and not wanting to keep paying the price. Can a country have a personality disorder? Is our craving for unity just projection on a national scale? And what happens when the world’s quarterback refuses to hang up his jersey?

Pop culture gets its due, from Brett Favre and Tom Brady’s refusal to retire (seriously, leave Tom alone) to MrBeast as the new American idol. Plus, there’s advice for Uncle Sam (“Get a Corvette and some minoxidil!”), loving ridicule of our tens of listeners, and an honest prescription for national healing—embrace the messiness, say what you want out loud, and maybe—just maybe—settle for being the wise old man instead of the eternally jacked hero.

Referenced in this episode:

• Carl Jung’s “hero archetype” and shadow
• Joseph Campbell’s hero’s journey
• Brett Favre, Tom Brady, and the struggle to retire
• MrBeast and the new American idol
• “Watchmen” (the movie and the comic)
• Cooper’s Craft Bourbon, Tin Cup, and Dunkin’ Donuts
• Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) for national psychology

Best soundbites:

• “If America were a patient, it would be in a midlife crisis—driving a Corvette, but haunted by its past.”
• “You can’t just give up your throne and still be hailed as king.”
• “Embrace the messiness. Take three deep breaths and say, I’m a glorious clusterfuck—and that’s okay.”

Whether you’re a cynical patriot, a reluctant optimist, or just here for bourbon-fueled wisdom, this episode is your group therapy for the American mind.

"Got Thoughts? Outrage? A Diagnosis of Your Own? Send us a text"

Support the show

Shrink The Nation is where America lies on the couch — and we pour the bourbon.
Hosted by board-certified psychiatrists and mental health pros with backgrounds in military, media, and systems thinking, we break down the psychology behind politics, culture, and public dysfunction.
Smart. Funny. Clinically sharp. Slightly buzzed.

Subscribe, rate, and share if you’re part of the exhausted middle looking for sanity in the noise.

Send us your questions (or your defense mechanisms): socials@shrinkthenation.com
Follow us everywhere: @shrinkthenation on X, Instagram, Facebook and Bluesky

Shrink The Nation — On the Couch With America.