Waves of wackiness are sweeping the U.S.

, as people troubled by reality seek

comfort in pseudoscientific nonsense. That, at any rate, is how a science-minded
skeptic might respond to a flurry of media coverage of people turning to astrology,
tarot cards and psychic readings as alternatives or supplements to conventional
psychotherapy.

“People are putting their trust — and their money — into these practices, which
they view as pathways to enlightenment,” Sanam Yar reports in The New York Times.
Those who favor these alternatives tend to be young, female and affluent, Yar
notes.

Some psychotherapists incorporate these unconventional practices into their

therapy, or at any rate do not discourage patients from pursuing them. “I’m not
teaching it, but I’m not saying you can’t bring this into the room,” California
psychologist Charlynn Ruan told Yar. “That would be disempowering and arrogant.”

Nicolle Osequeda, a Chicago-based therapist, said she “supports the use of any safe
methods that her patients find helpful.” New York psychologist Jonathan Kaplan said
that if “someone is pursuing psychological evidence-based therapy while meditating
with crystals while Mercury is in retrograde, I’m fine with that.” The American
Psychological Association favors “evidence based” therapies, Yar notes, but has no
official policy on alternative treatments.

In The New Yorker, journalist Christine Smallwood reports that interest in

astrology is surging, especially among millennials. “The shift began with the
advent of the personal computer, accelerated with the Internet, and has reached new
speeds through social media,” Smallwood writes. The financial meltdown of 2008 and
the election of Donald Trump may also have contributed to the trend.

“In times of crisis, it is often said, people search for something to believe in,”
Smallwood says. She adds that “unlike therapy, where a client might spend months or
even years uncovering the roots of a symptom, astrology promises to get to answers
more quickly.” A 2017 poll found that 30 percent of Americans believe in astrology,
but the number of people with at least a casual interest might be much higher.

“In its penetration into our shared lexicon,” Smallwood comments, “astrology is a
little like psychoanalysis once was. At mid-century, you might have heard talk of
id, ego, or superego at a party; now it’s common to hear someone explain herself by
way of sun, moon, and rising signs.”

In Cosmopolitan, writer Gina Tomaine explains why, when she was feeling “out of
sorts,” she consulted a social worker who did tarot readings. Tarot cards “have
always had deep roots in psychological applications,” Tomaine says. “Psychoanalyst
Carl Jung explained that the cards were an easy way to represent the ‘archetypes of
mankind’—or universal traits like strength, ambition, and passion—in psychology,
making them ideal tools for therapy and mental health.”