Welcome
If you’re reading this, you’re one of the first.
Thank you for joining the Nexa Newsletter! I’m so glad you’re here. My hope is that this resource helps you stay informed, relevant, and impactful in the room 👏 — without taking too much of your precious time.
Please share with others you know in the field!
With care,
Enid
This week 🗓️
💍 Love Is Blind & the Return of the “Trad Wife”
🧩 What’s happening:
Netflix’s Love Is Blind Season 9 has reignited debate over “trad wife” culture — the online trend glamorizing submissive femininity and domestic roles. Critics say the show echoes Gen Z’s renewed flirtation with traditionalism amid economic and relational fatigue (Teen Vogue, Oct 2025).
💬 Why it matters for therapists:
The popularity of retro-gender ideals may signal a yearning for certainty and simplicity in chaotic times. It also reflects ambivalence about feminism, independence, and emotional labor within modern relationships.
🪞 How it may show up in the room:
Clients idealizing “old-fashioned” roles as emotional safety.
Internal conflict between autonomy and belonging.
Resentment over unequal household dynamics masked as nostalgia.
🛋️ What therapists can do:
Explore the function of these fantasies — what needs do they meet?
Highlight the emotional costs of rigid gender scripts.
Foster differentiation: partnership without loss of identity.
🔗 Go deeper:
💡 The bottom line:
The “trad wife” trend isn’t just nostalgia — it’s a coping mechanism. Therapists can help clients find stability without regression.
⛔ Government Shutdown: When Washington Closes, Daily Life Doesn’t Pause
🧩 What’s happening:
The U.S. federal government has entered shutdown as Congress fails to agree on funding for the 2026 fiscal year. Roughly 900,000 federal employees are furloughed or working without pay, essential services are strained, and the Treasury estimates weekly economic losses as high as $15 billion in lost output. Meanwhile, millions who rely on Affordable Care Act subsidies may face a sharp rise in premiums or loss of coverage if key tax credits expire.
💬 Why it matters for therapists:
Shutdowns exacerbate financial anxiety, insecurity, and existential stress—clients may feel powerless in the face of institutions failing to uphold basic stability. Emotional responses may include shame, anger, hopelessness, or hypervigilance about risk.
🪞 How it may show up in the room:
Clients expressing anxiety about paying bills, health care, or their safety net.
Increased vigilance around “contingency planning” (what if I lose benefits?).
Frustration or mistrust of political systems, feeling unseen or unprotected.
🛠️ What therapists can do:
Normalize the fear and grief of disrupted systems (not just personal failure).
Help clients distinguish what they can control (budget, planning, boundaries) from what they cannot.
Use narratives of resilience and meaning-making to bolster agency amid chaos.
🔗 Go deeper:
💡 The bottom line:
When government stops, reality still moves. Therapists have a critical role in holding emotional space for people grappling with the gap between institutional failure and everyday survival.
📱 From Followers to Fellowship: The Rise of Influencer-Led Clubs
🧩 What’s happening:
Media firms like BDG Media (Bustle, Nylon) are launching membership-based “clubs” built around influencers rather than brands — blending digital parasociality with real-world belonging through paid events and private chats (Axios, Oct 2025).
💬 Why it matters for therapists:
These communities reveal the psychological pivot from “audience” to “attachment.” They meet social needs once filled by churches or local groups, but blur the lines between intimacy and monetization.
🪞 How it may show up in the room:
Clients feeling bonded to online figures or fandoms.
Loneliness masked by constant digital connection.
Identity tied to algorithmic validation.
🛋️ What therapists can do:
Help clients examine online belonging versus offline support.
Normalize parasocial attachment as modern social currency.
Encourage mindful media boundaries and embodied connection.
🔗 Go deeper:
“BDG Media Bets on Influencer-Led Memberships & Clubs” — Axios, Oct 2025
💡 The bottom line:
The influencer era is evolving from influence to intimacy. Therapists can help clients discern connection from consumption.
🗣️ “No Kings” and Artist Activism Coming Soon
🧩 What’s happening:
Artists and activists are gearing up for two major events this fall — No Kings Day (Oct 18) and the Fall of Freedom movement (Nov 21-22) — to protest what they call authoritarian overreach and threats to free expression. Nationwide rallies are expected across 2,500 locations in the U.S. on No Kings Day, and in November, high-profile writers and musicians will speak out against censorship and state control.
💬 Why it matters for therapists:
Moments of mass protest reflect deeper collective anxiety about power, voice, and belonging — themes echoed individual therapy rooms. Clients may experience parallel tensions around autonomy, helplessness, and safety in relationships or institutions.
🪞 How it may show up in the room:
Feelings of powerlessness or distrust in authority.
Vicarious trauma or hypervigilance triggered by political events.
Conflict between activism and avoidance — “Should I speak up or shut down?”
🛋️ What therapists can do:
Name the psychological function of protest — asserting agency amid uncertainty.
Encourage grounding and emotion regulation.
Differentiate personal control from collective outcomes to reduce despair.
🔗 Go deeper:
💡 The bottom line:
Collective resistance mirrors the psyche’s drive for autonomy. Helping clients locate agency within chaos can transform fear into purpose.
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