When we’ve had a difficult day and we want to get some relaxation time in, most of us head for the sofa. It’s a great place to sit, turn on the TV, and let the world disappear for a few hours.

Many people who enjoy watching TV also enjoy watching true crime. It’s one of the most popular genres worldwide, but it seems as if it may not be popular for all the right reasons.

If you happen to be somebody who enjoys watching true crime, you might just be interested in what a mental health expert has to say about it. According to that expert, you may just be unbalanced if you enjoy watching it to relax.

In other words, those who watch true crime to unwind are actually raising a red flag that you may have some mental health problems. That is what a mental health specialist, Dr. Thelma Bryant has to say about it.

According to that mental health expert, you might be watching the show for all the wrong reasons. She said:

“If your idea of relaxing before you go to sleep is to watch three episodes of Law and Order, [then] I would encourage you to think about ‘why is trauma relaxing to me’?

“Some of us grew up in high stress [situations], so people mistake peace for boring. To come home to yourself you have to lean into the discomfort because it’s gonna feel unfamiliar.”

Not everybody agrees with what the doctor has to say. Some of them feel that they watch true crime to redirect their anger or perhaps because they enjoy watching the justice and not the trauma.

We all watch TV for our own reasons. If you happen to be someone who likes true crime, you can examine your own motives.