Why I Hate Talking About Psychic Addiction (But Can’t Stop)
The Summer of 2006 in a NYC bookstore for my book launch.
To be honest I wish I could just put all this behind me.
The last thing I want to do is keep talking about the most embarrassing chapter of my life. I've already written the book, done the interviews, weathered the judgment. That was 20 years ago. I've been laughed at, dismissed, and even had angry psychics threaten to curse me.
I've had people tell me my "addiction" wasn't real and how dare I call it an addiction. I was diminishing real addictions!
I ended up on the cover of the Sunday Styles section of The New York Times on Oscar Sunday - which would have been way more exciting had it been about my acting career, not my addiction to psychic readings. (I was happy with the article though!)
The Anderson Cooper S**tshow
Then there was Anderson Cooper's (short-lived) daytime talk show. I was excited - I really admired Anderson Cooper and was excited as well as a little nervous to be flown from LA to New York to be part of his new show.
As the author of Psychic Junkie I was going to be the "guest expert” helping someone with their addiction to psychics. At least that's how it was presented to me.
The first red flag was when I found myself in the same car to go to set as the actual “Psychic Junkie” guest - a woman who seemed to be proud of her psychic habit and certainly didn't think she had a problem. She was bragging about the gazillions of dollars she was spending on psychic readings and looked at me like I was the crazy one or at least with mild confusion about what I was doing there on “her” show.
When we got to the studio, they put her on stage as the real guest and stuck me in the audience. Here I was, the author of the book on this subject, published by Simon & Schuster, featured in The New York Times, someone who had literally helped 100s of people with this issue - and they relegated me to the audience while putting someone who thought calling psychics incessantly was great fun and clearly wasn't interested in my help- front and center.
I was quickly realizing that instead of being the ‘expert’ there to help someone with a genuine problem, I was just another freak in the freak show. This wasn’t about helping psychic addicts or helping to shed light on this very real problem that many people struggle with. The psychic industry is a billion-dollar money-making machine - who do you think is funding it? Nope, this was something to giggle at. The audience was not impressed with this woman proudly boasting about wasting thousands of dollars on fortune tellers either. ‘You are all completely missing the point!’ I wanted to yell.
I expected better from Anderson Cooper. I could feel the walls closing in on me and wanted to get the hell out of there and back to the safety and anonymity of my hotel room, but didn't know how to get out of the studio without anyone noticing.
When Anderson finally came over to me in the audience and stuck his microphone in my face, I tried to explain how serious this addiction was - how I'd completely lost my mind, hit rock bottom like a drug addict, called 10 psychics in a single day at my worst, how this was a real problem. Then he asked "and then you became a psychic yourself?" I felt like the oxygen was sucked out of the room. I could feel the entire audience turn on me. He made it sound like I'd gone from victim to predator!! I was stunned. He clearly hadn't read my book - neither had his producer - because I was only a psychic briefly, undercover, to learn about the other side of the industry. It was research! When I told him that, for a moment his eyes lit up like "here's the real story...this girl might actually be interesting," but he had to move on to the next segment. I was mortified. I couldn't watch CNN for years after that. (I do love his recent podcast on grief and I forgave him long ago. I love you Anderson!)
So yeah, I wish I could just forget about the whole psychic junkie era. I wish I wasn't forever associated with this chapter of my life. Part of me just wants to move on completely and never think about psychics or psychic readings or psychic addiction again. And for years, I tried to. But I can't. And here's why.
It's Only Gotten Worse
When I coined the term "Psychic Junkie" over two decades ago, I had tried them all - online psychics, storefront readers, even those amazing "psychic to the stars." The most expensive online readings were around $5 a minute. Now that’s the starting rate.
Back then, you had to actively seek out psychics - whether that was calling phone lines, driving to storefronts, making appointments, or finding the early psychic websites. Now there’s instant gratification. Psychic apps send you push notifications. TikTok and Youtube serve up endless tarot readings. Instagram psychics slide into your DMs promising to reveal your soulmate's initials.
The psychic industry has exploded into a multi-billion dollar machine.
Just recently, someone reached out to me after spending $22,000 on psychic readings in seven weeks. Twenty-two thousand dollars. In seven weeks. Only to end up more confused and hopeless than when they started.
The Real Cost Isn't Financial
Yes, some people are spending unconscionable amounts of money. But that's not even the point.
The real cost is what it does to your mind, your spirit, your ability to trust yourself. The endless anxiety of waiting with inflated hopes for predictions to come true. The crushing disappointment when they don't. The way it keeps you stuck in limbo, afraid to make decisions without consulting the cards first.
The way all that psychic clutter living in your brain, drowns out that still, small voice within—the very thing that is designed to guide you through life and keep you safe!
I know this cost intimately because I paid it. For years, I handed my power over to strangers on the internet, convinced they knew better than I did about my own life. I spent years waiting for predictions that never came true, missing real opportunities because I was too busy waiting for fairy tale endings.
Why This Became My Mission
I never wanted to be forever known as a “Psychic Junkie” or even a former psychic junkie. I even walked away from making the movie version of my book because the producers were trying to turn it into something else. I couldn’t do it. It was too personal to me. I felt a responsibility to other Psychic Junkies to have it portrayed accurately. These producers didn't get it. They didn’t get me. I wanted to move on. Leave it all in the past. But every time I try to step away, someone finds me. Someone who is embarrassed and doesn’t know where to turn.
Someone who thought they were the only one.
The emails haven't stopped in all these years—over two decades now. Because like it or not, I'm the one who coined the term "psychic junkie." I'm the first person who ever spoke about this publicly.
I can't tell you how many DMs I've gotten from people too embarrassed to admit this problem to their own therapists. Professional women with advanced degrees. Men too. People from all walks of life who somehow felt safe telling me what they couldn't even admit to the people paid to help them with their problems.
Somehow, unwittingly I've become the Patron Saint of Psychic Addicts. Because the problem has gotten worse, not better.
I realized I have a choice: I can protect my comfort and let people continue to suffer in the shadows, or I can keep showing up—even when it's uncomfortable—because I'm one of the few people willing to talk about this openly. I have no judgement and a sincere desire to help.
The Uncomfortable Truth
Here's what I learned the hard way: You are your own best psychic.
The greatest authority on the subject of you is YOU. Your intuition's whole purpose is to help you navigate life, avoid pitfalls, and choose the best path for your highest good.
All the answers you’ve been searching for are within you. They always have been.
Why I Keep Talking About This
Psychic addiction is a real thing. The mental and emotional devastation is real. The way it steals your power (and your money) and keeps you stuck is real.
And recovery is possible.
I keep talking about this because I know what it's like to feel trapped in the cycle. I know the shame of spending money you don't have on predictions that don't come true. I know what it's like to feel completely disconnected from your own inner wisdom.
I also know what it's like on the other side—what it feels like to trust yourself again, to make decisions from your own center, to hear that still, small voice within.
If You're Reading This Far...
If you're caught in the psychic reading cycle, you're not alone. You're not weak. You're not broken. You're human, seeking hope and guidance in uncertain times.
But you have everything you need within you. You always have.
The answers you're seeking aren't hidden in the cards, the stars or in the hands of strangers charging by the minute.
They're in that quiet voice inside you that's been waiting patiently for you to listen.
🧡 Sarah
PS. If you're struggling with psychic addiction, I’ve been there! Through hypnotherapy and inner work, you can break free from the cycle of dependency. Learn More: Psychic Junkie Rx
Sarah Lassez is a Certified Hypnotherapist and the author of Psychic Junkie. She is also the creator of The Inner Oracle Protocol™, and guides people past confusing psychic readings to reconnect with their own Intuitive GPS, accessing clarity, guidance, and insight from within.