Parents' Guide to

Family Therapy with Dr. Jenn

By Melissa Camacho, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 15+

More voyeuristic reality therapy with lots of celeb drama.

TV VH1 Reality TV 2016
Family Therapy with Dr. Jenn Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

Community Reviews

See all
age 2+

Based on 1 parent review

Remmylolster
Remmylolster Adult
September 19, 2019
age 2+

It was a family friendly therapy session.

It helped bring our family together

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
See all 1 parent review

What's the Story?

FAMILY THERAPY WITH DR. JENN is a reality series that follows celebrities and their family members as they try to work out their problems. The Couples Therapy spin-off features reality celebrities and an adult member of their family with whom they have issues. Each twosome moves into a house and undergoes intense therapy to get to the root of their problems and learn how to communicate more effectively. With the help of expert Dr. Jenn Mann and anger management expert Dr. Christian Conte, they hope to improve their relationship for their own sake and for the sake of the rest of their families.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: (1 ):
Kids say: Not yet rated

The voyeuristic series offers viewers the chance to see how reality celebs work out their tabloid-worthy problems in front of the cameras. The colorful personalities of the cast, which includes folks such as Viva La Bam's Bam Margera, I Love New York's Tiffany Pollard and Sister Patterson, and infamous exes Dina and Michael Lohan, the parents of Lindsay Lohan, only add to the spectacle.

There are some some brief moments of insight and healing, but these fail to have any significant positive impact on the overall show thanks to the yelling, violent outbursts, and other behaviors featured here. Ultimately, it's a show that's meant to be more entertaining than helpful or proactive by capitalizing on the family dysfunction that extends these folks' five minutes of fame.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the reasons celebrities are willing to undergo therapy or discuss personal issues on a reality show. Why do you think they were chosen to be on the series? Can they really be helped while in front of a TV camera? Is this type of show meant to entertain or help audiences?

  • Families can also talk about their own relationships. How do you work to keep communicating?

TV Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended tv lists

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate