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Her Therapist Became Her Husband... Then Her Victim | Crimes Of…

Crime House

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What starts as a normal therapy session... slowly turns into a disturbing true crime story. The Susan Polk case reveals how manipulation and abuse of power can hide in plain sight until everything spirals out of control. Through real testimony and psychological insight, this episode breaks down how trust gets twisted and how a relationship built on imbalance can lead to tragic consequences.

Hosted by Sabrina Deana-Roga and Corinne Vien of Two Girls One Ghost, Crimes Of... is a weekly true crime anthology series that explores a new theme each season: from crimes of the paranormal, unsolved murders, mysterious disappearances, and more. New episodes out every Tuesday.

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Chapters:
00:00 Welcome to Crimes Of... Passion
03:33 The Power Imbalance & First Therapy Session
16:05 The Pattern & Isolation Tactics
20:07 Marriage Shock & Cycle of Abuse
25:13 Dinner Table Fight & Gaslighting Begins
29:14 Family Power Imbalance
37:13 Divorce Threat
43:11 The Night of the Murder
50:43 Trial Begins & Guilty Verdict
1:00:00 Final Thoughts

Her Therapist Became Her Husband... Then Her Victim | Crimes Of…
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20 Comments

@crimehousestudios Creator 8 months ago Pinned

We know Susan Polk killed her husband. After hearing how this relationship began, where do you think responsibility sits? 👇

@ClassyCrawford 8 months ago

That man broke her, she went to him for help and got her entire life ruined. Wonder how she would have turned out had she went to a responsible , non predatory therapist.

@josiewilliams6125 8 months ago

I'm sorry, he called her SICK PUPPY?!?! That's not just infantilizing, its dehumanizing (and utterly disgusting)

@RSalem221 8 months ago

Fun fact from someone currently in school to be a therapist. Individuals that get into relationships with their therapists exhibit trauma responses similar to those who have been SA/R. This is likely due to the power differential and highly unhealthy nature of the relationship.

@amyfinn7824 7 months ago

I think her choosing to represent herself is about having no trust in figures of authority because her trust was repeatedly broken by every authority figure in her life. I feel so bad for her and that she had to hear her sons repeat what her abuser thought as they grew up. I think she was in some sort of shock, and that's why she didn't move his body, but Gabriel should have never had to see that. I also think it's messed up of her to represent herself, knowing that she would question her sons. I think that she was mentally unwell after the murder and did not make any clear decisions through the trial :/

@Elizabeth-de8qu 8 months ago

Tell me why after hearing that she killed him at the beginning, my initial thought was, “Good for her.”

@kaylahevans8334 8 months ago

My jaw DROPPED when you said he was 42. I was imagining at least a young doctor even though that would still be messed up.

@Lizzie1017Grace 8 months ago

Also thank you for mentioning that McDonald’s was at fault for the coffee incident! That poor woman was made a laughingstock for wanting justice

@Lizzie1017Grace 8 months ago

As a therapist myself who works with a majority of teenage girls, this really breaks my heart.

@Hhyfe-top 7 months ago

10 min in and yall have only told me Susan married her therapist, ok…

@rampantrapture 8 months ago

Honestly, he caused this upon himself. I feel bad for the sons but not for the father.

@jennicajade 6 months ago (edited)

It is incredibly heart breaking that her own kids bought into the narrative her husband created about her ‘sanity’. If she was so’unstable’ he knew full and well before he chose to marry her considering he was her therapist. They only met the version of her that had been groomed and controlled and belittled and undermined emotionally abused and untreated. They didn’t get to meet the version of her that might have been had she not met him at 15. (not excusing her behaviour or the murder).

@eneyavorodecky 7 months ago

The woman who sued McDonald's had horrific burns, the coffee spilled on her pants and her thighs, legs and private parts were horrifyingly burned. She only sued MxDonalds to help her pay her medical bills and then a judge decided that the ruling has to be changed and the payment slashed to the point that it didn't cover her burns. Decades of intentional lobbying and intentional or have turned the victim of a horrible burn the butt of a joke.

@TaylorDuckworth-1996 8 months ago

I’m not even gonna lie, I think it was justified 🤷🏻‍♀️ He was a narcissistic, abusive predator that groomed her and abused her multiple ways since she was 15. Not only was she underage, but she went to him for help - she was so vulnerable. And who knows how many other children he SA’d throughout his career!

@brandij3817 7 months ago (edited)

Honestly so devastating that man ruined her. Her children’s upbringing was horrible but I wish they could’ve understood how their father manipulated their mom her entire teen and adult life. She’s guilty but it’s truly sad how even her children were calling her crazy.

@Lil_Lambies713 8 months ago

This case makes me think of the book "When Dad Killed Mom". Although in the book, the parents was therapist and patient, but the dad, who was the therapist, ended up killing his wife and the kids are brought to court to "lessen the dad's sentence" and "claim the mom was crazier than he thought so he killed her in self defense."

@amandaterrio4823 8 months ago

I’ve felt this kind of powerlessness before with my ex husband. So many ways our situation is similar. The only major difference is my ex is a state trooper and not a therapist.

@DuffAgainstPoaching 8 months ago (edited)

I had a therapist in university who was assigned to me after a mental breakdown where I didnt go to class or contact anyone for 3 months, didnt answer my phone or messages, wasn't eating really, my place was a mess. Depression was so intense. This man who was assigned as my therapist threatened me at every turn with telling my parents what I was telling him if and when I spoke with him. He made me so uncomfortable. Turns out he had been breaking confidence and telling my mother anyways. And pulled my internet records and shared that too. My trust levels in everyone dwindled to 0. Depression got worse.

I was told by that same man that id never succeed in anything because I didnt want to talk to -him-. He never felt comfortable to be around. He accused me of many things, for instance just not showing up to sessions even though he had cancelled them, and I had the proof and he brushed it off. I failed out of college. Its my biggest shame because I think about those interactions so often in the dark moments and I hate that he was right.

@realtumsfestival 8 months ago

Hearing about arguments at the dinner table gave me flashbacks to when I was a kid. Fortunately no murders happened, but my dad was emotionally abusive his whole life. Definitely not the best way to grow up.

@karatk8624 4 months ago (edited)

I had a therapist as a teenager for years and she was amazing. I got the sort of maternal encouragement and support from her that i wasnt receiving at home. I was devastated when i aged out and had to find an adult therapist. She died of brain cancer a few years later.

So anyways, the impact a therapist can have on a child is HUGE and this guy is a total creepo for betraying a childs trust like this. 😢

AND after hearing the whole story...i dont think she should have gone to prison like this. HE should have been locked up years before. If either of them were sick, it was him.