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Down the Rabbit Hole

  • Writer: Deric Hollings
    Deric Hollings
  • 10h
  • 5 min read

 

Earlier, when listening to an electronic dance music (EDM) DJ set by Pivot Back, I heard him spin the track “Rabbit Hole” (2024) by Marsh and featuring ALLKNIGHT. Presumably, the song is a reference to the phrase “down the rabbit hole,” about which one source states:

 

“Down the rabbit hole” is an English-language idiom or trope which refers to getting deep into something, or ending up somewhere strange. Lewis Carroll introduced the phrase as the title for chapter one of his 1865 novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, after which the term slowly entered the English vernacular.

 

The term is usually used as a metaphor for distraction. In the 21st century, the term has come to describe a person who gets lost in research or loses track of time while using the internet.

 

When going down the rabbit hole, I think of how the American Psychological Association defines distraction: 1. the process of interrupting attention. 2. a stimulus or task that draws attention away from the task of primary interest.

 

As an example, many people have apparently gone down the rabbit hole of the Epstein files. As such, individuals have distracted themselves from reality and logic and reason associated with shared understanding of how life actually works.

 

As not to be accused of straw-manning this topic, one source states that “the placement of the words ‘babies’ and ‘cream cheese’ in the same messages [regarding the Epstein files] have been used to push lurid cannibalism-related claims online.” Thus far, such claims aren’t valid.

 

Nevertheless, I’ve encountered many delusional claims from people who are so down the rabbit hole with the Epstein files that these individuals seem to have lost touch with reality. When contemplating this matter, I think of lyrics from “Rabbit Hole”, as ALLKNIGHT states:

 

How did I get here?

Something’s wrong

I’m down the rabbit hole

Far from home

How did I get here?

On my own, on my own

[x2]

 

When diving down the rabbit hole of insanity (colloquial use: extreme folly or unreasonableness), a person can place oneself “far from home” (i.e., away from a rational view). In such cases, one may be “on my own,” as others in one’s life are nowhere to be found.

 

Indeed, “something’s wrong” during this delusional experience, as stated by ALLKNIGHT. For those clients with whom I practice Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT), I advocate the technique of unconditional life-acceptance (ULA). This includes recognition of unfalsifiability.

 

That which is unfalsifiable is not capable of being proved false. For instance, it’s claimed that the late Jeffrey Epstein and others were cannibalizing babies. To date, there’s no credible evidence of such behavior (i.e., photos, videos, sworn testimony, etc.).

 

Rather, there’s mere speculation (the act of taking to be true on the basis of insufficient evidence). Thus, the claim that Epstein and his associates were eating babies is (at best) speculative. It is therefore an unfalsifiable claim, especially since Epstein is now deceased.

 

Rather than self-distressing or self-disturbing in regard to matters which are unfalsifiable, I encourage my clients to instead practice ULA. In this way, one can remain agnostic (the view that any ultimate reality, such as Epstein eating babies, is unknown and probably unknowable).

 

Go down the rabbit hole, if you choose. Still, I invite you to consider unfalsifiability and an agnostic perspective when doing so. Ultimately, the healthy practice of ULA may be one of the only elements which keep you tethered to reality, as this is a matter of rational living.

 

If you’re looking for a provider who tries to work to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.

 

As the world’s foremost EDM-influenced REBT psychotherapist—promoting content related to EDM, I’m pleased to try to help people with an assortment of issues from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters. 

 

At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply trying to help you to feel better, I want to try to help you get better!

 

 

Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW


Photo credit, Designed by Freepik, fair use

 

References:

APA Dictionary of Psychology. (2018, April 19). Distraction. American Psychological Association. Retrieved from https://dictionary.apa.org/distraction

Apple Music. (n.d.). ALLKNIGHT. Apple Inc. Retrieved from https://music.apple.com/us/artist/allknight/1663303168

Apple Music. (n.d.). Marsh. Apple Inc. Retrieved from https://music.apple.com/us/artist/marsh/2432180

George, D. (2026, February 6). Epstein files, ‘cream cheese’ messages and ‘millions of babies’ claim: What we know. Times Now. Retrieved from https://www.timesnownews.com/world/us/us-news/jeffrey-epstein-files-cream-cheese-messages-eating-babies-cannibalism-claims-fact-check-article-153568835

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Hollings, D. (2023, October 22). Unfalsifiability. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/unfalsifiability

Marsh. (2024, September 27). Marsh feat. ALLKNIGHT - Rabbit Hole (Official visualiser) [‪@anjunadeep ] [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/tDVrdvdgvE8?si=mHJA6pe-aD8WjgOk

Pivot Back. (2025, January 6). Progressive & melodic house mix - Coffee Break 117 - San Diego, CA [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/qr1TEUaW-jA?si=Ykx0aWTbIiKrEI82

Soundcloud. (n.d.). Pivot Back. Retrieved from https://soundcloud.com/pivotback

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Wikipedia. (n.d.). Down the rabbit hole. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Down_the_rabbit_hole

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Epstein files. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epstein_files

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Jeffrey Epstein. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Epstein

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Lewis Carroll. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll

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