History Main / TheCobblersChildrenHaveNoShoes

* {{Lampshaded}} in Creator/OrsonScottCard's ''Lovelock'', when scientist Carol Jeanne Cocciolone's marriage to her marriage-counselor husband falls apart due in part to the latter's adultery, [[FreudianExcuse mother issues verging on an oedipus complex]], and latent homosexuality.

* {{Lampshaded}} in Creator/OrsonScottCard's ''Lovelock'', when scientist Carol Jeanne Cocciolone's marriage to her marriage-counselor husband falls apart due in part to the latter's adultery, [[FreudianExcuse mother issues verging on an]] OedipusComplex, and latent homosexuality.

* The middle ages had a case where it was ''illegal'' for the cobbler's children to have shoes, or rather, swords. In middle ages Europe, it was against the law for anyone except nobility to own a sword. But someone's gotta ''make'' the things, which fell to the local blacksmith, who was of the peasant class. So a particularly busy blacksmith could have a rack of swords in his shop that it would be against the law for him or his family to use.

If you happen to be wondering why emotional attachment would stop the cobbler repairing his children's shoes, that's not the reason; he's just too busy with the paid work needed to feed everyone. What’s more, especially prior to the industrial revolution, it was often the case that materials were expensive while labor was cheap. As much as he’d like to make himself and his family some clothes, furniture, etc. as luxurious as what he’d sell to his customers, the artisan wouldn’t be making enough of a profit margin on his sales to buy quality materials for a personal project without a customer to foot the bill. Whatever he did make for his household would be much less fancy. Finally, the advent of industrial technology means that hardly any goods can be economically produced without a lot of expensive factories and equipment, and that means that the workers who produce stuff are generally employees rather than owners of the business. Just because somebody works in a factory that makes X doesn’t necessarily mean they're paid high enough wages to afford X, or that they get to take home free samples.

* In ''A Scummy Gap Student with a Hard Life Calls Upon a Lady of the Night'', Makino Hanabusa's parents run a cram school, but Makino herself fails to get into any of the colleges she applied for due to being too lazy to study, and ends up as a {{Ronin}}. Lampshaded when Makino's parents berate her, specifically mentioning their occupation as one reason why their daughter's failure will make them a laughingstock among their neighbors.

* Played seriously in ''Fanfic/LePapillonRising''. As Mr. Noir, Gabriel Agreste takes a parental role to his younger partner Ladybug and wants to protect her from the supervillain le Papillon's advances. But in his civilian life, he neglects and distant himself from his traumatized son Adrien after the death of his wife Bridgette, [[spoiler:which stemmed in Adrien becoming the supervillain le Papillon in the first place]].
* PlayedForLaughs in the ''Manga/FairyTail'' fic ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10264509/278/Tales-of-Fairies Morning After Cliche: Rowen Edition]]'', where Gajeel, Laxus, and Natsu (who was dragged along) confront the now adult Romeo and Wendy about having sex and Gajeel and Laxus not being happy that their [[MySisterIsOffLimits younger Dragon Slayer had been "defiled"]]. When Romeo snarks that Gajeel has his own daughter to do this for, Gajeel replies that he has Lily watching over Gilly's wellbeing and interest. Cue a GilliganCut where Lily is sleeping and five-year-old Gilly is reading some of her mother's risque books.

* ''Film/ChooseMe'': Nancy is a psychologist, and a late-night radio talk show host, who spends her nights on the radio giving advice to the lovelorn about relationships. She is also scared of commitment and has never had a serious relationship of her own. Here's how Nancy describes herself to Mickey, who doesn't know that she's radio-host "Dr. Nancy Love":

* ''Film/TheImpossibleYears'' is a 1960s play/film about the home life of a college professor and psychologist who writes materials on family relations. Specifically, on how to handle teenagers (authoritatively espousing a lax parenting style). But he has teenage daughters himself. You can see where this is going.... (And what ''was'' the word on the other side of that sign?)

* In ''Film/LocalHero'', the local Scot fishermen brag about the high quality lobsters they catch, noting they'll be in the finest restaurants around the world. When asked if they eat lobster too, they chuckle no -- it's too expensive.

** In ''Film/TheEmpireStrikesBack'', he compulsively quotes the (always low) odds of survival whenever the Rebels take a risky strategy, even after Han explicitly makes is clear that he doesn't want to hear it and doesn't care either way.

* ''Film/ATaleOfSorrowAndSadness'': Miyake, a reporter for a golf magazine, is out on a golf course with a business contact. Miyake takes a mighty swing at the ball on the tee, and misses completely. He swings again, and the ball dribbles forward about six feet. When the businessman expresses disbelief that Miyake writes for a golf magazine, Miyake says the Japanese equivalent of this very phrase, translated in the subtitles as "A sandalmaker's children go barefoot."
* In ''Film/ThanksForSharing'', Mike is a longterm recovered addict who fully embraces the 12-step philosophy, and acts as a tough but compassionate sponsor/mentor to other recovering addicts. But he's a massive {{Jerkass}} to his own recovering-addict son.

* The premise of the parody book ''A Christmas Carol 2: The return of Scrooge'' had Scrooge's successor to his business, Bob Cratchit, be so generous with his money he's actually driving the company to the ground and making it on the verge of bankruptcy with his generosity. Because of this, the three ghosts of Christmas return to "[[YetAnotherChristmasCarol teach Bob Cratchit the true meaning of money]]" (in other words, teaching him to avoid this trope).

* In ''Literature/TheOrphanageGirls'', the orphanage’s main trustee is like a mother to the orphans, showers them with attention and is always eager to help them, but has an extremely strained relationship with her own daughter.

* In ''Literature/PleaseDontTellMyParentsImASupervillain'' Penny's mother is The Audit, a superhero renowned for her ability to analyze and predict what will happen. She fails entirely to work out the identity of The Inscrutable Machine, a supervillain team of three people her daughter's age that first appeared at the middle school she attends. It consists of a mad scientist called Bad Penny, a girl with the ability to cloud people's minds called E-Claire, and a masked boy in black who doesn't talk called Reviled, and is actually her burgeoning super-scientist daughter, her "super-cute" powered friend Claire, and her friend Ray Viles who wears black and has a very distinctive accent. Her mind appears to rebel against the notion, as she does notice the very obvious similarities, but concludes that it's some sort of [[EvilCounterpart copycat/evil clone scenario.]]

* Michel Duval from the ''Literature/RedMarsTrilogy'' is the First Hundred's therapist, and winds up having a mental breakdown. He was well aware he was in need of therapy, but his therapist was a significant time-lag away and unable to help him, while he was unable to help himself.
* In the memoir ''Literature/TheRiseTheFallAndTheRise'' by Brix Smith-Start, [[note]]best known as a member of Music/TheFall for a time with her then husband Mark E. Smith[[/note]] Brix wonders how her psychiatrist father was so good at his job despite his own myriad psychological issues.

** Watson opens "The Adventure of the Stockbroker's Clerk" noting that the medical practice that he had purchased had been declining for years do to the previous owner's poor health, noting that patients "[look] askance at the curative powers of the man whose own case is beyond the reach of his drugs."

* ''Series/AnimalPlanetHeroes'': More often than not, the investigators wind up having to deal with people whose professions directly involves animals. The best example would be the farrier who neglected his horses' hooves to dangerous levels, despite it being ''his job'' to take care of equine feet.

** At one point, she tries diagnosing Leonard, but wildly misses the mark, thinking he has Narcissistic Personality Disorder, which he super doesn't. She came to this conclusion talking about him behind his back with ''Sheldon'', who displays every single sign in the DSM-5. Leonard's mother herself displays some symptoms, most obviously lack of empathy.

* Michael Westen from ''Series/BurnNotice'' regularly insinuates himself into the life of the villain of the week, be it a crime boss, drug dealer, Government agent, contract killer or anything else, and draws them into an elaborate web of deception. However, even the most benign attempt to fool his mother always falls flat. He also mentions being well-trained in firearms and combat... but [[MommasBoy still has no defense against mom crying into his chest]].

* In ''Series/TheCompleteGuideToParenting'', George Huntly (Peter Davison) is a professor of child psychology who is absolutely useless at parenting his seven year old son.

* Ellie Brass, the estranged daughter of ''Series/CSICrimeSceneInvestigation'' Police Captain Jim Brass, is a petty con artist, a drug addict, a drug mule and, in later seasons, a lowlife prostitute. This culminated when she [[spoiler: faked her own kidnapping, nearly killed CSI Brody who was serving as bait for the kidnapper (who Ellie killed), and finally killed her own mother/Brass' ex-wife -- not that she wanted to, but because she would have recognized the kidnapper as Ellie's boyfriend. Not helping Brass' case is the fact that when the kidnapper made him choose between Ellie and Brody, he chose Brody. Ellie is, amazingly, not dead despite Brass being the one to confront her after she shot her mother; he is currently trying to amend his past by reaching out to a young prostitute who reunited with her father who unfortunately was the victim of the week]].
* Dr. Dibbs from ''Series/DocMartin'' is stunningly incompetent in treating herself, on a massive amount of self-prescribed medication and having missed an almost fatal diagnosis. She's barely any better with her patients. Given that she spent over 20 years working as a nurse without any problem, it's ''heavily'' implied the only reason Dr. Dibbs is such a nervous wreck is that her [[CoattailRidingRelative husband]] pushed her to become a doctor and she cracked under the pressure.

** PlayedWith with Bennett James. He's a child psychologist, though his youngest daughter Chloe is a {{Cloudcuckoolander}} even for a seven-years-old. He does use his experience to aid his family, such as getting step-siblings Avery and Tyler to get along by adopting a dog, which unknowingly works because Stan can talk and help the kids with their issues.
** Deconstructed in the ItsAWonderfulPlot episode "Cat with a Blog", where Stan wishes he was a non-talking cat. Thanks to Avery snapping under academic pressures, Tyler becoming a punk and giving up on school, and Chloe getting lost in her imaginations, Bennett's credibility as a child psychologist is ruined. He loses his job and becomes a basketball player that keeps getting bullied by the Harlem Globetrotters.

** Speaking of that loveless marriage, neither of them realize that Niles' wife Maris is likely suffering from eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder, despite her numerous eccentricities -- her bizarre eating habits, her terror of gaining weight, her obsession with plastic surgery -- being a RunningGag. This one's somewhat debatable, however, as it's entirely possible that they ''have'' worked it out, but since Maris is otherwise so horrible and domineering they either can't manage to do anything about it or simply struggle to find the energy to care after a while.

--> '''Hammond:''' I'm an architect without a home. You see the tragic irony in that?

* In the Myth/HinduMythology epic ''Literature/{{Mahabharata}}'', Dronacharya, widely accepted as the finest instructor of archery, doesn’t train his own son Ashwathama in the advanced techniques to use divine arrows. When Ashwathama demands to know why, he answers that Ashwathama never demonstrated the skill, proficiency and dedication he should have.

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': The God-Emperor of Mankind has a bad case of this in regards to his superhuman sons, the Primarchs. The Emperor is extremely charismatic, to the point where he can convince extremely hostile enemy armies to surrender through words alone, and command massive armies with ease. So when the time came that he actually had sons, he figured that he could treat them the same as any soldier under his command, albeit [[BadassGeneral extremely strong ones]], and they would fall in line. Unfortunately, these kids were forced to grow up without him and really needed some fatherly love to help sort out some of their [[BigScrewedUpFamily various psychological issues]]. This became a major part of why several of his sons rebelled and betrayed him to [[EldritchAbomination The Ruinous Powers]].

* Hugh Darrow from ''VideoGame/DeusExHumanRevolution'', the man known as the "The Father of Tomorrow", inventor of modern human augmentation, author of countless books about transhumanism and one of the most powerful, influential and beloved people in the world... has to walk with crutches, as he of all people suffers of an extremely rare genetic condition that causes his body to violently reject augmentations. There is just something so ''tragic'' about seeing an old man forced to watch all of his dreams of a better humanity coming true and knowing that he would be the only one not to enjoy the paradise he has created. [[spoiler:This is his [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist true motive]] for modifying the Illuminati's control signal to turn Augmented people into psychotic berserkers; he's become so bitter and misanthropic that he wants to kill them all [[EvilIsPetty out of spite]].]]

* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'', Madam M runs a hand massage parlor which specializes in relieving stress and tension and providing general relaxation. However, she herself is a heavy MoodSwinger who blows up at [[HairTriggerTemper the drop of a hat]] and [[SuddenlyShouting screams and shouts]] in frustration the moment things don't go her way.
* In ''VideoGame/FireEmblem'', healers (clerics, monk, sages, druids, bishops, etc.) couldn't use their staves to heal themselves. This was altered only in ''Radiant Dawn'', where units equipped with a healing Staff automatically recovers hitpoints each turn. Later installments give some units the ability to restore HP to themselves when healing others.

** In ''VideoGame/Persona4'', Sayoko Uehara develops past her "party nurse" side after [[spoiler:a former patient of hers dies]]. Unfortunately, she develops into a {{Workaholic}} instead, and doesn't manage to find a proper balance until after she's collapsed from overwork. One response you can give her is "Physician, heal thyself."

* In ''Webcomic/{{Archipelago}}'', Simon is the assistant to ''the'' Willium Drake, famous demon hunter, monster slayer and protector of Coin Island. [[spoiler:Right when we meet him, [[DemonicPossession his own consciousness is completely overpowered by a demon]], and Willium (an actual ConsummateProfessional) is too busy investigating some mysterious murders to even consider the possibility. And yes, the murders have everything to do with the demon possessing Simon.]]

* Psychologists themselves. Much has been written on the "wounded healer" archetype among mental health practitioners; this trope is both subverted and justified in an Indonesian adage which says, "There are two reasons someone becomes a psychologist. People who have the compassion to treat the madmen, and people who are madmen and want to be treated." So basically, people who have psychological issues may become psychologists themselves as a way of meeting their own psychological needs. The success, or not, is dependent on each individual. At worst, people enter the profession with no concept of how their own experience has affected them, and end up manipulating their clients to meet their emotional needs. At best, they become skilled and compassionate practitioners, thanks both to their ability to relate to their clients, and to the growth and self-awareness derived from a ''lot'' of therapy of their own.

* If you live with a handyman of any sort, you know to expect anything that's not working right to stay that way for a long time. The main reason being that they are often busy fixing things for other people that pay them for their services and the house projects keep getting pushed farther back on their "to do" list.

* Statistically, doctors are more likely to drink habitually, smoke, be depressed, and/or be suicidal than the general populace. All of these eventually lead to medical intervention of one stripe or another (unless the suicidal succeed).

** One political cartoon is of Wilson himself dragging a small boy in a sailor suit to a fancy gala and scolding him on his poor behavior while the boy tries his damnedest to refuse to comment on America's stance on the League of Nations.

* A lot of Silicon Valley residents including tech giants like Bill Gates and Steve Jobs enroll their children into Waldorf Schools, despite the main feature being that they're relatively low tech and encourage families to limit their technology use in the home as much as possible. With Jobs being quoted saying that [[https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/11/fashion/steve-jobs-apple-was-a-low-tech-parent.html his children haven't used the iPad because of this.]]

* The UsefulNotes/LasVegas Strip is an interesting variation of this trope, in that it address locals' participation of its various amenities rather than their own gambling activities. Specifically, while the Strip [[VivaLasVegas is a major tourist attraction]] (and, therefore, a main source of employment for many in the Las Vegas area), [[https://www.feelingvegas.com/do-las-vegas-locals-go-to-the-strip/ most locals actually avoid the Strip's casinos on their time off, except for special occasions]], instead going to less publicized casinos. Part of this has to do with the fact that, since the locals in the Vegas area work at the Strip's casinos for much of the calendar year, they understandably would need time away from there.

---> '''Hammond:''' I'm an architect without a home. You see the tragic irony in that?

---> '''Hammond:''' I'm an architect without a home. You see the tragic irony in that?\\

* When the medical officer on the spaceship ''Pegasus'' in ''Series/SpaceOdysseyVoyageToThePlanets'' develops cancer, he refuses to undergo chemotherapy because he doesn't want the toxic byproducts excreted in his urine to contaminate the ship's water supply. See the show's article for [[FridgeLogic problems with this premise]].

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* In ''Franchise/OnePiece'' Monkey D. Garp is a legendary marine. While there is no doubt he tried to turn his descendants to that path, ultimately [[spoiler:his son became a revolutionary and the world's most wanted criminal]], and his grandsons became powerful pirates, one a commander for the Whitebeard Pirates and the other a rookie with enormous potential and one of the likely candidates to become the Pirate King. And really, it's his own damn fault: Garp's status as a high-ranking marine made it so that he was rarely home, and when he was he subjected them to TrainingFromHell to make them strong marines. When they still reaffirmed their dreams to be pirates, he left them with a friend to turn that around. Said friend was a '''''mountain bandit'''''. [[spoiler: Only after the death of his adopted grandson does Garp realize his own errors.]]
* In ''Manga/DeathNote'', Soichiro Yagami is a good cop and always able to solve his cases without his judgment being impaired. But in the case of Kira, he finds it difficult to remain completely objective, especially since his son is the prime suspect again and again.
* ''Anime/YuGiOhGX'': when Napoleon's son Marcel attends Duel Academy, Napoleon purposely isolates himself from his son (even keeping it a secret that Marcel ''is'' his son) [[AntiNepotism because showing favoritism towards a student is taboo for a teacher]]. (And it's the hardest thing he ever had to do, as he admits.)
* Kaoru from ''Manga/ICantUnderstandWhatMyHusbandIsSaying'' is a terrible cook despite having been raised by a professional chef.
* Nove from ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'' acts as the coach for Team Nakajima (and later the Nakajima Gym), but she'll never be able to compete in tournaments herself because her cyborg upgrades give her an illegal advantage.
* In ''Manga/BarefootGen'', there is a literal example because Gen's family makes sandals, but Gen himself goes barefoot most of the time. This is likely because the sandals are meant for selling and/or as part of the war effort and thus they can't afford to keep any for their own family.
* In ''A Scummy Gap Student with a Hard Life Calls Upon a Lady of the Night'', Makino Hanabusa's parents run a cram school, but Makino herself fails to get into any of the colleges she applied for due to being too lazy to study, and ends up as a {{Ronin}}. Lampshaded when Makino's parents berate her, specifically mentioning their occupation as one reason why their daughter's failure will make them a laughingstock among their neighbors.
* In ''Manga/FourKnightsOfTheApocalypse'', Tristan has powerful healing magic that doesn't work on congenital diseases like the one he has. It's implied this comes from [[PsychoactivePowers a psychological block on his part]]; he won't be able to fix his condition until he looks at it objectively and realizes it's not the end of the world.

* Dr. Malcolm Long in ''ComicBook/{{Watchmen}}''. Even though he is a psychiatrist, his relationship with his wife is dysfunctional. Overlaps with CriticalPsychoanalysisFailure.

* In ''ComicStrip/{{Zits}}'', Jeremy Duncan's mother is a child therapist, but much of the strip's humor revolves around her inability to get her teenage son to communicate with her. It's possible her specialty is preadolescent patients, as she tends to come off like a MisplacedKindergartenTeacher when trying to advise Jeremy.

* One ''ComicStrip/{{Dilbert}}'' strip has Dilbert attending an economics class. The professor has already prepared a presentation explaining why he has to dress like a flood victim despite being an expert on money. The cartoonist, Scott Adams, has an economics degree[[note]]As well as [[http://blog.dilbert.com/post/146361457021/the-humiliation-of-the-american-male-in-2016 strange sartorial opinions]][[/note]]; this may very well be TruthInTelevision.

[[folder:Fanfiction]]

** Wanda, eventually, gets to at least act as a ParentalSubstitute to her godson, Harry, even if it is a decade or so late (thanks to ItsNotYouItsMyEnemies and Strange's warning). She can't do the same for her daughter - though in [[spoiler: Hermione's]] case, she has a happy family, by Wanda's own contrivance, and Wanda wants a clean break/not to attach her baggage. Needless to say, it doesn't work out that way.

* Played seriously in ''Fanfic/LePapillonRising''. As Mr. Noir, Gabriel Agreste takes a parental role to his younger partner Ladybug and wants to protect her from the supervillain le Papillon's advances. But in his civilian life, he neglects and distant himself from his traumatized son Adrien after the death of his wife Bridgette, [[spoiler:which stemmed in Adrien becoming the supervillain le Papillon in the first place]].

* In ''Film/LocalHero'', the local Scot fishermen brag about the high quality lobsters they catch, noting they'll be in the finest restaurants around the world. When asked if they eat lobster too, they chuckle no -- it's too expensive.
* In Korean romantic comedy ''Film/MarriageBlue'', Yi-ra is a wedding planner who organizes romantic, fancy weddings. She is so nervous and jittery about her own rapidly approaching AltarTheSpeed wedding (she got knocked up) that she breaks up with the baby's father.
* Used in ''Film/BatmanBegins'' where [[DirtyCop Detective Flass]] steals money from a street vendor. The man says he has kids to feed, and Flass merely responds, "What? They don't like falafels?" [[spoiler: [[LaserGuidedKarma Flass gets jumped and worked over by Batman five seconds later.]]]]

* We are first introduced to hostage negotiator [[Creator/KevinSpacey Chris Sabian]] in ''Film/TheNegotiator'' as he is failing to persuade his wife to come out of the bedroom in which she has locked herself. Summed up succinctly with this line:
-->'''Chris Sabian:''' You know, I once talked a man out of blowing up the Sears Tower, but I can't talk my wife out of the bedroom or my kid off the phone.\\
'''Lisa Sabian:''' That's because nobody's standing behind you with a big gun!\\
'''Chris Sabian:''' That's debatable.
* Sophia in ''Film/{{Shortbus}}'' is a sex therapist/couples counselor who's never achieved orgasm and has a marriage riddled with issues.

* ''Film/CruelIntentions'' begins with a psychologist who has written a book on the parenting of teenagers. Her daughter has been easily seduced and posed for nude pictures, which are on the web in a parody of her mother's book cover. When she phones Mom in distress, she is put on hold, and when Mom picks up the phone and finds out what happened, the poor girl gets a ''very'' unkind and unhelpful response.

* The psychiatrist's family in ''Film/WhatAboutBob'' is highly dysfunctional, thanks to the therapist in question being a domestic tyrant.
* Used for a quick joke in ''Film/TheCountryBears''; Tennessee's backstory includes a failed relationship with Trixie. So when the band broke up, he became a marriage counselor. Counter-intuitively, it's ''because'' he has a failed relationship that he's a surprisingly effective marriage counsellor. People with problems in their marriage see how miserable he is as a single person and they instantly feel better about their own situation.

* In ''Film/ThanksForSharing'', Mike is a longterm recovered addict who fully embraces the 12-step philosophy, and acts as a tough but compassionate sponsor/mentor to other recovering addicts. But he's a massive {{Jerkass}} to his own recovering-addict son.
* In ''WesternAnimation/RiseOfTheGuardians'', the Guardians have the ''opposite'' problem. They spend so much time protecting children, they're now too busy to actually ''spend time'' with them!
* ''Film/TheWeddingPlanner'''s eponymous character has a lonely and awkward love life. On another level, she's always dreamed of having a quiet, simple wedding; nothing like the elaborate, chaotic galas she supplies for clients. [[FridgeBrilliance Of course, she knows firsthand how nerve-wracking the latter can be...]]
* ''Film/ChooseMe'': Nancy is a psychologist, and a late-night radio talk show host, who spends her nights on the radio giving advice to the lovelorn about relationships. She is also scared of commitment and has never had a serious relationship of her own. Here's how Nancy describes herself to Mickey, who doesn't know that she's radio-host "Dr. Nancy Love":
-->"She can help others, but not herself, she gives advice to the lovelorn all day, but she's never been in love herself...[[OrSoIHeard or so I've heard]]."

* In ''Film/AKnightsTale'', William’s dad is a thatcher or roof maker by trade. But he went blind and couldn’t fix his own roof. William does it for him and it sets up part of the film’s climax since Adhemar catches him at it and exposes him.

* A child psychologist gives a series of lectures titled ''"Rules For Raising Children"''. After the birth of his first child, he changes the title to ''"Guidelines For Raising Children"''. When he has a second child, he now calls it ''"Suggestions For Raising Children"''. After a third child, ''"Ideas For Raising Children"''. When his children become teenagers, [[KnowWhenToFoldEm he discontinues the lectures.]]

* The Music/CreedenceClearwaterRevival song "Wrote a Song For Everyone" has its TitleDrop in the chorus followed up with "when I couldn't even talk to you."
* The trope is used as a metaphor in Music/HarryNilsson's "Mr. Tinker". Mr. Tinker is a tailor who is unable to "fix" his life.

-->'''Lancaster:''' Maybe that's how- maybe that's what it takes to get through to you!
-->'''Harley:''' Get through to me?! What about you?! You can’t just keep telling everybody else to do things you don't do yourself! You look like shit, when was the last time you slept?!

* In ''VideoGame/ZoneOfTheEnders: Dolores, i'', James runs into the author of the fatherhood book that's helped him get back together with his estranged children (more or less), just in time to see him have a panic attack as his own son busts out of jail looking for him.

* ''Franchise/{{Persona}}''

* Hugh Darrow from ''VideoGame/DeusExHumanRevolution'', the man known as the "The Father of Tomorrow", inventor of modern human augmentation, author of countless books about transhumanism and one of the most powerful, influential and beloved people in the world... has to walk with crutches, as he of all people suffers of an extremely rare genetic condition that causes his body to violently reject augmentations. There is just something so ''tragic'' about seeing an old man forced to watch all of his dreams of a better humanity coming true and knowing that he would be the only one not to enjoy the paradise he has created. [[spoiler:This is his [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist true motive]] for modifying the Illuminati's control signal to turn Augmented people into psychotic berserkers; he's become so bitter and misanthropic that he wants to kill them all [[EvilIsPetty out of spite]].]]
* If [[spoiler: team shrink Kelly Chambers]] survives the events of ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'', [[spoiler: she shows the most trauma of the NPC crew.]] In the third game, there's still too much emotional trauma to consider returning to the Normandy. [[spoiler: A therapist with crippling Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.]] And if you botch your interactions with the character badly enough, they will be DrivenToSuicide.

* Downplayed in ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2'', where TheMedic cannot use his [[HealingShiv Medigun]] on himself, but has GradualRegeneration to compensate. Averted by the [[LimitBreak Ubercharges]], which ''do'' give the Medic the same effect as it gives the patient (although for the Kritzkrieg this is useless because it boosts attack power while the medigun is out and the medigun doesn't do damage; to compensate, the Kritzkrieg has an alternate use where the Medic can take a big huff from it in order to gain health).
* In ''VideoGame/Fallout4'''s prologue, the Vault-Tec Rep is rejected from Vault 111.
* ''VideoGame/Dishonored2'' reveals that the guy who makes the safes you find throughout the series is totally inept at securing his own property; he keeps forgetting the three-digit codes to his safe and when you break into his house, you'll find that the current combination is 123. And he has an extremely obvious painting giving away the code in the same room.
* In ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIIRemake'', Madam M runs a hand massage parlor which specializes in relieving stress and tension and providing general relaxation. However, she herself is a heavy MoodSwinger who blows up at [[HairTriggerTemper the drop of a hat]] and [[SuddenlyShouting screams and shouts]] in frustration the moment things don't go her way.
* ''VideoGame/HuniePop''
** Aiko teaches college-level mathematics, and ought to have a more objective view of probability than most people. Despite this, her favorite hobby is gambling at the local casino, and one of the pictures she sends the player is of her playing the slot machines. She might recognize the irony on some level: one of her quips if you take her to the carnival is, "Let’s go lose some rigged games!"
** Beli is a Yoga instructor who strives for physical well-being and spiritual centeredness through the lifestyle she advocates, yet she struggles with the temptation of junk food and sometimes feels insecure about her body.
* In ''The Sniper 2'', Stanley Jones is an engineer working for a major electronics company - whom the protagonists pick up when his car breaks down on a desert highway. This does not go unremarked.
-->'''CA:''' An engineer? I would have thought an engineer could handle a little car trouble.\\
'''Stanley:''' Yeah, me too, but [[TheAllegedCar that hunk o' scrap]] is far beyond even ''my'' skills! Y'know them doctors who get shit 'cause they don't look after themselves? Now I know how they feel! [[AnnoyingLaugh HAHAHAHA!]]
* ''VideoGame/Psychonauts2'' has the Psychic Six, the original founding members of the Psychonauts organization. They specialize in studying the mind, and as such have deep knowledge of issues relating to mental health, yet they're also a DysfunctionJunction, with nearly every member of the group having some kind of mental illness.

* In ''Webcomic/{{Archipelago}}'', Simon is the assistant to ''the'' Willium Drake, famous demon hunter, monster slayer and protector of Coin Island. [[spoiler: Right when we meet him, [[DemonicPossession his own consciousness is completely overpowered by a demon]], and Willium (an actual ConsummateProfessional) is too busy investigating some mysterious murders to even consider the possibility. And yes, the murders have everything to do with the demon possessing Simon]].

* In ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'', Rose is constantly trying to psychoanalyze her friends and their family issues, yet dismisses her own mother's sincere-if-overblown gestures of affection and attempts to connect to her as spiteful and passive-aggressive.

* [[http://yourkickstartersucks.tumblr.com/post/77356906588/oh-my-goodness-this-book-is-a-comprehensive This "how to succeed at Kickstarter/crowdfunding" book]]. As per added hilarity, it failed miserably at reaching its funding goal and hence likely won't be made. Would have thought a Kickstarter "expert" would have better luck at using the site!
* Glamour Magazine's [=YouTube=] site filmed a video where [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCLk-2iArYc divorce lawyers give relationship advice]]. After their years of experience in the courtroom, their advice is very sensible (accept that you cannot change an introvert into a party person, for example) and they even stated that they still feel romantic and for at least one of them, the divorces they look over give her more motivation to keep her marriage strong.

* Statistically, doctors are more likely to drink habitually, be depressed and suicidal than the general populace. All of these eventually lead to medical intervention of one stripe or another (unless the suicidal succeed). And, of course, to ''become'' doctors they need to get through medical school and residency, which typically entail chronic sleep deprivation, intermittent hasty meals, and high-stress overwork for years on end. It's a wonder that most doctors ''don't'' end up being [[DrJerk total assholes.]]

* Lampshaded in "The Tale of Iroh" from the ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' episode "The Tales of Ba Sing Se". Iroh spends the whole day helping whoever he comes across, then mourns the fact that he was unable to do so for [[OutlivingOnesOffspring his own son]].

* In the memoir ''Literature/TheRiseTheFallAndTheRise'' by Brix Smith-Start, [[note]]best known as a member of Music/TheFall for a time with her then husband Mark E. Smith[[/note]], Brix wonders how her psychiatrist father was so good at his job despite his own myriad psychological issues.

* In the memoir ''Literature/TheRiseTheFallAndTheRise'' by Brix Smith-Start, [[note]best known as a member of Music/TheFall for a time with her then husband Mark E. Smith[[/note]], Brix wonders how her psychiatrist father was so good at his job despite his own myriad psychological issues.

** There is also a week of strips of Sally trying to teach Sunday School, and constantly getting interrupted by one boy who thinks ''Literature/TheGreatGatsby'' [[CriticalResearchFailure is in the Bible]]. When she gets home, Sally learns the boy is the minister's son.

[[caption-width-right:348:Well, the firetruck is still undamaged...]]

* In ''Taking Flight'' by Creator/SieraMaley, main character Lauren is a troubled teenager shipped off to live with David, a counselor who specializes in rehabbing kids like her. Yet David fails to notice that his wife, Wendy, has basically dragooned their son into a wedding he feels too young for, and their daughter has stayed in the closet because her mother is a homophobe, and is also burying her dream of being an artist because Wendy doesn't consider it worthwhile. Both children are unreasonably concerned with making ''her'' happy when it should be the other way round. David is, by all accounts, good at what he does, but he's disturbed to realize that his wife is suffocating their children while he has expected them to be role models for the juvenile delinquents he takes in, which is a lot of pressure to be perfect. He decides to take a break from all that to focus on his own family.
* ''You Should Have Known'' revolves around a therapist writing a book by the same name, in which she upbraids women for not trusting their instincts and allowing their partners to cheat on them. Before the book gets printed, she discovers that her own husband has been keeping a secret from her that forces her to reevaluate her own life.

* Rachel of Tish Cohen's ''Inside Out Girl'' edits a parenting magazine, but when she tries to apply her advice to her own kids, it comes off as cheesy and fake.
* In ''Jeżycjada'' by Creator/MalgorzataMusierowicz, there is Ewa Jedwabińska, a very, very driven psychologist (currently working at school, which she resents) whose [[ParentalNeglect child]] [[spoiler: runs away from home under a series of assumed names]]. PlayedForDrama.

* Common problem in MMO games, the healer gets so focused on keeping the other characters alive that they forget their own health.