Jordan Peterson Breaks Silence: Still Incapacitated, But Finding a Way to Keep Giving

By Pastor Duke Taber

In This Article

Dr. Jordan Peterson, the 64-year-old Canadian psychologist, bestselling author, and one of the most widely followed public intellectuals in the world, broke his silence this week with a sobering but determined health update — and a gift to his millions of supporters in the process.

In a message posted to X on June 21, 2026, Peterson confirmed what many had feared: his health remains so serious that he cannot return to podcasting or public lecturing in the foreseeable future. But rather than go dark, he announced that his team will begin releasing a previously unreleased lecture from his extensive tour archive every Sunday, starting immediately.

“This allows me to do something interesting and useful while I’m otherwise incapacitated. My health is such at the moment that I can’t really return to podcasting or public lecturing. But we recorded these with the express intention of preparing them for release, and we’ve all determined that this is a very good time to do that.” — Dr. Jordan B. Peterson, X, June 21, 2026

He closed the post simply: “I’m as happy as I can be under the current circumstances, given my ill health, to be participating in this process and to have these lectures prepared for release. Thanks a lot for your continued attention and support.”

The Health Crisis: What We Know

Peterson’s current battle has been long, layered, and genuinely harrowing.

The trouble escalated dramatically in the summer of 2025, when exposure to a water-damaged building apparently triggered what his family has described as Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome, or CIRS — a multi-system immune overreaction to mold biotoxins that affects an estimated quarter of the population due to genetic susceptibility. The condition drove a cascade of complications, including pneumonia and sepsis, landing Peterson in intensive care for nearly a month. His family described him at that point as near death.

Layered on top of the CIRS diagnosis is the condition that appears to be causing his most immediate suffering: akathisia. This is a neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by extreme, unrelenting inner restlessness — an inability to sit still driven not by anxiety but by neurological disruption. Peterson has been dealing with the aftermath of benzodiazepine medications he took for severe depression years ago. His daughter Mikhaila Fuller, in an emotional update shared in April 2026, described the condition in stark terms.

“Dad’s been suffering from an old neurological injury that’s more recently been causing akathisia. Akathisia is the worst thing I’ve ever seen anyone go through. That sounds dramatic, but it’s true. This has been unbelievably hard on my family. Every day for the last year has been hell,” she said.

His wife Tammy Peterson confirmed her husband “feels as if he’s in another realm of pain,” adding that “his mornings are brutally painful and discouraging for him. Later, much later in the day, he sometimes feels some relief.”

Critically, his daughter emphasized that Peterson has reportedly been off psychiatric medication since January 2020 — meaning this is not a case of active medication misuse but of long-lingering neurological injury compounded by environmental and personal stressors.

His daughter described the akathisia as causing unbearable restlessness persisting six years post-medication, noting it is often misdiagnosed and underrecognized due to limited research.

Planned 2026 tours at venues including the Uber Arena and First Direct Arena in Leeds were canceled as recovery moved slowly. Peterson has remained almost entirely out of public life.

Who Is Jordan Peterson and Why This Matters

For readers unfamiliar with Peterson’s work, a word of context is warranted.

Peterson rose to global prominence beginning around 2016, largely through a series of university lectures posted to YouTube that tackled psychology, mythology, meaning, and the deep patterns running beneath human experience. His book 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos sold tens of millions of copies. He has spoken extensively on the biblical narratives of Genesis, the psychology of the Gospels, and the relationship between meaning-making and faith. His 2023 book We Who Wrestle with God delves into Genesis, analyzing figures like Cain, Noah, and Abraham for what they reveal about rebellion, sacrifice, and human purpose.

Peterson is not an evangelical Christian. He does not make faith claims in the style of a pastor or a theologian. But he has spent years arguing, from a psychological and philosophical standpoint, that the stories of Scripture are not myths in the dismissive sense — they are the encoded wisdom of millennia, and abandoning them is catastrophic. He has consistently spoken with deep respect for the person and teachings of Jesus Christ.

Many believers, including many in the Charismatic and Pentecostal world, have found his work to be a valuable bridge — helping skeptics and seekers engage with the seriousness of Scripture before the Spirit has had a chance to bring them fully home. He has led an enormous number of people toward the doorway of faith.

That is why his suffering matters to the Church. This is a man who has — whatever his precise theological location — spent years pointing a secular world toward the truth, meaning, and beauty embedded in the Word of God.

What This Looks Like from a Biblical Lens

Suffering that is long, painful, and resistant to quick resolution is a thread that runs through the entirety of Scripture. Job sat in his ash heap. Paul carried a thorn in the flesh he begged God three times to remove. Elijah, coming off one of the most dramatic spiritual victories in biblical history, sat under a juniper tree and asked to die. The pattern is consistent: God does not exempt His most used vessels from suffering. Often He most deeply shapes them through it.

“And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope.” — Romans 5:3–4, NKJV

There is something particularly striking about Peterson’s response to his own crisis. He could go silent. Many would. Instead, at his most physically limited, he is finding a way to give — releasing archived lectures, maintaining contact with his audience, describing himself as “as happy as I can be under the current circumstances.”

That is not despair. That is a man pressing through.

It is worth noting as well that the nature of his illness sheds light on something broader. Peterson’s condition is in part the long-term consequence of medications prescribed for depression — medications that, in his case, created a neurological injury that has outlasted the original treatment by years. His family has been vocal about this, not to assign blame, but to raise awareness. His daughter has said: “People need to know these medications and what they can do to people, especially long term… they need to be aware of these before taking a medication.”

This is a pastoral concern worth taking seriously. Many in our congregations are dealing with exactly these kinds of long-term pharmaceutical consequences — conditions that are hard to diagnose, hard to treat, and that can leave a person feeling utterly alone in their suffering. The Body of Christ is called to walk alongside people in that valley, not just during dramatic crises but through the long, grinding seasons of chronic pain and uncertainty.

For scriptural grounding on walking with those who suffer long illnesses, see How to Pray for Someone Who Is Seriously Ill, How to Support Someone Who Is Believing God for Healing, and Grace in Suffering: How God Sustains You Through Trials.

The Call to Prayer

The Charisma article covering this story ended with a call that I want to echo and deepen.

Scripture calls us to bear one another’s burdens. That calling does not require the person we are bearing for to share our doctrinal framework. It requires us to recognize suffering and respond with compassion. Peterson’s family has repeatedly asked publicly for prayer. His daughter has mentioned the prayers of supporters. His wife has spoken of his pain.

Jordan Peterson has spoken to more people about the existence of meaning, the importance of biblical narrative, and the cost of abandoning truth than most preachers will reach in a lifetime. He has done this from a place of intellectual courage that has cost him dearly — in controversy, in public attack, and now in a season of profound physical suffering.

The least the Church can do is pray for him.

“Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up.” — James 5:13–15, NKJV

We do not know where Jordan Peterson stands in his personal relationship with God. That is between him and his Creator. What we do know is that he is suffering, that his family is suffering alongside him, that he has pointed millions of people toward the seriousness of Scripture, and that he is still trying, within the limits of what his broken body allows, to give something to the world.

Pray for Jordan Peterson. Pray for Tammy. Pray for Mikhaila and the whole family. Pray for healing — the kind that only God can provide. And in the meantime, be grateful for the archive of lectures he has prepared for release. If you have never engaged with his early YouTube lecture work on biblical stories, this is a good time to start.

For more on what Scripture says about healing and persevering faith through long trials, see How to Stand in Faith While Waiting for Your Healing, What to Do When Healing Doesn’t Come the Way You Expected, and Why Do Some People Get Healed and Others Don’t?.

Download: If you are walking through a season of illness or supporting someone who is, the 13 Bible Study Lessons on Divine Healing available at AnsweredFaith.com may be exactly what you need right now.

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Sources

Charisma Magazine — “Jordan Peterson Breaks Silence Amid Ongoing Medical Battle” — Abby Trivett, June 22, 2026. mycharisma.com
Jubilee Cast — “Jordan Peterson Reveals Heartbreaking Health Battle as He Admits He Can No Longer Lecture or Podcast” — June 23, 2026. jubileecast.com
Western Journal — “Dr. Jordan Peterson Gives Health Update, Shares Plan to Keep Reaching Fans During Hiatus” — June 24, 2026. westernjournal.com
Newsweek — “Jordan Peterson’s daughter shares update on his ‘hellish’ health condition” — April 20, 2026. newsweek.com
Washington Times — “Jordan Peterson’s wife says he’s in ‘another realm of pain’ from psychiatric medication injury” — May 5, 2026. washingtontimes.com
Christian Post — “Jordan Peterson ‘still very sick’ amid neurological battle, daughter says: ‘This year has been Hell'” — April 21, 2026. christianpost.com
Academic Jobs — “Jordan Peterson Health Update 2026” — April 2026. academicjobs.com