Jordan Peterson taking time off to fight new health setback, according to his daughter

Canadian psychologist, best-selling author and media commentator Jordan Peterson is taking time off for medical reasons, according to his daughter.

“JBP is taking some time off of everything,” wrote podcast host and CEO of Peterson Academy , Mikhaila Peterson, on her X account earlier this week.

Hey guys, @jordanbpeterson is taking some time off of everything. He was diagnosed with CIRS (chronic inflammatory response syndrome) due to a genetic predisposition that causes the immune system to have an inability to identify and detoxify mold/bacteria in indoor air (the…

— Mikhaila Peterson (@MikhailaFuller) August 13, 2025

She says her father, a sometimes columnist for National Post, has been diagnosed with a condition known as chronic inflammatory response syndrome, or CIRS, and that it results in an immune deficiency that inhibits identifying and detoxifying indoor mold and bacteria.

“Recently he was exposed to a particularly moldy environment while helping clean out my grandfather’s house after he passed away which severely flared symptoms. … He’s really been suffering from this badly since 2017 we just didn’t know what it was called,” she wrote.

This is the latest health setback for Peterson, 62, who fought to beat a benzodiazepine addiction in 2019.

After Peterson’s addiction struggles were revealed, he announced he had developed akathisia — a condition which can cause restlessness, mental distress and an inability to sit still.

However, his daughter said that isn’t an aspect of the present setback. She wrote on X: “To be crystal clear — this isn’t about akathisia or medication. He’s not on any medication. It’s an immune system dysfunction.”

Conservative Leader, Pierre Poilievre has wished Peterson well. In a post to X on Saturday, he wrote: “Praying for a swift recovery,” adding, “The world needs his prodigious mind and solid principles now more than ever.”

Praying for a swift recovery for my friend Dr. @jordanbpeterson. The world needs his prodigious mind and solid principles now more than ever. https://t.co/QcsmEcmXh9

— Pierre Poilievre (@PierrePoilievre) August 15, 2025

As a result of this setback, Peterson said her father is pausing the Daily Wire podcast that she co-hosts with him.

He is also cancelling a speaking engagement in Brazil.

In lieu of these engagements, she pointed followers to YouTube, specifically her father’s episodes of a new call-in Q and A show, “Answer the Call,” which the two of them recorded before he got ill.

“He was very excited to put this out, helping people is what he enjoys the most. That’s why he does what he does.”

Meanwhile, she asserted that CIRS is not generally recognized by the medical profession.

“The fact that this is the cause behind our food sensitivities and inability to tolerate anything other than meat (for 8 years now), multiple disorders and diseases in my family, and is virtually unrecognized by the medical community, is absurd,” she wrote.

“Just like the medical system didn’t recognize ketogenic diets as a treatment for mental disorders 10 years ago (and still most doctors don’t).

“Just like (Dr. Peterson’s) psych med withdrawal wasn’t recognized 5 years ago (and still more doctors don’t recognize it).”

She concluded her X message with: “Thank you for the understanding. Prayers are appreciated.”

In late 2024, Alberta-born Peterson announced he and his wife were leaving Canada for the U.S. Peterson began his academic career at Harvard University before returning to Canada to take a position at the University of Toronto in 1998.

The sale of the Peterson’s home in Toronto was a subject of recent media interest.

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