Todaon the treadmill I watched Dr. Phil, and I have to tell you, dear reader, I do not think that shit is OK. There was a girl who had an eating disorder where she would chew her food and then spit it into a bag and save the bag under her bed. She seemed very sad.
Dr. Phil had some doctor with huge, white teeth come on and say that the teenager was in all kinds of health danger. Then some other shiny doctor from an eating disorder place come on and said that she was going to take her away to the eating disorder place and the teenager lost her shit crying because she didn’t want to go to an inpatient program.
Dr.Phil told her that “life is about opportunities and when you are on your deathbead you don’t regret the times you said “yes” you regret the times you said “no.” Then the audience clapped. He said she had a choice whether to take the opportunity or not, and that she had to look him in the eye and say “I’m all in.” Fuck you, Dr. Phil.
Further, what the fuck does that even mean? Is that what people do on their deathbeds, anyway? Catalogue shit? And also there are plenty of things that you can regret saying “yes” to, for chrissake. Crack? Job you hate? Getting into that van with that guy?
Recovery is about making your own narrative. So I guess television is pretty much antithetical to recovery, since that is about being put in a narrative. Why is that a show? Someone should take his license away if he has one.
Dr. Phil has been such a fuck-up for people who're suffering and excellent concern-porn for people who aren't. I really don't like that guy.
ReplyDeleteA while ago when Newsweek was still a magazine, Dr. Phil wrote a piece about how he wanted a vasectomy, so his urologist buddy just put him up on the table and gave him one, off the cuff. Later Phil regretted this and his same buddy just undid it for him. Buddy old chum. No pay or insurance, you scratch my back and I'll unplumb your semen. I guess Dr. Phil is entitled to his reproductive rights, but I found the whole story rather unsettling, giving me an image akin to my sister and her friend tying up gimp lanyards in 5th grade, except these were old men snipping and sewing together vas deferens for kicks. Whoopee!
ReplyDeletePeople daily make difficult decisions. Occasionally those decisions are made for teenagers in front of a studio audience. Eating disorders are often a grasping for control, this girl had that last shred of control ripped away by Dr. Phil, who is grateful for this commercial sponsors.
Some people lay dying regretting their yeses and no's, while a few can rest assured of their yeses and no's because a golf buddy made both happen for free.
Yeah! This is a motivating pile-on! Take that, Dr. Phil!
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