Really Dr. Phil?

Greetings,

The other day I happened to be watching an episode of Doctor Phil, which really is not part of my normal routine. I guess I was meant to watch the show HOWEVER I think I have discovered the reason I may not generally watch the show. The topic was fear and anxiety. The show aired on

February 28, 2013.

"Dr. Phil talks to NBA rookie Royce White, who was suspended by the Houston Rockets for breach of contract after he failed to report to his D-League assignment, while he and the team disputed over his battle with anxiety and fear of flying. And, Jodi says her fear of flying has cost her higher paying jobs — and is now cheating her 8-year-old daughter out of great opportunities." Another woman was supposed to be on the show, her name was Billie and she just could not get on that plane. She started out very determined like nothing was going to stop her and she ended up hiding in her closet for four hours. I get that. That was realism, and Billie where ever you are my heart goes out to you. One day at a time, and one step at a time.

 

I thought the Royce White segment of the show was very interesting, he has a fear of flying, a very extreme fear. It is much easier for him to drive where ever it is he has to go. Well this has led to many issues with him and his position with the NBA. First I want to say I LOVE that a big strong athletic man was "representing" for those of us with anxiety issues. This big strong man is probably not who you may normally picture. Mr. White was under a lot of public scrutiny, people feeling that if you knew you had anxiety issues and you knew you had issues flying you should not have signed on to the Rockets. Here is the thing, we start out with the best of intentions. We start out pushing forward towards our goals and dreams with every intention that they will happen and that fear creeps in. It starts chewing away at your brain, it works its way down to your stomach and you can just wind up being one hot mess. Do you think we really sign up for failure? Do you think the bench is where this man wants to be? In the end this man is going to be fine. I think we could spare some of the criticism towards him, as I stated we start out with the best of intentions. No one wants to end up on the bench.

"NBA rookie Royce White recently made headlines when he was suspended by the Houston Rockets for “refusing to provide services as required by his Uniform Player Contract," after he failed to report to his D-league assignment. Royce, who has an anxiety disorder and a fear of flying, says he wanted a mental health clause added to his contract — and he wouldn’t play until that happened. “Mental health needs to be addressed in the NBA, period,” he says. Royce is the first NBA prospect to disclose that he suffers from mental illness" (http://drphil.com/shows/show/1987/,2013)

“I’ve had anxiety my whole life,” he says, revealing it’s often tied to his organization rituals. “When an anxiety attack is coming on, it feels like death. I’ve had my feet go numb, my hands go numb, my vision go blurry and my heart pounds really hard.” He says he also suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder and says he’s hyper-vigilant about his surroundings. On the court, though, he says he feels at ease.."(http://drphil.com/shows/show/1987/,2013) "The Houston Rockets' Media Relations Director issued the following statement on behalf of the team:

"The Houston Rockets and Royce White have today reached an agreement that addresses the major issues that they have been discussing, provides a new start, and gives Royce the best opportunity for long-term success as a Houston Rocket. This has been a learning process for both parties. The NBA and the National Basketball Players Association have approved the settlement. Royce is no longer suspended and is re-instated effective immediately. He will report to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers on February 11, 2013." (http://drphil.com/shows/show/1987/,2013) I guess all ends well in this story.

What I found to be extremely disturbing about this show was the segment on the woman named Jodi.
She has a lot of anxiety about flying, heights, crossing, bridges, and her family basically feels that at the rate she was going she would end up like me, agoraphobic. Afraid to leave the house. I love that therapists such as Doctor Phil will treat and give after care to those who need it, that may not otherwise get it HOWEVER this segment screamed of horse shit to me.

Jodi shares her fears with Doctor Phil, and her husband shares his fears too. They are worried about messing up their eight year old. I get that I really do. They have Jodi sit in the car while she is being driven over some bridges.Naturally she is having anxiety attacks.

Next they bring out "the expert" Dr. Lawlis. Dr. Lawlis teaches Jodi some simple relaxation techniques. Then, she tackles driving over the bridge again. “It's nothing like what I experienced this morning.”  At first she is having anxiety attacks and pretty soon it becomes second nature, she is calmly sitting in the car chatting....now really. Dr. Lawlis works on breathing and relaxation with her and gives her a meditation/relaxation CD. I could wall paper my living room with my meditative/relaxation CD's. I really mean no disrespect to Dr. Phil or Dr. Lawlis, especially Dr. Lawlis as I really know nothing about him, but come on. This is not the norm people.

You have your average viewer with anxiety/agoraphobia watching wondering what they are doing wrong, they followed all of the steps, the went over what ever that bridge they might be facing, and we bought the CD's! No one "recovers" that quickly. I wish Jodi all of the best and I hope she actually gets her kid to Disney, but come on Doctor Phil don't set the rest of us up for failure. It would appear that you "healed" her in  two or three days, which was broken down into a one hour segment, which leaves the rest of us wondering where did we go wrong?
Not everything is so simple. Lets keep it real.

Love and Light!

Reference
http://drphil.com/shows/show/1987/,2013


When life gives you a hundred reasons to cry, show life that you have a thousand reasons to smile.

- Unknown