I’ve read numerous blog posts and magazine and newspaper articles about VH-1′s “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” in the past, but none have made me stop and think the way Kevin McDonough’s Beyond Rehab, Dr. Drew Points to a Societal Cancer.
The idea that society thrives on the troubles of others (especially the troubles of celebrities) is nothing new, and neither is the idea that Dr. Drew is feeding that fixation (however intentionally or unintentionally) by treating his celebrity patients on national television; however, McDonough poses an idea that I hadn’t thought about before:
Simply put, not only is Dr. Drew placing “publicity, celebrity, and money” over his patients’ best interests, but also that – as a doctor – he should be trying to prevent his patients from (or encourage them not to) exploit themselves.
A couple of thoughts came to mind after reading McDonough’s article.
First, I agree that, as their doctor, Dr. Drew should place priority on his celebrity patients’ well being and recovery and should not encourage them to do something that could be harmful; however, I recognize that we really don’t know if he is or isn’t. We don’t really know what goes in to giving these celebrities the green light to be on the show. In other words, we don’t really know what goes on behind the scenes.
Second, I wonder how all this relates to the stigma of mental illness. If anyone – celebrity or not – wants to publicize his mental health issues and the treatment he undergoes, is it actually beneficial to that person and the viewers for us to encourage him not to? If we can assume that at least a few of the celebrities on the show genuinely want to get help and are sincerely okay with allowing viewers along for the ride, would we actually be contributing to stigma by saying, “Hey, you should keep this to yourself”?
What do you think?
Is Dr. Drew not acting in the best interest of his patients with “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew”? Or, in instances when a doctor feels a patient is fully able to decide on his own whether or not to partake, would discouraging or not providing these celebrities with the opportunity to go public with their problems, struggles, and treatments actually be contributing to the stigma of mental health problems like addiction and depression?
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Absolutely, they shouldn’t be encouraged to not open up, but if that’s what they want all the power to them, but encouraging celebs or giving negative feedback to celebs who do want to open up will only hurt the mental health stigma already associated with the growing numbers of mental health problems we are facing as a society ..I’ve watched Dr. Drew show once and it was difficult to watch celebs going through rehab, it is a very personal thing but if celebs feel putting it out there into the public will help then they shouldn’t be scrutinized for it. Rehab is more successful when the person takes full responsibility for their actions and being televised sure does that, it also gives them a chance when they are sober to look back at those tapes and say Wow, do I really act like that when I’m drunk or high? It allows other’s like these celeb fans to also write support letters and who knows may make a person watching with a problem to rethink their own rehab. It’s a personal decision for anyone who opens up about their problems, no one should discourage or encourage just like it be what makes that individual comfortable
@ Amanda – “Rehab is more successful when the person takes full responsibility for their actions and being televised sure does that, it also gives them a chance when they are sober to look back at those tapes and say Wow, do I really act like that when I’m drunk or high?”
Very good point!
Hannah at 2:24 pm on
January 12th, 2010While I do think that this show and others that treat the mentally ill like a zoo exhibit(“Hoarders”, “Intervention”)are horribly exploitative I don’t think that anyone should ever be told to keep quiet about mental illness. I wish more people would stand up and say that mental illness is nothing to be asshamed of. Maybe if more celebrities did that (in a constructive way) there wouldn’t be so many young people suffering or even dying needlessly.
@ Hannah – I agree – celebs definitely have the power of influence and can use that power constructively. I’m grateful for the ones who’ve used it in the mental health community, like Joey Pants with “No Kidding, Me Too!” and Paige Hemmis with “Blueprint for Hope.” Those two used their own personal experiences with mental health problems to found campaigns and shed light on the issues.
I am always believe that celebrity always influence youngster and their fans.Whatever you describe in this post I am agree with you it is really a very nice one.
I’ve never seen the show being discussed here, but I have a hard time believing people can have equally effective therapy without confidentiality as with it.
By all means if celebs want to be open about their mental health issues they have just as much a right as anyone else. But there’s a big difference between openly discussing your problems and televising your treatment.
@ dsi – Thanks, and I think so, too: celebrities do tend to influence their fans, especially the younger ones.
@ tales – I don’t think I’ve talked about “Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew” specifically here; I think I’ve just quoted Dr. Drew once or twice (like what he said about Tiger Woods and sex addiction). I agree there’s a big difference between the two (open discussion and televising), but I think if handled properly the difference doesn’t necessarily have to be bad. (Of course, that’s not to say Dr. Drew or the show handles it properly – I’m not really in any position to say.) Also, if (again) handled properly, televising it can act as a major learning tool for everyone from kids who thinking partying and boozing it up is cool to adults with substance abuse problems. Great blog, by the way!
From Psych Central's Celebrity Psychings:
Blame for Mental Illness Exploitation: Where Do We Draw the Line? | Celebrity Psychings (January 13, 2010)
Last reviewed: 12 Jan 2010
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