b***@aol.com
2005-12-18 01:12:47 UTC
Since Barry is such a fan of Oprah's ... I wonder if he saw any of this
show? While I certainly don't think he suffers from this disorder, I
thought there were some real pearls of wisdom re: body image and
plastic surgery that came out of this program. I would love to know
Barry's thoughts on some of what was said.
This is long, so I just pasted a few parts. I especially thought
Oprah's comments about Michael Jackson were interesting ... and while
Bobbi Brown's comments are directed at women - at the end of this
interview - I sure wish Bobbi would give Barry a call because I
honestly think he should hear it. He always was a good looking man,
but sometimes I wonder if he's ever really believed it.
*****
Interview: Too ugly to live; guests who suffer from body dysmorphic
disorder discuss their lives
15 December 2005
The Oprah Winfrey Show
English
(c) Copyright 2005, Harpo Productions. All Rights Reserved.
HOST: Oprah Winfrey
(snip interview with young woman who has the disease)
WINFREY: Somebody is going to have to educate me right now. Can you
help me understand what this is? This is Dr. Katharine Phillips, who's
the world's leading expert on body dysmorphic disorder. She's written
what many call the bible of BDD, "The Broken Mirror."
And explain to us exactly what this is. What is it? It's now considered
a disease?
Dr. KATHARINE PHILLIPS (Treats People With Body Dysmorphic Disorder):
BDD is a serious psychiatric illness. It's not vanity, and it can be
just absolutely tormenting, as it has been for Taryn. People with BDD
worry that there's something really wrong with how they look. They look
abnormal, deformed, some even say like a monster, when in reality they
look perfectly normal.
WINFREY: Well, and where does that come from? She said--this is very
interesting. I just had an epiphanal moment sitting here listening,
talking to you, 'cause back in 1992--some of you may remember this--I
did an interview with Michael Jackson. It was an interview, around the
world with Michael Jackson, before all of the claims about him being
challenged about his sexual abuse issues. But I did this interview and
I remembered the night we were in his house. First of all, he wanted
control of editing the tape, and I wanted control of editing the tape.
And I refused. At one point, we were in an argument, and I said, `Well,
you know what? Then this will not go forward if you have to edit the
tape, 'cause I have to be in charge of editing the tape.'
And every time we would look at pictures of him as a teen-age boy,
which I thought he was really his most attractive, he would cover his
face in the room and say, `Ooh, ooh, ooh, I can't stand to look at
myself. I'm so ugly. I'm so ugly.' I didn't know what that was. I
thought it was like some kind of game he was playing or something he
wanted to--just to win control over the tape. But as--listening to you
talk and you said it happened at 16, I'm thinking this must be what he
has. You know? I'm not here to diagnose Michael Jackson...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Yeah. Well, just the same...
WINFREY: ...but this must be what it--you know what I mean? It would...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Because...
WINFREY: ...explain how he could look at a picture of himself--'cause I
didn't understand how he could look at a picture of himself when I'm
thinking, `What a cute kid'...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Right.
WINFREY: ...and him thinking himself to be so ugly...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Right.
WINFREY: ...and all of the plastic surgeries that he's had since then.
Dr. PHILLIPS: People with BDD see themselves so differently from the
way everyone else sees them.
WINFREY: Why?
Dr. PHILLIPS: They look perfectly normal.
WINFREY: Why? What happened?
Dr. PHILLIPS: There's almost certainly a biological, genetic
predisposition. People probably have a chemical imbalance in the brain.
Probably life events play a role as well for many people, if you're
teased a lot.
(snip interview with young man who suffers from disease)
WINFREY: I think it feels to me like anorexia which I, too, don't
understand. How you can look at yourself in the mirror...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Yes.
WINFREY: ...and be 45 pounds, as I interviewed a woman once, and still
think you're fat. Is it--it's that...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Definitely distorted body image.
WINFREY: Yes.
Dr. PHILLIPS: People see themselves differently than we see them. One
thing I would say is that most people with BDD don't want to be
unusually beautiful; most people just want to look normal. They just
want to be acceptable.
WINFREY: I don't get it, because this--to me, he's an
above-normal-looking guy.
Dr. PHILLIPS: Right, right, and...
WINFREY: Yeah. And he would be considered a really attractive guy.
Dr. PHILLIPS: And what--it's so difficult for people to understand this
illness, for this reason. This can be a devastating illness. Some
people even kill themselves over BDD.
(snip to)
Dr. PHILLIPS: Surgery doesn't work for BDD.
WINFREY: Surgery doesn't work.
Dr. PHILLIPS: It does not work. Dermatologic treatment doesn't work.
The problem is not with the outside. It's not with how you look. So if
you change a surface characteristic with surgery, the body image
problem remains.
WINFREY: But isn't there an ethical question involved here with a
doctor who knows that this is a disorder and continues to offer surgery
and other procedures? Something's wrong with that.
Dr. PHILLIPS: You know--well...
WINFREY: Something's wrong with that.
Dr. PHILLIPS: One problem is that BDD is still an underrecognized
disorder.
(snip)
Next, the surprising letter I received from one of the most successful
women in the beauty industry. We'll be right back.
(Announcements)
WINFREY: Recently I got a passionate letter from celebrity makeup
artist Bobbi Brown, who has strong convictions about our culture's
obsession with perfection. I love that she's willing to speak out
against her own industry to call for change. Here's Bobbi Brown.
(Excerpt from videotape)
Ms. BOBBI BROWN: I know that I'm gonna lose some friends out there or
some customers for talking about this, but I'd rather be honest and
help people because I just don't get what's happening.
WINFREY: World-renowned makeup expert Bobbi Brown has worked in the
beauty industry for decades. She says America's obsession with looking
young and skinny is beginning to have unhealthy consequences, from body
dysmorphia to excessive plastic surgery.
Ms. BROWN: All women do is feel bad about the way they look. I think
American women desperately need an `Aha!' moment
WINFREY: Bobbi says the push for perfection comes from within, but
springs from images of women in popular culture.
Ms. BROWN: Society is really pressuring women to look young, and I
think that the older women get, it is such a mistake, because if you
are doing a plastic surgery to try to look younger, you don't look
younger. You just look like you've had plastic surgery, so it doesn't
work.
WINFREY: Bobbi's own industry is responsible for creating idolized
images of women, but Bobbi says you shouldn't believe what you see.
Ms. BROWN: Women look at images in magazines. Covers of magazines are
paintings. It's a work of art--hairdressers, makeup artists, stylists.
Forget about the little surgeries or the big surgeries that they've
had. It's not realistic. I think American women have to break the cycle
immediately. Stop looking at what's out there. If you are constantly
comparing yourself to people around you, trust me, there are people
that are better looking, taller, skinnier, richer, nicer, more
talented. Stop. It's not important. It's really about yourself.
show? While I certainly don't think he suffers from this disorder, I
thought there were some real pearls of wisdom re: body image and
plastic surgery that came out of this program. I would love to know
Barry's thoughts on some of what was said.
This is long, so I just pasted a few parts. I especially thought
Oprah's comments about Michael Jackson were interesting ... and while
Bobbi Brown's comments are directed at women - at the end of this
interview - I sure wish Bobbi would give Barry a call because I
honestly think he should hear it. He always was a good looking man,
but sometimes I wonder if he's ever really believed it.
*****
Interview: Too ugly to live; guests who suffer from body dysmorphic
disorder discuss their lives
15 December 2005
The Oprah Winfrey Show
English
(c) Copyright 2005, Harpo Productions. All Rights Reserved.
HOST: Oprah Winfrey
(snip interview with young woman who has the disease)
WINFREY: Somebody is going to have to educate me right now. Can you
help me understand what this is? This is Dr. Katharine Phillips, who's
the world's leading expert on body dysmorphic disorder. She's written
what many call the bible of BDD, "The Broken Mirror."
And explain to us exactly what this is. What is it? It's now considered
a disease?
Dr. KATHARINE PHILLIPS (Treats People With Body Dysmorphic Disorder):
BDD is a serious psychiatric illness. It's not vanity, and it can be
just absolutely tormenting, as it has been for Taryn. People with BDD
worry that there's something really wrong with how they look. They look
abnormal, deformed, some even say like a monster, when in reality they
look perfectly normal.
WINFREY: Well, and where does that come from? She said--this is very
interesting. I just had an epiphanal moment sitting here listening,
talking to you, 'cause back in 1992--some of you may remember this--I
did an interview with Michael Jackson. It was an interview, around the
world with Michael Jackson, before all of the claims about him being
challenged about his sexual abuse issues. But I did this interview and
I remembered the night we were in his house. First of all, he wanted
control of editing the tape, and I wanted control of editing the tape.
And I refused. At one point, we were in an argument, and I said, `Well,
you know what? Then this will not go forward if you have to edit the
tape, 'cause I have to be in charge of editing the tape.'
And every time we would look at pictures of him as a teen-age boy,
which I thought he was really his most attractive, he would cover his
face in the room and say, `Ooh, ooh, ooh, I can't stand to look at
myself. I'm so ugly. I'm so ugly.' I didn't know what that was. I
thought it was like some kind of game he was playing or something he
wanted to--just to win control over the tape. But as--listening to you
talk and you said it happened at 16, I'm thinking this must be what he
has. You know? I'm not here to diagnose Michael Jackson...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Yeah. Well, just the same...
WINFREY: ...but this must be what it--you know what I mean? It would...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Because...
WINFREY: ...explain how he could look at a picture of himself--'cause I
didn't understand how he could look at a picture of himself when I'm
thinking, `What a cute kid'...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Right.
WINFREY: ...and him thinking himself to be so ugly...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Right.
WINFREY: ...and all of the plastic surgeries that he's had since then.
Dr. PHILLIPS: People with BDD see themselves so differently from the
way everyone else sees them.
WINFREY: Why?
Dr. PHILLIPS: They look perfectly normal.
WINFREY: Why? What happened?
Dr. PHILLIPS: There's almost certainly a biological, genetic
predisposition. People probably have a chemical imbalance in the brain.
Probably life events play a role as well for many people, if you're
teased a lot.
(snip interview with young man who suffers from disease)
WINFREY: I think it feels to me like anorexia which I, too, don't
understand. How you can look at yourself in the mirror...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Yes.
WINFREY: ...and be 45 pounds, as I interviewed a woman once, and still
think you're fat. Is it--it's that...
Dr. PHILLIPS: Definitely distorted body image.
WINFREY: Yes.
Dr. PHILLIPS: People see themselves differently than we see them. One
thing I would say is that most people with BDD don't want to be
unusually beautiful; most people just want to look normal. They just
want to be acceptable.
WINFREY: I don't get it, because this--to me, he's an
above-normal-looking guy.
Dr. PHILLIPS: Right, right, and...
WINFREY: Yeah. And he would be considered a really attractive guy.
Dr. PHILLIPS: And what--it's so difficult for people to understand this
illness, for this reason. This can be a devastating illness. Some
people even kill themselves over BDD.
(snip to)
Dr. PHILLIPS: Surgery doesn't work for BDD.
WINFREY: Surgery doesn't work.
Dr. PHILLIPS: It does not work. Dermatologic treatment doesn't work.
The problem is not with the outside. It's not with how you look. So if
you change a surface characteristic with surgery, the body image
problem remains.
WINFREY: But isn't there an ethical question involved here with a
doctor who knows that this is a disorder and continues to offer surgery
and other procedures? Something's wrong with that.
Dr. PHILLIPS: You know--well...
WINFREY: Something's wrong with that.
Dr. PHILLIPS: One problem is that BDD is still an underrecognized
disorder.
(snip)
Next, the surprising letter I received from one of the most successful
women in the beauty industry. We'll be right back.
(Announcements)
WINFREY: Recently I got a passionate letter from celebrity makeup
artist Bobbi Brown, who has strong convictions about our culture's
obsession with perfection. I love that she's willing to speak out
against her own industry to call for change. Here's Bobbi Brown.
(Excerpt from videotape)
Ms. BOBBI BROWN: I know that I'm gonna lose some friends out there or
some customers for talking about this, but I'd rather be honest and
help people because I just don't get what's happening.
WINFREY: World-renowned makeup expert Bobbi Brown has worked in the
beauty industry for decades. She says America's obsession with looking
young and skinny is beginning to have unhealthy consequences, from body
dysmorphia to excessive plastic surgery.
Ms. BROWN: All women do is feel bad about the way they look. I think
American women desperately need an `Aha!' moment
WINFREY: Bobbi says the push for perfection comes from within, but
springs from images of women in popular culture.
Ms. BROWN: Society is really pressuring women to look young, and I
think that the older women get, it is such a mistake, because if you
are doing a plastic surgery to try to look younger, you don't look
younger. You just look like you've had plastic surgery, so it doesn't
work.
WINFREY: Bobbi's own industry is responsible for creating idolized
images of women, but Bobbi says you shouldn't believe what you see.
Ms. BROWN: Women look at images in magazines. Covers of magazines are
paintings. It's a work of art--hairdressers, makeup artists, stylists.
Forget about the little surgeries or the big surgeries that they've
had. It's not realistic. I think American women have to break the cycle
immediately. Stop looking at what's out there. If you are constantly
comparing yourself to people around you, trust me, there are people
that are better looking, taller, skinnier, richer, nicer, more
talented. Stop. It's not important. It's really about yourself.