Topic : 03/09 Family Chaos

Yep, that family is totally nuts.  I didn't think Dr. Phil could possibly find a family that was utterly hopeless (I mean, he's pretty good) but these people are just nuts.  My brain hurts just thinking about it! 

To Suzanne who wrote,  

"The weird thing about Bridgette's situation is that there's no evidence that she has anything of her own in her life.  No work, no educational efforts, no community anything, no passion she can devote herself to.  (I don't count those silly dogs.) In this day and age, that doesn't have to be.  She has all day every day to lie around and collect her grievances. What a waste!!! " 

  

You forgot, she's been shopping all day every day (so she shouldn't work retail.).   Unfortunately, with the shopping out of the picture all of these other problems she's been running from are coming to the fore.   Just hope that in time, with the shopping out of the way, she can begin to focus on her family problems and develop something of her own.   The cutting is a bad worry though, one she is letting us know about, but is trying to minimize.  Is it from anxiety?  punishment (she said she did it because of her spending)? anger (at whom)? or something else?  

  

The waste is if this family doesn't get help.  People on the post have suggested what her life will be like without it.  Try to imagine how fulfilling their life could be with help--growing older together, the development of the children into productive adults, grandchildren, travel, friends, neighbors, satisfying work or projects.  They could have a life of joy and completeness.   

  

By the way, have you ever heard anything about an extended family?  Are they alone?   

  

I'm also thinking that there some cultural issues going on.  As an African-American, it didn't take me but 10 minutes into the show to begin to realize/speculate that Bridgette is bi-racial and she may also be coping with finding her place in social activities, community, etc.  Maybe she never felt that she fit in because as a doctor's wife, did she never do anything social, volunteer or community wise?  Maybe she really wanted to stay in her familiar environment but her mother saw money and pushed in a life she really wasn't ready for or wanted and now she's still not copping with it. 

  

I have a bi-racial family member who, while a successful professional, struggles with identity issues, self-esteem issues and at this point can't get it together in a relationship because this individual is not together personally. 

I think it is ridiculous that you all are giving up on this family. No one believes in marriage anymore...they all want the easy way and get a divorce. Maybe people should work just as hard at the marriage as they do fighting. Maybe if they spent just as much time working on it as they do fighting they might actually go somewhere. Another thing that pissed me off was the lady in the audience who shook her head and kinda rolled her eyes and laughed when she was talking about cutting herself...obviously you know nothing about hurting so bad inside that they only escape you can get is from the release you feel when the knife slices your wrist.

She could get a job as an actress. I have a friend who really is a cutter for ten years and is heavily scared. This woman says she was doing this for 33 and is married to a Doctor; Either she should be heavily scarred or he would have noticed.  Look up narcissistic, histrionic hypochondria and there she is. Maybe other women know this type of scamming in other women and Dr. Phil and her husband are missing it. If she gets cured, she would lose all the attention which she really loves and Dr. Phils concern which she is interpreting, it seems, like twisted validation for everything she has done to her poor family, and now to us!!!!That phrase she said, like "oh look I only spent 5000 on shoes this week" made me physically ill. We are native american. Not all of us are near casinos and at one point my son had tosell his blood to buy food while in college, and that was with all of us helping out.  He now has a sister who is an MD and a sister who is an attorney and all of them do Pro Bono work to help others. 

Even if this familys kids are "adults" in years, in emotional age they are abused, heavily damaged and unloved kids. I hope they read these boards and realize how most people send them hugs. I really really wish Dr. Phil would help them. We may have been poor growing up but they are truely impoverished...do they ever go to church??? Do they have grandparents??? Is there no one outside of the parents in their world? I'll certainly pray for them. 

I am not only tired, but even though I see pitiful families on shows, this one is the ab-so-lute WORSE!  THEY ARE NOT ONLY SICKENING, BUT I KID YOU NOT,  I FEEL LIKE I WANT TO THROW UP! Especially when I see the Mother!  When I think of all the tragedy that is going on in this world, and this woman has spent YEARS sitting on her A--, feeling sorry for herself!  It is disgusting, I do feel a little sorry for the kids, with her bringing them up, and the Father so busy all the time.  This woman has deliberately exposed her kids to the self-cutting and pretends it is a secret.  Pleeze!  The kids know and she knows they know, and doesn't stop even when she knew her son had taken it up too because he is so miserable!  I wish someone had called the Social Services on her.  She has money so why didn't she go to a psychiatrist or therapist?  Or a divorce court.  I'd work all the time too, if I was her husband not to pay her bills but so I wouldn't have to go home.  Doctors need peace of mind, they have people's life in their hands.  If that man has to deal with problematic kids (God help them poor things) and a totally selfish self involved nagging wife someone may have died at his hands that wouldn't have if he had his rest and a clear mind.  The husband is salvageable and the kids too.  But that woman is beyond help.  She is always blaming everyone BUT herself, they would all be better off without her.  My advice is for her family to RUN-RUN-RUN!  I love Dr. Phil and Robin for being so caring, but Dr. Phil this is the very type you wanted to get away from in your practice.  Please don't give us ANOTHER MINUTE giving this woman your time, that is all she wants is for someone to feel sorry for her.  AND please spare us, she not only is sickening but she looks like something someone vomited up.  Ugh!   This is the first time someone looks as bad as they are.  I am usually sympathetic because I lost 3 kids in traumatic ways, and a husband at 37 and jobs, and more.  You just pull it together, a step at a time and keep on keeping on.  When I get to feeling sorry for myself, I think of all the other people in the world without food, clothing, a roof over their heads, or in pain EVERY DAY,  or dying of some dread disease, even little children and ask myself would I like to exchange my life with the bad stuff I had with theirs and I know I wouldn't.  God gave me something to deal with and His help to deal with it.  I have felt sorry for cutters, druggies, cheaters, thieves, and a lot of others because I know some thing caused them to do a lot they do.  You have tried Dr. Phil to help this woman P-P-P-L-L-EEESE MOVE ON!    I am relieved I am not the only one who sees through this PERSON.

Bridgette is worse than "Katrina", and I do mean the storm.  She would be a plague on anyone who would be around.  She has done irreparable damage to her kids and is a danger to her husband.  For all his faults, as a doctor he should know he is dealing with life and death in his work, and he needs a clear head, not a Bridgette in his life.  If I knew a doctor had problems like him, I am SURE  

I WOULDN'T  want him operating on ME!  She has got him spinning 24-7!  And if he is so terrible to her, why is she still there? PLUS, he is understanding enough to keep paying all those bills she's stacking up!  I see a heart peeking through, no common sense but some heart.  He needs to wake up and give those kids the Father they need.   There is no satisfying Bridgette, so for both their sakes they need to separate.  AND those kids need counseling, the girls are going to be just like her if not helped soon.  I think the boy is the strongest, even with him starting the cutting.  Him I feel sorry for, even though he had faults living with her.  He can be helped.  He is like most of us, he wants his parents to love him and support his efforts to get  his life together, but they are too screwed up to help anyone.  Michael, LEAVE Bridgette!!!!!, and get your head together to help your kids and to be able to do your job with endangering others.  GET THE SPOTLIGHT OFF BRIDGETTE!!!   She is like that serial killer who let himself get caught (after years and years of killing) because he wanted the spotlight and the publicity.  That is all she wants, the cutting is to make someone sorry for her, because most "cutters" don't really want to have people know, but  trust me, she DOES, IF she didn't after she found out the kids did know, and that her son had started doing it, why didn't she get help?  It's  really been YEARS of  "Pity POOR Little ME!"  (STAND BACK, I want to throw up!)  She needs to just look around her and get over herself, people out in the world are having REAL problems!  TV can really show up people's idiosyncrasies, and faults after watching them over a period of time.  This woman is so-o disgusting.  I generally feel sympathy for people and their problems but Bridgette is the rare exception.  She is her own problem and she has infected her own family.  Take her off, she is ugly inside and out, go on to something important or even silly, but please, no more Bridgette! 

I am sure the lady in the audience wasn't laughing at the fact Briggette is a cutter.  Briggette is looking for publicity and is a self pitying lier.  Cutters don't want people to know Bridgette did this so she would seem pitiful and have people sorry for her.  I feel sorry for "cutters" because they generally have really good reasons for cutting and ARE Hurting!   No one would doubt that or laugh.  She does need help because she is so self  evolved she has ruined her life and her family.  Isn't there some real folks who need your blind pity, and need someone to speak up for them.  I think so.  Bridgette has had enough.  What she has done to her kids, has caused them more pain than she will ever cause herself!  Wake up, Lady!  She was laughable with her ACT!

I was thinking the same thing.  This man is in no shape to be operating or anything on anyone.  I KNOW I WOULDN'T WANT HIM TO TOUCH ME.  Bridgette has got him too screwed up, he could be dangerous.  I beg Dr. Phil to tell him not to do any operations until this is resolved, and he has counseling , AND A LONG VACATION away from Bridgette!

Dr. Phil if you must continue to help this family please don't do it on the show.  I LOVE and want to see your loving concern and efforts to help people. It makes my day.  You have a gift.   It brings back the belief that there are people out THERE  who care about others.  You enforce that daily with your show. But as I watched your show before no matter how senseless or selfish or mean someone was I appreciated you tackling their problem.  Even with the other families you had on, BUT I truly believe it would be helpful, to the public if you would not show Ms. Bridgette and her family any further.  I won't tell you my life, I am a senior and it is nearing the end and I find I am like a lot of people, with few periods of Joy and many of Depression.  TV is a great distraction and uplift sometimes.  So much time spent on people like (on TV) Bridgette, is time that could be spent on people like the survivors of Katrina (I remember you were down there) or with special problems or funny situations, or even everyday stuff where someone needs a "Dr. Phil talking to".  Bridgette reminds me of all the ugliness and time wasted with selfish destructive people.  You generally concentrate on the damage done to the children.  Help the children.  Bridgette has spent YEARS feeling sorry for herself, over WHAT?  She had a problem of a husband that is a workaholic.  So have millions of others BUT they don't destroy their children and endanger thousand of patients her husband has to treat under stress, because of her selfishness and lying.  Please take her off.  Every time I see her I get an awful sinking feeling of despair.  Please take her off.  As Clint East-wood said "Make my day!"  She is a real downer........!  Thank you.   Best to you and beautiful Robin.