Let's show DR PHIL that he's wrong!

Post Reply New Topic

I just read the other thread about the way Dr Phil presents ASD and was immediately inspired to write an email to the show.

However, if we were all to write something in this thread, then perhaps Alex might be so good as to try to see that Dr Phil gets it?

Sort of like a petition.

The man (Dr Phil) needs educating.

Below is my response to him, post yours!

Let's give him an injection of opinion from those actually dealing with ASD!

My response:

Dr Phil

I've seen you do a few segments on people with ASD now and I have to say that I'm actually quite upset at the seemingly unbalanced nature of these shows, as are a lot of other people in the autistic community.

All we've seen so far are extreme cases, nightmare children and overstressed parents, which, although they do exist and have very real problems, are not (by any means) always the case.

There are those of us with ASD (myself included) who lead very productive and successful lives in the face of this adversity and the inescapable differences we have to deal with on a day to day basis.

I myself was born to a 14 year old single Mother, living at times well under the poverty line, struggling to get by and live with a highly dysfunctional and abusive extended family, which was hard for everyone involved, let alone myself with the added pressure of undiagnosed Aspergers. But I've managed to come out on top, thanks to my Mothers exceptional parenting skills and the support of close family members such as my Brother, Sister, Stepfather, Aunty and cousins.

I now have a successful working life, where I work closely with other team members who make the effort (given our companys Equal Employment Oppurtunity Policy) to communicate with me on a level that best suits my skills and am also starting to build a name for myself in various projects as a local musician.

Having an ASD can be hell and I won't pretend that I haven't seen (and don't sometimes still see) some very dark times trying to function in NT (neuro-typical) society, but with the right support and understanding of our differences (it's not a disability!) we can be very useful and productive members of society who can, far from being a burden, contribute immensely to the world around us.

I think it's high time you did a show on people with ASD who are triumphing in life, rather than faltering and causing pain to those around them, especially given that you can look all over the world and see people hurting themselves and their families without any ASD to blame for it.

People with ASD are becoming a very large and close knit community the world over who support and care for eachother and there are many, many so-called "sufferers" and their families out there doing just fine.

I think your message is superb. You make all the right points in a very respectful manner,

That's a very good message.

Perfect. Wouldn't change a word. If there's a petition or anything, you can count on my signature for one.

I too like what you said! I'll also sign any petition.

You can also count on my signature. You can also count on it not changing a f***ing thing. Shows like 'dr.' phil's are only a few cuts above Jerry Springer. I agree that the image he's putting out is completely wrong, but his target audience won't care.
What it would take is a constant counter-message, and that would only come from more fact-based shows like 60 minutes and the like. Anyone watching 'dr' phil' (<---note deliberate lack of capitals) is not interested in fact. They are interested in show, in the wow factor, and stories like he tells--or slants--give them what they want.

On a personal note, why can't I get paid to parade on TV giving extremely obvious advice? Where do I sign?

Brundisium, that was an awesome, well-written letter. Congrats on it and all you've come through to get where you are.

Thanks heaps guys!

I'll see if I can organise some sort of petition or get this thread looked at, 'cause I think that dr phil (I also don't give the priviledge of capitol letters to the undeserving), although he is after sensationalism etc, would find his ego very offended and perhaps feel the need to seem balanced.

Plus, if Oprah can sucker in so many viewers with inspirational and uplifting stories, then surely dr phil could see the merit in at least mentioning it ratings-wise.

I'm lost as to what to do now though!

Should we get as many replies in this thread as possible and send it the moderators way?

Or start a proper petition?

Or just inundate the show with emails?

Suggestions?

I really believe that we could at least get some sort of message on his desk with enough voices and if we do it with an interesting spin on it.

Good contribution Brundisium! Now if Dr. Phil will just listen...that's another matter.

I might have a suggestion. Dr. Phil has a site where 'listeners' can actually email him. I suggest you start there. Apparently he DOES read/listen to comments. So, by his word, he should listen to you plus you made some valid points. Try this way!

Good luck - let us know if he contact you back.

Ahh, yes.

Unfortunately I already went to his website, but being from Australia it apparently won't accept my email.

Screw him. You know Dr Stephen Juan, author of The Odd Body, wrote very poorly of aspies in The Odd Mind?

Yeah, a lot of people do, we need some sort of educational tv show or something!

lol

I like it. Let it be known, the power of one.

-Oz

Very good response. I think you should direct him to wrongplanet.

what if registered a gmail account first,rather than an .au domain? if they're not allowing people with australian email domains to join,that one might work,no idea how the registration works there though.
http://www.gmail.com

KingdomOfRats have a good idea. AND, bonus, K.O.R., you could get a cool Dr. Phil t-shirt (maybe) if you become a member of his 'club,' all the whle 'sneaking' the message into him. This should work, if Dr. Phil will listen. K.O.R. will be our espionage correspondent - nicely done

I always hated Dr. Phil and people who have shows like his.