Topic: reality-tv

6 Reasons to Watch A&E’s Relapse Even If You’ve Never Met a Junkie

My reasons for watching TV are manifold: Escapism, boredom, I-can’t-sleep-ism, it’s like having company over, (which I think was my grandma’s reason), to make myself feel better about myself, and just out of plain old (mostly bad) habit. But sometimes I watch TV simply to terrify myself to the core. Not by watching anything in the horror genre, but by catching a show like Relapse on A&E.

This network is king of docu-reality series that focus on serious mental and physical health issues (Heavy, Hoarders, and Intervention are also very well done, though Intervention is a little too “Dateline NBC” for my tastes.) Relapse makes tough-love weight-loss reality TV shows like Heavy and The Biggest Loser look like springtime picnics in the park.

You don’t have to be a genius to figure out that Relapse is where, as a last resort, they sic a professional sober coach (on this show, Seth, pictured at left, a recovering addict and former federal prison convict who is nothing short of phenomenal) on a junkie or two. Then hardcore, amazing Seth tries to intervene, work with any family members, and get that junkie into serious rehab so they can get clean – STAT, and for good.
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Poll: What’s Your Idea for America’s Next Great Restaurant?

My husband and I are fairly obsessed with the NBC reality show America’s Next Great Restaurant, which comes on before The Celebrity Apprentice, which I’m proud to say I’ve never actually watched. If you haven’t seen any of America’s Next Great Restaurant‘s inaugural season, here’s the gist: Ten regular American people present their ideas for a what’s essentially a future mass-casual fast-food restaurant chain to chef and Food Network personality Bobby Flay, the guy who founded Chipolte (Steve Ells), Lorena Garcia, a chef and TV host in Latin America (never heard of her until now), and that model-esque Australian chef, Curtis Stone, who’s been popping up all over the place lately. They’re called the “investors,” because at the end of the season, if they like your concept enough, they’ll invest in your idea and help you open three of your own restaurants across the U.S. And they’re only going to pick one winner. (The “investors” keep referring to the investment capital as their actual money. This I’d like to see, people.)

Sorry! This poll is now closed.

Shilling for Diet Coke Doesn't Make Top Chef Judge Tom Colicchio a Sell-Out

As a Top Chef devotee, I was happy to catch most of last night’s All-Stars Reunion show. (Although, I had forgotten that it was on, so maybe devotee is too strong a word.) But I certainly didn’t think that anything airing on this kind of perfunctory, let’s-show-funny-behind-the-scenes-clips-of-all-the-chefs-and-hilarious-outtakes-of-the-judges’-bloopers would remotely relate to Blisstree. But I was wrong. The hour-long episode brought up a controversial issue that relates to food products, overall health, and the environment, which are topics we like to think we know something about here at Blisstree.

You don’t need to know the Top Chef All-Stars backstory (or even have watched any of the season) to understand or appreciate the scenario, which is this: Elia Aboumrad, one of the show’s contestants who made it very far in the competition during her original season, was the first person in the All-Stars season whom Padma asked to pack her knives and go. Which means Elia got kicked off quick. Clearly she was unhappy with the judges’ decision, because she did an interview with The Chicago Tribune‘s food blog The Stew, in which she slammed Top Chef judge (and chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author) Tom Colicchio and called him a sell-out. Why? For shilling for Diet Coke (he appears in one of the soda’s commercials) and for not having enough grass-fed beef or organic produce on his restaurant menus anymore. More »

A&E’s Heavy: You Can’t Lose Serious Weight Alone, You Need Help

One thing became very clear to me last night while watching the season finale of A&E’s weight-loss reality show Heavy as I was fishing out balls of cookie dough from my pint of Haagen-Dazs ice cream with a spoon. (Is that considered a food addiction problem, even if I’m really happy and content while doing it? Another post, perhaps. I was also periodically flipping back to the NCAA championship game to check the unfortunate score.) Here’s what I realized: When you’re grossly overweight or morbidly obese, it’s impossible to change your circumstances without professional help and intervention. More »

Morning Links: 15 Foods You Don’t Need to Buy Organic for Health Reasons

This fall, Animal Planet will air its first food program, Sweet Avenger, about vegan baker Danielle Konya and her Pennsylvania bakery Vegan Treats. (Ecorazzi)

Start Your Engines – 8 spices that can spice up your sex life – literally. (Vitamin G)

Save Your Green – 15 foods you don’t need to buy organic for health reasons. (The Daily Green) More »

A&E’s Heavy: If My Obese Partner Had a Year to Live, I Wouldn’t Marry Him

Last night’s episode of A&E’s Heavy featured a participant with a particularly disturbing set of life circumstances. Chad, a project manager from Decatur, Georgia, weighed in on day one at 509 pounds. On a typical day, Chad eats 5,000 calories. (But that number will decrease to 1,500 daily at Hilton Head Health.) Chad has sleep apnea. He breaks chairs and beds just by sitting on them. He has major abandonment issues surrounding his abusive, alcoholic father. (So does his fellow participant, Sallie, who wasn’t in much better shape; at just 29 years old, her blood pressure is so high that she requires daily medication for it.) Chad’s BMI is supposed to be between 19 and 25. It’s actually 71. Chad is just 28 years old.

But the morbid obesity, boot-camp fitness regimens, and drastic weight loss aren’t what hit me about Chad’s personal story on Heavy. Chad has been dating Laina for a while, and considers her to be the love of his life. Laina, who visits Chad at Hilton Head Health, clearly cares about him. But Chad reluctantly admits that Laina doesn’t want to be with or marry someone who could easily die in a year. And I don’t blame her. More »

10 Bad Habits Tough to Give Up for Lent – But Worth Trying

10 Bad Habits Tough to Give Up for Lent â�� But Worth Trying

We’re halfway through the Lenten season of sacrifice, so it’s time to step back and take stock of how we’re doing with all those bad habits we promised to give up until Easter. Have you lapsed? We have. And why lie about it? Jesus already knows anyway. We think a better tack to take is to ramp up our efforts in the trying-valiantly-to-give-up-something-I-really-love-but-know-is-bad-for-my-health-dammit department. So forget our previous post 10 Relatively Easy Things to Give Up for Lent (And Maybe Forever). Instead, we’re going hardcore until Easter, for the betterment of our physical, mental, and spiritual health. So here are ten bad habits that are really difficult to give up for Lent. Let’s each pick one (or come up with one of your own) and see how we do until Easter. If we make it that long, we may be able to quit our chosen nasty habit forever, or at least for a long while. And feel free to vent about how you’re doing in our comments section. We’re going to need each others’ support now more than ever, especially if we’re not allowed to do anything bad to make ourselves feel better. More »

6 Ways Living Like the Jersey Shore Cast Is Bad for Your Health

MTV’s Jersey Shore is the guiltiest of guilty pleasures, and I shamelessly confess to my crime of being an avid viewer. However, my reactions to the cast members’ antics has progressed from an amused: “Whoa, I can’t believe Snooki and Vinny made out in the hot tub,” to: “Whoa, I’m afraid that Ronnie may actually physically harm Sammi.” As the show has progressed, the risky behaviors of cast members seem to have become more pronounced, or maybe it’s just that as their drinking-clubbing-fist-pumping schtick has become a little stale, I’m paying closer attention to all the stupid, unhealthy things they do. So, here’s a breakdown of six ways that living like a Jersey Shore cast member is hazardous to your health: More »

A&E’s Heavy: Exercise and Weight Loss Are Much Harder for a Dwarf

Last night’s episode of Heavy, A&E’s weight-loss reality docudrama, featured a participant and Arizona resident named Tim, who is a dwarf. More specifically, he was born with a type of dwarfism called achondroplasia — an autosomal genetic condition that basically means he has an average-size torso, but shorter limbs, bowed legs, a prominent forehead, and general short stature. It also means that it’s even more dangerous for Tim to be obese than other people, because his short stature increases the danger of his internal organs being compressed. And make no mistake: Tim is obese. Or, at least, he was. When he arrived at Hilton Head Health at the start of last night’s episode, Tim weighed 240.2 pounds. Which might (and I said might) be okay for a 6’7″ NBA player or a defensive tackle in the NFL. But Tim is 4’2″ tall.

Watching a staff member show Tim his blood test results (sky-high glucose and BMI, pre-diabetic, sleep apnea, increased risk of every major disease you don’t want to die of, etc.) struck me as particularly terrifying, because one of my sisters has achrondroplasia. Okay, she’s not obese, but the potential health risks still scared the hell out of me. They scared the hell out of Tim, too, and caused him to lament the fact that “I am wider than I am tall.” More »

What We're Reading:

Dear Charlie Sheen: If You Really Want Help, Step Away From the Media

Dear Charlie Sheen:

We read an excerpt from your new exclusive interview with Life&Style magazine in which you make the following claims: “I’m really starting to lose my mind,” and “I’m ready to call anyone to help.”

Well, Chuckles, look no further. Blisstree, your friendly health and wellness website (for men, too, not just for goddesses!) is here for you. We are anyone.

To prove it, we’d like to offer you some health advice based on the stuff you spouted in that Life&Style article. Now, we’re not medical doctors or psychiatrists or bitchin’ rock stars, but you don’t seem to hold the former two in very high regard anyway, so this relationship could work out nicely for both of us. No offense, but the ladies and gentlemen with whom you reside and fraternize on Sober Valley Ranch don’t necessarily seem to have your best interests at heart. We do. More »

Dr. Drew’s Celebrity Addiction Needs Its Own Rehab

Dr. Drewâ��s Celebrity Addiction Needs Its Own Rehab

Vh1′s show Celebrity Rehab may attempt to help those suffering from addiction, but increasingly the show is making a mockery of its patients mental health. The most recent debacle? Real Housewife Michaele Salahi has been booted from Dr. Drew’s rehabilitation facility because she doesn’t exhibit any actual addictions. But that never stopped the show’s casting agents before. So it’s time for VH1’s hit show to get its own rehab. Or maybe the network just needs to drop it cold turkey. More »

Blisstree Launches Our 40 Days Of Giveaways

Today’s the first day of Lent, and for anyone who’s not religious, that means if you see people walking around with big black smudges on their foreheads, do not panic: This is normal and expected. (It’s Ash Wednesday, and the ashes come from church.) As Lenten tradition dictates, believers are supposed to give up a challenging vice from now until Easter Sunday. So are you shunning chocolate, The Biggest Loser, or sloth in general? We praise you. But Blisstree also wants to reward you for your sacrifice. (And if you’re not giving anything up, we still want to reward you.) Which is why we’re launching our very holy 40 Days of Giveaways. (Hint: Become our Facebook fan now by hitting the “Like” button.) Starting today, we’ll feature a different giveaway every weekday — for the next 40 weekdays. (Ending May 3!) New day, new giveaway prize, new winner. And 40 chances to win some cool Blisstree swag, including cookbooks, beauty products, gift cards, and more. Amen to that. More »

Drug Addiction on A&E’s Heavy: There’s No Such Thing as a Partial Relapse

Last night on Heavy, A&E’s weight-loss reality docu-drama, Bill, a former football star at the University of Alabama who played in the NFL for the San Diego Chargers, did something bad: He relapsed. Bill ended up on Heavy because at 6’3″, he weighed 443 pounds. How did he become so grossly overweight? His football career ended because of an injury; he started drinking too much and got mixed up with drugs; and his marriage fell apart. After all that, Bill checked himself into a residential drug and alcohol rehab facility, where he lived for several years. (And missed out on a lot of his son’s life because of it.) So Bill is a recovering addict, and I’m happy that he’s come so far. Of course, he’s still in danger of dying because he’s so fat, which is what brought him to Hilton Head Health, the spa-like fitness facility where Heavy participants go for six months to improve their lives both physically and emotionally.

Thing is, during his hardcore workout routines, Bill started experiencing serious knee pains, so much so that he couldn’t complete his required exercises. (Carrying around 443 pounds of flesh will do that to a person. And his football injuries likely didn’t help matters much.) So Hilton Head Health sent Bill to an off-site orthopedist, where the doctor gave him an anti-inflammatory topical gel for his knee. Oh, and a powerful narcotic painkiller. More »

10 Relatively Easy Things to Give Up for Lent — And Maybe Forever

You don’t need to be a good Christian to get behind the tradition of Lent. This 40-day period between Ash Wednesday (this Wednesday, March 9) and Easter is associated with giving up a vice and substituting something positive in its place. (And let’s face it: We all could benefit from a prescribed period of wellness work.) For example, you could try forgoing bad reality TV and instead, devoting those hours to meditation, re-organizing your closet, yoga, reading a book, taking a long walk, going to the gym, or spending some one-on-one time with your partner or a friend. Aside from the whole Jesus thing, giving up something for Lent may just be a more doable version of the New Year’s Resolution, which is usually only a time-honored tradition for a few weeks at most. So here’s our gallery of ten relatively easy things to ditch during a 40-day self-help fast of your own and replace with something more productive. Best of all, you don’t need to tackle ten of them to cleanse your spirit– one will do just fine. Jesus doesn’t judge. More »

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