Messages By: sharon191

When I saw that Prader-Willi Syndrome would be the topic for Dr. Phil’s show I was surprised. The syndrome is rarely mentioned except in extreme cases.  I wish the whole hour could be devoted to Prader-Willi.  I trust that there will be resources and links to offer support after the show airs on Thursday.   

My nephew Scott was diagnosed with PWS in 1975. Only 20 years since it had been discovered, Scott’s disorder was somewhat rare when he was born. He was a failure-to-thrive baby and had poor muscle tone. Doctors thought he had cerebral palsy and would never walk. He walked when he was almost 3 years old. His speech was affected because of poor muscle control. Scott was always patient with us when we had difficulty understanding him. Scott started gaining weight when he was 6 or 7. My sister and her husband were faced with many trials and tribulations with Scott as he went through puberty. He attended a day treatment program that helped him become a caring, kind man.  He was active in Special Olympics. He traveled with my sister and her husband everywhere. Scott became a popular young man in his hometown. With love and guidance shown to him, he rarely had the tantrums that are known in Prader-Willi children. 

Scott brought our family so much joy and we were better people having had him in our lives for just a short time. Scott died in 2004 at just 29 years of age. He developed diabetes and deep vein thrombosis. His parents are still trying to deal with this terrible loss. Our family will never be the same.  Scott gave me wonderful gifts-- love, laughter and acceptance. Wonder and innocence and warmth.  

Sharon 

Thank you for your kind words, Joyce.  I hesitated to write about Scott for the simple reason I didn't want anyone raising a child with this syndrome to think they all have a short lifespan.  There is much more help available now.  I wish Dr. Phil would feature more children with disabilities such as Prader-Willi or Downs syndrome.  Daniel sounds like a sweet boy.  Enjoy him everyday! 

Sharon 

Thank you so much for letting me share about Scott here.  I appreciate your words of comfort, Kat.   

Sharon 

As much as I detest this type of show on Dr. Phil I always get a kick out of Dr. Phil's humor when he does them.  The guests go on and on.  ''Blah, blah, blah...'' ''you said,'' ''she said...'' and then ''I said...''  When the mom kept talking to her daughter (over Dr. Phil) and Dr. Phil said to :::stop::: she kept right on going and Dr. Phil says, ''Go ahead!"  LOL!  It's also funny when Dr. Phil tries to get a word in but can't and will turn to the audience and say, ''Hi, how are you doing?''  I am not making light of the family's problem. It's just that the people on these specific shows sound so awful when they drone on and on about what has happened.  They came to get his advice and help but they just rattle on like he wasn't there.  If they would only just sit there and listen to him.

Love ya Dr. Phil!

I love shows like this.  Dr. Phil did a wonderful job facilitating this.  He called Orlena on her stuff.  Dr. Phil says he always does his homework and this show proved it once again.  I found it odd that Orlena hardly looked at her current husband Brent and even when she did she looked upset with him.  The 'after the show' segment spoke volumes.  Orlena's body language said it all.  Hopefully, we'll see an update on this show in the future.

Great show, Dr. Phil!  You are brilliant!

This was scary.  Jeffrey tried to control the situation at every level of the interview.  Thank goodness Dr. Phil stopped him.  From his entrance on the stage to his remarks about being able to finish his sentence (Mrs. Johnson reference) he failed at every attempt.  I could not believe he was so desperate to have some leverage of control, he thanked a woman in the audience.  What was that about?  He did it again at the end of the show. 

Jeffrey freaked out over the investigators being in the house to find all the cameras.  You could see he felt totally out of control not being able to stop them.  Jeffrey seems to enjoy it when he explains that he turned the temperature up or he accessed her myspace account.  He smiled with his therapist when talking about how he checked the phone messages from the treatment center.  It looks like he is just elated when he gets his way.  If you watch the recaps you'll see what I mean. I only wonder why Jennifer answered the phone when Jeffrey called while he was in treatment. 

Can't wait for Fridays show to see what is in the future for this couple.

That was a tough show to watch for a lot of reasons.  Cabs, traffic, airports, panic, anxiety, underwear drawers and MYSPACE!!  Good God!  Of course the first place Jeffrey would look for Jennifer was her mother's house.  I also agree with another poster that the dialogue between Jennifer and her mother should not have happened in front of her little girls.  While it's good that Jeffrey is in jail now, it is only a temporary solution to a long time problem. 

My mouth dropped when I saw that picture of Jennifer and her friend.  No, not blaming the victim here, just thinking it's a bad time to log on to your MySpace account. Maybe it's time that Dr. Phil does a show on the disavantages of MySpace.  More and more of Dr. Phil's shows have exposed the MySpace drama and trouble it causes.

It will always be more acceptable in our society: younger woman/older man but never the older woman/younger man.  Dr. Phil proved it today when he gave a scolding to the second couple and told Chris and Adrianne to argue more fairly.

 I was disappointed in today's show.  The double standard is alive and well on the Dr. Phil show.