“Amazing Race,” crazy twist, and more on “That Voice!”

February 25, 2015 by Leave a Comment

by,

Suzanne Coleman

 

So all of you guys who have been keeping up with my “Bachelor Gossip” posts (and you know who you are 🙂 ) have probably already read my post on Whitney’s voice.  If you haven’t, you can read it here:

Bachelor Gossip: Whitney and that VOICE!

So now, there is another girl to add into the discussion!  On this night’s premiere of “The Amazing Race,” one of the girls on a blind date FOR THE ENTIRE RACE! (awesome idea btw directors) is Hayley, a very (bleached) blond girl who is also a nurse.  Right away when she talks you can hear that she speaks in a very high-pitched voice, just like Whitney on “The Bachelor” does.  If you watch Hayley’s interview on cbs.com you can hear that her voice is not always up that high though.  For her, it’s hard to say, but I think it might be some of the same issues as for Whitney (the “little girl voice”), but I think anxiety might be a bigger factor because she goes in and out of the high voice while she’s being interviewed.  I can understand that, I mean, she IS being filmed to be watched by millions of people… yikes!  I have to say, that is pretty darn brave.

When they started racing, and her and her partner disagreed on which way to go, I loved it when she was right and her partner was wrong!  LOL in your face, boy! 🙂  I’m starting to like her…

So back to this season’s premiere of “The Amazing Race,” what a crazy idea to put together two total strangers for a how many months-long race around the world?  Crazy!  High stress but also what an amazing (ha!) opportunity, don’t you think?  I can’t wait to see what happens with all of these pairs this season.  It will be very interesting and I applaud the show for coming up with a truly new idea to freshen up not only reality shows but this one in particular that of late has not been keeping my interest.

I am going to call this “the love season.”  Something that is long overdue 🙂

 

 

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Filed Under: POP News, We LOVE TV! Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Bachelor Gossip: Whitney and that VOICE!

February 18, 2015 by 8 Comments

 

The Bachelor Gossip, framed

 

by,

Suzanne Coleman, MD

Ok, first of all, I want to say Whitney seems like a really decent person.  She’s got her life together, she hasn’t been shown to be mean like Carly to the other girls, and she respects herself.  I wanted to be clear on that because I’m not writing this to put her down in any way, I’m writing it because I have noticed something about the way that she speaks which I think that we as women should all take a moment to think about in regards to ourselves and the women and girls around us.  I mean for this to be a positive post, not a negative post.

So if you’re watching ABC’s “The Bachelor” (and we know you all are!) you know that Whitney is a young lady from Chicago who is vying for the attention of a farmer dude from somewhere in the middle of nowhere, pretty much literally.  She’s one of the final three ladies left before he decides who he likes the best for himself (she can say yes or no, but they usually say yes…).

From the first time they showed Whitney* on the show, I noticed that her voice was very high pitched and a bit whiney.  It came across as if she was trying to sound like a little girl who is trying to get attention.  I have noticed this same kind of behavior in many girls and women before.  They seem to be deliberately, though not necessarily consciously, mimicking a young girl’s voice and behavior.  I think that it’s something that some women do subconsciously in order to get attention from men.  I think it might have to do with their relationships with men growing up, or other people around them, who might respond more willingly to what sounds like a young girl who needs help.

I have noticed that men do seem more interested in women who speak this way.  Men may be hard-wired to do so.  And girls who find that they get more attention by using this type of voice are probably more likely to continue to use this behavior to get attention as they grow up into adults.

I think that women, on the other hand, respond more negatively to this type of behavior.  I think that when we see a young lady or woman acting like a child who doesn’t speak in a way that we would expect for their age and maturity level, it bothers us.

When someone speaks this way, it might also be related to some kind of anxiety over one’s self and how you fit in with others around you, like a self-esteem issue or insecurity.  Anxiety can cause the voice to rise upwards in pitch, so it may be a part of why the high voice happens as well.

I would like to suggest to the women and young women out there who find themselves speaking in a voice that is higher than their actual voice, or in a submissive or needy way towards men or others, to make yourselves aware of that behavior and see if you can stop that habit.  I’d like to see all girls and women proud of who they are, and not acting overly submissive, like a child, towards others to get attention or anything else that they might want or need.  You should not be afraid to speak out and speak up for yourself.  If you find that you do feel that way, then that is something that you should explore.  I am a strong supporter of counseling as a way to find the strongest, healthiest you.

So getting back to “The Bachelor,” I’m pretty sure he picks Whitney in the end.  Why?  On the first show they highlighted her a lot and it really stuck out to me.  They seem to do that with the finalists and more so with the winner.  Just a feeling… I guess we’ll find out soon enough!

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* Now I want to note, that I mention Whitney because so many of you noticed her voice.  I thought it would be a great opportunity to bring up this topic and I am using her voice as an example, but please realize that none of the discussion comments in here are about her in particular.

 

 

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Filed Under: Bachelor/ette Gossip, Doc's Corner, POP News Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Alcohol, How its Abuse or Overuse Can Impact Us

January 21, 2015 by 3 Comments
By Oscar Sanchez Urgiles (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

By Oscar Sanchez Urgiles (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

By,

Suzanne Coleman, MD

 

I wanted to write a post on alcoholism.  Alcoholism is a common problem, approximately one out of every ten people is an alcoholic.  Yep, that’s right.  I know, the number can be surprising.  The current guidelines give you an easy way to understand when someone has a problem with alcohol, and here they are:

For men, if you drink more than two drinks a day on average, you have a problem.

For women, if you drink more than one drink a day, on average, you have a problem.

Other issues of concern are:  drinking until you pass out or don’t remember what happened, not good.  These are also signs of a problem with alcohol.

So what do they mean by “one drink” or “two drinks?”

There are different types of alcohol, and because they have different strengths, the amount that makes up “one drink” varies based on the type of alcohol you are talking about.

Check this out:

one 12 ounce can of beer = one drink

one 6 ounce glass of wine = one drink

one ounce of liquor (liquors are things like whisky, scotch, gin, brandy, vodka, tequila, schnapps, etc.) = one drink

So, really, why is it bad to drink too much alcohol?

Alcohol is a toxin, a poison, and while it can be relaxing and fun, it does do harm to our bodies, and in many cases, our personal lives.  Alcoholism is generally considered a disease where a person is dependent on alcohol or abuses it.  The best current treatment for these problems is to not drink at all.  Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) has a program that definitely works for many people, it provides support for those who want to change, because it is hard to stop when your brain is telling you to drink, drink, drink to live.  That support can be life-changing.  They also offer Al-Anon which offers support to friends and family of those with a drinking problem.  AA is not right for everyone and there are other options.  You can begin by speaking with your physician or a counselor who can be very helpful in working with you to understand why you drink and more.

What does alcohol do to a body?  Good question, thanks for asking.  I’ll go through some of the main issues here:

If a person drinks too much, they will go through withdrawal when they stop; this can happen even on a daily basis.  For example, if someone binge drinks at night, the next day they can have symptoms of alcohol withdrawal.  What are the symptoms?  They can experience anxiety, shakiness, high blood pressure, and irritability.  These feelings can lead someone to become dependent on alcohol because when they start to drink again, it will stop some of these problems.  But it’s important to understand that it is the use of alcohol that is causing them in the first place.  Proper medical care will help to break this cycle by treating any underlying anxiety issues and explaining how the use of alcohol can make them worse.

If a person drinks heavily regularly and stops for a period of days, they can be at risk of severe withdrawal which can include seizures and more.  If someone is going to stop drinking, they should first talk with their doctor about the safe way to do that, this will help them to avoid the dangers of withdrawal.

Alcohol can also cause insomnia.  This can happen, even if someone only drinks a small amount.  So for those of you who suffer from trouble sleeping, keep this in mind.  If you drink alcohol and have insomnia, try not drinking for a few days and see how you sleep.  There will be another article coming soon on insomnia, so stay tuned for that.

Alcohol can impact your organs in a negative way, causing you harm.  I’m sure most of you have heard that it can kill off your liver.  It does this over time (unless there are other factors involved like medications used, or underlying diseases, which can speed up the damage), and can lead to cirrhosis of the liver.  The liver is critical for life, and if you kill yours off, you will not be able to survive.  The liver removes toxins (like alcohol) from the blood, keeping you healthy as much as it can.

Alcohol will also kill off your brain cells (think TOXIN, toxins are toxic, which means they kill off living tissues).  Over time, this can cause a person to have difficulty with balance, they will need to change the way they stand by keeping their feet wide apart, so that they don’t fall down.  Alcohol can also cause a person to start making up stories, this is called “confabulation.”  If your liver is impacted severely enough, it cannot process toxins and then your blood will have excess ammonia in it which will impact your brain.  This will cause you to be confused and act inappropriately.  A person with brain damage from alcohol can seem like a different person than they were before.

Alcohol can cause heart failure, which can lead to death.  The toxicity of alcohol can cause cancers of the mouth, esophagus, and stomach.  There are many other problems it causes in your body and online searches or conversations with your physician can help inform you further.

Socially, the worst part of alcohol abuse or misuse is the negative impact it has on a person’s relationships.  An alcoholic will choose alcohol over family and friends, and over being reliable at work (as all other addiction disorders tend to do as well). Alcoholics who drink usually end up harming their children and spouses by neglecting their relationships with them, or worse.  Adults have the choice to leave a bad relationship, but children do not.  The neglect that alcohol abuse often causes to children is the worst outcome of this disease.

What makes someone an alcoholic?  Well, there can be many different things that lead to this in an individual.  In some cases, when the person is young they see someone in their life using alcohol to cope with their problems.  When they see this they are learning that alcohol is the way to deal with problems, or just life in general, and then they start to drink too.  But the truth is that alcohol doesn’t make problems go away, it just covers them up or delays them for a while; this can often make problems worse, but children don’t understand that.  The younger a person starts to use alcohol, the more likely they are to become (or be) an alcoholic.  Young people should not be using alcohol for this and many other reasons.

From what I have read, some people are simply born with the genes to become an alcoholic.  When they drink, their body and brain tell them that they have to keep drinking.  It is an addiction and a disease.  Research shows that this may be related to dopamine, a neurotransmitter in the brain.

If you find yourself saying things like “I need a drink,” you should stop and wonder why.  Many people use alcohol to try and treat underlying medical problems like anxiety disorders, depression, and others.  Some people grow up in a home where there is little to no love or support; sometimes they turn to alcohol or drugs to numb the pain they feel from this lack of love which is necessary for humans to thrive.

If you or someone you know is having problems like these, I recommend finding a counselor to talk to about them.  I believe that counseling is one of the best things you can do for yourself.  Most people can benefit from counseling in one area of their lives or another.  There is nothing wrong with being strong enough to know when you can become even stronger by asking someone to help you.  I applaud anyone who reaches out for help to become a stronger and healthier person.

 

I have covered some general points on alcohol here.  I hope it has been helpful.  I encourage anyone who might have concerns about their use of alcohol, or that of someone they know, to reach out for help to a physician, a counselor, or AA or Al-Anon.

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The information presented in this article is for educational purposes only.  If you have any questions or concerns, please speak with your personal physician.  The information presented may vary slightly from other sources, and over time, as is the nature of medical knowledge.

 

 

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