Tom's Diary

Here are my notes from today’s Dr. Phil Episode:  Dr. Phil Housewives: Housewife Breakdown.

Segment 1

Summary: Kimm is hauled to the hospital in a red ambulance.  She’s accused of drinking excessively.  Someone on Dr. Phil’s staff believes that one of the ladies is behaving strangely.  Now, they’re showing a recap of relevant material from past   Dr. Phil Housewives   episodes.

Rachael complains about there being too much drama in these sessions, wanting to tone things down a little.  But some of the other girls defended the “drama,” saying that they’re just sharing their lives here and that the need to do this in order to get the help they came here for.  So, there’s a little conflict brewing with Rachael.  Rachael is still seeking a job, and apparently believes that Dr. Phil should use his contacts to find her a job.  Rachael doesn’t want to work places like Walmart and Kinko’s; she wants to make the bigger bucks. 

Dr. Phil’s staff complained about Rachael, saying that she’s a complainer, repeatedly over-reacting to suggestions with which she disagrees.   

Dr Phil played a tape back for Rachael, where he said that she needs to be trained in the art of securing a job, before she goes out on job interviews.  He said that he can’t get her a job just with his good name.  She must fit any position she wants on her own merits.  Dr. Phil believes that he did provide Rachel with some high-quality job-seeking help, by providing a voice coach and two national headhunters, and seemed a bit ticked off that Rachel wasn’t more grateful.  Dr. Phil accused Rachael of complaining when she does have job help, and she complains when she does not. 

Segment 2

Dr. Phil encourages complete honesty so he can best help these ladies, and wants to know who there is “lying by omission.”  He wants to know if Kimm is being honest about how much she’s drinking and how often, and much trouble her drinking causes for herself and family.  He said that the makeup people smelled fresh alcohol on Kimm this morning.

Michelle is afraid to have this discussion because she does not want to reveal that Kimm had been drinking again.  She said that they all drank after the fashion show but that Kimm drank quite a bit more than the rest of them.  She does not want to accuse Kimm, but just to bring attention to the potential problem of Kimm’s drinking. 

Kimm defends a little drinking now and then, and seems to think that the amount she drinks is well within the bounds of normalcy.  So she denies drinking to the extent that Michelle has suggested she has.  She’s showing signs of anger and irritation at Michelle for bring up her potential alcohol problem. 

Now the discussion seems to have degenerated into a free-for-all.  Everyone’s over-talking one another. 

Alana appears to be defending Kimm, saying that it’s not so bad to go out once in a while and have a good time with the drink.  

Segment 3

Kimm was late arriving to the show, and has sent letters to Dr. Phil throughout the season that would seem to indicate that she’s thinking erratically.   She complains profusely about how the staff and the other housewives treat her, but then she takes it back, and then an hour or so later, reinstates her grievances.  She called Gloria and Michelle, “the needy tornados.” Kimm denies doing drugs after the fundraiser fashion show.  She admits to being offered them, but turned the cocaine down.   Kimm admits to taking Xanax to quell the anxiety she’s currently feeling about her husband.  She accused Dr. Phil of being “soft” on Gloria. 

Alana accuses Michelle of being two-faced. 

Michelle and Kimm get into an argument about how extensive Kimm’s drinking actually is.  They call each other names, over top of Dr. Phil who is trying to settle things down. 

Jennifer said that she declined the drugs offered, but would not speak for anyone else there, as to whether or not they turned them down as well. 

Dr. Phil seems to believe that Kimm is behaving erratically, citing her voluminous emails and how she waffles in them a lot.  He asked her if she’s dong drugs.

Segment 4

Kimm did not return to the round-table discussion; she does not want to come out of the bathroom. 

Michelle says that Alana is quite controlling and excessively domineering. 

Gloria is trying to get Alana to back off of Michelle.  She thinks Kimm abuses alcohol. 

Alana says that Michelle plays the victim too much.  Curious that Alana did not react to Gloria’s verbal attempts to restrain her.  Perhaps that coming together between these two that happened over the last couple episodes of the Dr. Phil housewives has taught Alana not to be so “biting” when she disagrees with someone.  She ignored Gloria this time.  Alana thinks Dr. Phil focuses too much on Kimm, and she wants to know why Dr. Phil suspects Kimm of having a drinking problem. 

Dr. Phil did not say that Kimm definitely has a drinking problem but thought that she should be checked for it.    He asked Michelle why she’d feel guilty about alerting the group regarding her concerns about Kimm’s drinking, and causing help to be brought to Kimm.  He says that this guilt is “selfish.”  He sent some of the ladies up to talk with Kimm. 

Segment 5

Dr. Phil brought Kimm’s husband Javier.  He also believes that Kimm has a drinking and drug abuse problem. 

Alana and Jennifer are now with Kimm, attempting to comfort her. 

Kimm is overly sensitive to people’s criticisms directed at her.  She’s “tired of living,” she says.  She admits to overdosing on Xanax, and Alana ran to get help.  Kimm keeps saying that she just wants to go to sleep.  Kimm is ranting that she’s screwed everything up in her life – her relationship with her husband, her kids, her family.  She does not want to go on. 

Next: EMT personnel load Kimm into an ambulance. 

Segment 6

Kimm says (paraphrasing) that she’s tired and can’t do anything right. 

The ambulance arrived and they showed Kimm on a stretcher being rolled into the back of it, with her husband Javier nearby. 

Alana is sad for Kimm.  She didn’t believe that Kimm’s an alcoholic or has drug abuse problems.  But I think she’s beginning to see the light now.  Then, Alana goes on to complain about Michelle and Gloria.  So I guess the effects of all that feel-good make-up stuff last week between Alana and Gloria has worn off already, as Alana still seems to carry some hostility towards Gloria. 

Michelle’s worried that she’ll lose Kimm as a friend because she told the group about her suspicions that Kimm was abusing alcohol. 

Jennifer comforted Michelle, and told her that she may not in fact, lose Kimm as a friend, and said that one day, when she sobers up, Kimm may thank Michelle for going forward, intervening as she did, and saving Kimm.

Segment 7

Tomorrow’s episode will be a continuation of this one.

Dr. Phil feels certain that Kimm is getting the right help.  An outfit called Creative Care in Malibu is going to work to heal Kimm. 

Alana now believes that Kimm has a drug abuse issue.  Kimm’s taking a whole bottle of Xanax opened Alana’s eyes. 

That’s it for today. 

Tom Hesley