People In Therapy Traumatized by Association with Rodriguez
Katie Norworth, a 24-year old Red Sox fan attending therapy for the past two months due to her divorce, was coping fine with the so-called stigma of psychotherapy. Norworth was making progress in her sessions until she heard that Alex Rodriguez was a proponent of mental healthcare. “It was all going good until I heard that A-Rod went to therapy, too. Who wants to be doing the same thing as that self-proclaimed ‘best player in baseball’ with the bush league attitude? I was enjoying getting out of some work because of my appointments, but if the cost is being like Slappy [a nickname for Rodriguez], forget it.”
Contrary to his intentions, Rodriguez’s actions have done little to heighten the esteem of therapy patients. “Maybe this psychotherapy thing is all a sham, then,” said 33-year old Wilhelm Ono. “I mean, Rodriguez is a total phony. I can’t imagine anything he’s endorsing is legit. In fact, I’m canceling my shrink appointment right now. Maybe there is something to that trepanation thing my friend was telling me about.”
Michael Faenza, president and CEO of the National Mental Health Association, is concerned about the recent backlash against Rodriguez. “At first, we were thrilled about Rodriguez’s purported advocacy. But, it seems that he turns off a large proportion of the population that requires therapy: Red Sox fans. To be certain, you might think there is a diminished need after the championship, but many fans seek out therapists to talk with because those are the only people that will listen to their recaps of the 2004 postseason over and over and over again.”
Cynthia Rodriguez, the Yankees third baseman’s wife, defended her husband’s impact. “I know where he came from and I know his background and seeing how successful he is as a man, as a husband, as a friend, it really hits home with me. It’s because of therapeutic intervention that he’s been able to discover and flourish as a person. Everyone wishes they were as great as him; it’s a very difficult life, you know, being the idol of billions of people around the world. These nutcases should be happy he’s speaking up for them.”
Comments
hahahaha...nice article
As somebody who is in psychotherapy(well I see a psychologist) I'm glad to see people speak out about it, like A-Rod. However, I'm not sure what A-Rod's intentions are about speaking of this and that's what makes me not like him more. I mean is he doing this for the sake of getting the word out? Like showing it's okay to be in therapy? Or is he using this information to just better his reputation. That's what irks me is if he uses it to only bring up his reputation, then that's a bullshit reason.
PTH ∙ 8 June 2005 ∙ 10:15 PM
ow, harsh. Disturbingly accurate and funny, but harsh.
twitch124 ∙ 8 June 2005 ∙ 11:24 PM
i have been dying to make fun of prince purple-lips on this one... but i can't, as I am also almost daily lobbying my yankee-fan bro-in-law to seek therapy. Unfortunately he seems unimpressed by slappy's ways.
Rebecca ∙ 9 June 2005 ∙ 11:00 AM
I seem to have struck a chord here. As someone who has seen tangible benefits from therapy, I wanted to highlight the "celebrity syndrome," where something generally stigmatized is granted greater acceptability because a high-profile person espouses it.
There is an interplay between these "causes" and famous people who adopt a pet issue merely to heighten their renown, as well as the ovine portion of the population that would go to therapy just because it might be considered cool because such and so does it.
Were I blogging at the time, I would have written something about ritual tendon stapling procedures, called "Schilling," that all the hip kids were having done. Since tattoos, branding, and piercing are so mid 90s, y'know?
Empyreal ∙ 9 June 2005 ∙ 11:23 AM
Very, very funny post. And nice use of "ovine". I think that when therapy is helpful, there's that natural tendency to "spread the word"...but in A-Rod's case I just can't help but think it was all for image. "Ooh, he can play baseball, he's good looking...and he's sensitive!" On a related note, while some people still certainly attach a stigma to psychotherapy, I think Dr. Phil (et al) changed what's acceptable for celebs to say about their private lives.
Earl ∙ 9 June 2005 ∙ 11:53 AM