Celebrity Psychologist

Celebrity psychologist views on celebrity deaths

The untimely death of George Michael will leave a void in the hearts and minds of adults and teenagers alike. He created a fictional persona in order to cope with his sexuality and pressures of media attention as he became an integral part of pop culture. George had an altruistic trait in his personality which facilitated his giving millions to charities and on a more personal note, to individuals he met on the street, such was George Michael.

Like many famous celebrities who have died during the past year there are psychological aspects associated with how we mourn their loss. We know where we were and what we were doing when we learned of the death of George Michael or Robin Williams, the list is endless. Moments after we hear the news social media is saturated with videos and tributes of the late singers performances and lyrics.

Ironically whilst we feel the loss we have in fact rarely met these pop idols, we know little about their real lives and intimacies, we know nothing about the reality of the causes of their depression. Loss of a loved one is intensified by the meaning it has for our own person and the joy it has now eliminated. Depression and low mood is normal to experience in particular when we loss our pop idol. For older adults he was our teenage heart-throb and this becomes an integral part of our personal identity. These feelings of sadness are in fact good for us to experience when a celebrity dies. The reason being that it heightens our sense of empathy and understanding of death.

Some celebrities die after a long life of service to entertainment whilst other are taken from us in their early life. Many have pretty normal lives with few major life problems while other struggle with alcohol, depression, suicide or narcotic abuse. Much of these can be attributed to a perpetual attempt to please the concert audiences to please their fans on tour and meet constantly higher expectations. When Robin Williams took his own life he was one of 40 million Americans suffering from depression. There is the constant struggle emotionally to hide behind the mask and put on a brave face. This alone requires a huge effort many fans never realise is part of celebrity culture. Philip Hoffman was a gifted and versatile actor at the peak of his career when he died at the age of 46 in 2014. Yet in all he was one of some 8,000 people who died from heroin poisoning. Celebrity deaths help us to understand the nature of addictions and its tragic consequences. When a loved one passes away, further it provides us with insight into our own coping strategies or the lack of coping skills. In the context of Celebrity culture it helps fans and viewers to assess their own values and beliefs about death and also helps fans understand the full humanity of celebrities and the problems they have to endure on tour and the struggle to maintain a degree of intimacy about their private family lives and relationships. At the hearing of the late George Michael's death it became nostalgic for me and many others when we reflect back psychologically to the time and place we heard that song and its lyrics. This can produce bittersweet nostalgia and re-assess what's working properly in our own lives. When they were making career choices and making serious decisions about their future, for many Georges death will bring them back to their late adolescence. These thought or cognitive exercises are helpful in that they help us separate what is important in our lives at the moment and what is not. When we reflect back on Georges life journey we can see how his image had changed significantly, and this became one of the main reasons why he led a reclusive lifestyle trying to avoid concerts and facing his fans. Coming together in social media is another helpful coping strategy for fans of the late George Michael. Collective mourning between fan groups helps us connect emotionally with others who share similar and feelings and the impact of his musical genius on our own journey.

These immense feelings of sadness are in fact fairly good for us to experience when a celebrity dies. Some celebrities die after a long life of service to entertainment whilst other are taken from us in their early life. Celebrity deaths help us to understand the nature of addictions and its tragic consequences. In the context of Celebrity culture it helps viewers and fans to assess their own values and beliefs about death and also helps fans understand the full humanity of celebrities and the problems they have to endure on tour and the struggle to maintain a degree of intimacy about their private family lives and relationships. At the hearing of the late George Michael's death it became nostalgic for me and many others when we reflect back psychologically to the time and place we heard that song and its lyrics.

The Celebrity Psychologist

Original article by Dr Arthur Cassidy,

Celebrity Psychologist.

Website: http://www.drarthurcassidy.com/

How I Learned to Deal With Stress

Stress is something that everybody experiences at one time or another. When I began getting panic attacks, I understood that I had to make some changes. I was required to the health centre since I believed I was having chest discomforts, and I believed I was going to pass away. After being taken to the emergency clinic and taken a look at, the medical professionals were encouraged that my heart was fine which I had been having a panic attack.

I could not believe that. It felt much, much even worse than a panic attack, which constantly appeared to me as if that was for people who were nervous wrecks. However a couple of weeks later on I began having the same signs and went to my own medical professional, and he said the same thing. I couldn't believe exactly what I was hearing. When he provided me stress and anxiety medication I chose not to take it, since I wished to see how I might do on my own, now that I knew what was going on.

I did some reading and found info that recommended that, while it most likely wasn't causing my panic attacks, it was certainly making my stress and anxiety worse. I do feel much calmer given that I stopped consuming coffee.

Next, I stopped hanging around negative individuals. I know a lot of toxic people at my work. None of us actually liked the work we did, so it was easy to be unhappy or nasty and that's what many people did. I understood that if I wished to stop feeling so stressed out, I had to spend time with the sort of people who weren't as unhappy as the stress they were going through. Some workmates didn't know why I was distancing myself, however I am absolutely glad that I did.

I looked for an everyday job which I could carry out in order to soothe my woes and relax myself throughout the day. I attempted yoga, and I attempted deep breathing exercises. I attempted doing a lot of different things to help me to relax my mind from worries. The only thing that appears to assist me is guided meditation. I discover that if I practice meditation in the early morning, I feel much better in the morning, which enabled me to get more things done. After meditation, I can be happier in the afternoon and night too.

I likewise started working out physically so I could decrease the stress in my life. Not excessive work outs, simply a few days a week at aerobics.

I'm taking steps to leave my work today, as a matter of fact. While I'm feeling much better, that will most likely suffice. As I discussed, I don't really like my job at all, and I can now see that it is making me ill. I can constantly search for another job.

I know that I still have some work to do, but since making the above changes I feel much better with my life.

To sum up the problem and the solution:

It felt much, much worse than a panic attack, which always seemed to me as if that was for individuals who were pretty anxious. I do feel much calmer since I stopped drinking coffee.

I recognised that if I wanted to stop feeling so stressed out, I required to hang around people who weren't as unfavourable as the tension they were going through. I find that if I meditate in the morning, I feel much better in the early morning, which means I get more things done. While I'm feeling much better, that will probably do the job nicely.

Personality Traits and Reality TV Fans

Celebrities we see and become psychologically attached to are simply known for being known, and nothing more. Celebrities dating other celebrities often engage like celebrity footballers with highly attractive models and exquisite homes in various countries, for simply kicking a ball around a pitch or simply being a sports commentator. You and your friends may be the celebrity worshippers, however this is what we psychologists call "parasocial interaction" which means that while we know so much about their lives, they know probably nothing about yours. Whereas it is certainly true that some individuals decide to pursue acting or singing careers for the pure love of the artistic forms in question, the great majority of celebrity wannabes are largely driven by the outcomes (e.g., fame, money, adulation). The extraordinary attention that is lavished on celebrities (not to mention the outlandish sums of money) makes it easy to succumb to one's hype. Many of these celebs in the Big Brother House and those in the Australian Jungle, may feel a sense of guilt about their actual celebrity role in these well-known annual shows of reality television.

However, those who produce reality TV shows like "I'm a Celebrity" have to deal with the rights and regulations of the contestants who volunteer to go out to the jungle. Producers have to get the mix right between exposing well-known Celebrities to oppression, isolation, food deprivation, fear and much more. Questions are raised year after year about the ethics of permitting the campmates to engage in high risk behaviour, even though rigorous risk assessments are carried out and double checked daily. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 5) states that "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment". There is the issue of facilitating and making mandatory, campmates who have fears of spiders, snakes, crocodiles and rats to engage in the Bushtucker trials to win meals for their team. We have to admire the producers on the other hand for providing you the audience with light entertainment and balancing the risks of exposure within the permitted regulations. The structure of reward and punishment is common to all reality TV shows but we must not lose sight that it is a game-show at the end of the day. Participants in the jungle ought never to be made feel physiologically or psychologically worse as a result of their engagement with the Bushhtucker trials and general living arrangements. If we form the wrong relationship with certain campmates, we think of the separation from family and friends and the audience reaction. All participants following assessment will have read and signed their agreed contracts but also an informed consent form. They must know all risks they will knowingly and willingly undertake and also on completion of the show be fully debriefed and returned to the same state of physiological and psychological health.

 Celebrities we see and become psychologically attached to are simply known for being known, and nothing more. Celebrities dating other celebrities often engage like celebrity footballers with highly attractive models and exquisite homes in various countries, for simply kicking a ball around a pitch or simply being a sports commentator. Fame also can lead to chronic self-consciousness and self-destructive behaviour in many well-known and famous celebrities. You and your friends may be the celebrity worshippers, however this is what we psychologists call "parasocial interaction" which means that while we know so much about their lives, they know probably nothing about yours.

Producers have to get a good balance between exposing well-known Celebrities to oppression, isolation, food deprivation, fear and much more.

Read more interesting articles from celebrity psychologist Dr Arthur Cassidy – social media psychologist on his site: www.drarthurcassidy.com.