180: Being On Reality TV Almost Killed Me

Today we are talking about the the truth about reality television and how devastating it can be to the lives of those featured. There have been incredible numbers of reality TV stars who have died by suicide and I was almost a part of that statistic. If you didn’t know, I was on a 2 part BBC show where I lived in a house for 9 days with people who either hated fatness or were fat positive and some inbetween. This is a deeply vulnerable episode where I am revealing exactly what happened and the resulting shame and grief I experienced culminating in active suicide ideation. A massive trigger warning as I will be playing clips of me talking about my ideation from the time after the show aired. If you are struggling like I was, please reach out for help. You are loveable and not alone.

Episode show notes: http://www.fiercefatty.com/180

Support me on Ko-Fi and get the Size Diversity Resource Guide: https://ko-fi.com/fiercefatty/tiers

Suicide in reality TV:
https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2020/may/27/why-suicide-is-still-the-shadow-that-hangs-over-reality-tv-hana-kimura-terrace-house

Suicide ideation levels: https://www.instagram.com/p/CxBubUPOXd9/

How shame works: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-scientific-underpinnings-and-impacts-of-shame/

https://www.psychologytoday.com/ca/blog/emotional-intelligence/202102/what-is-shame-and-how-does-it-show-in-your-life-and-work

Reality TV union: https://time.com/6314118/reality-tv-unions-protection/