Oprah.com Community: producersh's Blog

My team produced the show "The 900 Pound Mom" airing TODAY -- So wanted to use my producer's blog to give you some BEHIND THE SCENES SCOOP!!

Here's how I would describe it: Riveting, thought-provoking, and graphic (yes, we warn those who are squeamish).

We even sent Ruby (our favorite new reality star) - on assignment to one of the ONLY PLACES in the United States that has the capability to treat people who weigh this much. It was really emotional for Ruby who kept saying "this could have been me."

(Inside scoop alert!! When we asked Ruby to be a part of this show, she said an enthusiastic "of course"...and explained this really is what she hopes comes from her own show -- understanding and compassion. We both looked at each other and knew in that moment she was meant to do this. Well, the day she was flying out of Savannah to New York to do the interviews, a storm hit, and every single flight was canceled EXCEPT for hers. Ruby said she knew it was either God making sure she could be a part of this show...or Oprah had personally called the pilot to tell them to not cancel the flight! LOL!)

I wanted to show you a video - SOMETHING YOU WON'T SEE DURING OUR SHOW.... It is from Ruby's exclusive look inside the rehab center for the severely obese - people who are literally trapped in their own bodies. One of the women described what how desperate she was for food, even when she couldn't leave the house -- it was really eye-opening --and made you really ask, is this an addiction? Ruby and I couldn't stop talking about it in the green room before we taped the show!

Click here to watch it: http://www.oprah.com/media/20090304-tows-ruby-addiction

Renee, the mother who weighed 914 pounds at her heaviest, had two daughters 15 year old Mirina and 10 year old Miriah. I spoke with both of them before the show, what I couldn't help thinking about is how hard it is for these young girls to handle all the teasing and embarrassment, as all of us who survived elementary school and junior high know, it cannot be easy. Fifteen-year-old, Mirina - is beyond poised and reflective. During the show Oprah asked her how she saw her mom, did she see her like the world saw her...I think her answer will surprise you.

As all of you do in your own lives, we share with friends and family what we're doing at work (I do however spare my brothers any shows I'm working on that use the word "v-jay-jay")

Now when I told my friends that I was working on a show about a 900 pound mom, and an 800 pound teenager, there were mixed reactions...

One of my friends who is a mom said "That's so incredibly sad."

Another friend admitted to me that if they see a large person at the grocery store, they can't help but try and sneak a peek at what is in their grocery cart.

And my brutally honest guy friend had this to share - "why the hell do we celebrate people who lose a lot of weight (magazines, TV, etc) -- they shouldn't have gotten that big in the first place, why not celebrate me, I've stayed the same weight all of my life...isn't that a better accomplishment."

Okay, so it wasn't the most all-around sensitive crowd I told...but I think it points to something else going on in this country.

One of the doctors we spoke to for this show said something that struck me...this is the last accepted prejudice in our country. But, I want to know what YOU out there think? I want to know what you think at this moment...when you see people who weigh 300 pounds, 400 pounds or hear about people who weigh 900 pounds? And then I would love for you to come back and let me know what you think after you watch the show on Thursday!

P.S. I'm loving this blogging thing -- we finally get to hear directly from you -- our PASSIONATE viewers -- about what you REALLY think!!!

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You know when you're watching The Oprah Winfrey Show...and you have a moment of clarity? That aha! moment, the lightbulb goes off, a shift in the way you see things from something Oprah or a guest says? Well... those of us working behind the scenes have those moments too!

Working on our "What Can You Live Without?" Experiment, was an eye-opener for me...and the rest of my team...it made us all want to simplify big time! We all started to think about what can we live without, what do we buy to make ourselves appear more successful to others, to appear more put together, more perfect...Oprah said it exactly in her "What I Know For Sure" article in March's "O" magazine..."Having the best things is no substitute for having the best life." The two moms who took our experiment were truly courageous...they dug deep to really look into their own hearts and minds to ask what were all the "things" they had surrounded themselves with about. Candice, the widowed mom who had been buying "things" to fill up herself and her family after the loss of her husband, touched a lot of you who watched the show. She told us after the show aired -- friends, family, and neighbors asked her why she hadn't told them sooner about her situation...and many thanked her for opening up about it -- because they saw themselves in her, and had been buying things they couldn't afford. (You can read their stories here if you missed them: http://www.oprah.com/slideshow/oprahshow/20090130_tows_livewithout)

I think if we all dig deep and are honest with ourselves, most of us will admit we do the same thing...

What did I need to look at? My obsession with beauty products...the latest, the greatest, they are all lining my bathroom shelves. Could I live without a lot of this? Of course! I've got a cleanser, a serum, a night cream, a toner, a day moisturizer with SPF, two kinds of eye cream (one for day and one for night)...seriously, I know this is over the top when I look at it from an outside perspective.

Where does some if it come from? Well, my mom was way ahead of her time in the wrinkle-fighting department. She always looked younger than her actual age...and any new article she read with a new solution for wrinkles...well, the product was in her cabinet. When she read that silk pillowcases helped because cotton pulled against your skin, guess what we both had the next week...that's right two silk pillowcases on both our beds! She started me on a eye-cream at 18 years old... Now you'll probably ask did this help, do I look my age? Is my skin glowing? I do get compliments on looking a little younger than my true age and having nice skin...and maybe that's why I've gone overboard on the products, because let's face it, we are bombarded with youth around every corner we turn and compliments make us feel good. But after this show, I think it's time for me to start putting that money to good use elsewhere and begin appreciating every line that is starting to appear on my face for what it represents...laughing so hard with my brothers I end up falling on the floor, making funny faces with my nephew, crying through a good girlie movie with my mom and supporting my best friend through a divorce. Those lines are about the moments and the experiences that make us who we are...so I'm going to try to embrace that while I put a four week ban on any new beauty products making it into my house. By the way, my mom was also ahead of her time on the sun exposure thing too...we always kept our faces out of the sun, or slathered with sunscreen when we did go out...so I'm guessing that had way more to do with our nice skin than the latest high-tech eye cream! Will I still love it when a co-worker of my younger brother says...so you're showing your younger sister around the office today? heck yes!! But at the same time, I'll remind myself when they are no longer saying those things, of something more important my mom said to me...be grateful for every single birthday you get to celebrate.

So what I want to know from all of you -- what could you live without for a week, two weeks, or a month? If you really look at your family and yourself -- what are you surrounding yourself with to keep you from connecting to your family and to what is important? What pledge do you want to make to simplify your life starting today? Tell me your story here: https://www.oprah.com/plugform.jsp?plugId=1249138

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producersh's Blog : March 2009

The 900-Pound Mom...Inside Scoop!

Who out there is ready to simplify your life?