Anthony Bourdain

I'm suprised no one has started a discussion on Anthony Bourdain.  I loved his books as an insight into the underbelly of the culinary world.  When he was a guest judge on "Top Chef," I was always excited.  His episode on  Iran on CNN's "Parts Unknown" was probably one of his best!  According to CNN, his fellow chef and good friend Eric Ripert found him.  I can't even imagine. 


Oh, it’s just so tragic. He leaves behind an 11 year old daughter too LOL

My favourite episode of his “Parts Unknown” was when he was in Singapore. I lived there for a few years and it was so exciting to see him showcasing the amazing cuisine there and chatting with the locals. No pretentiousness or food snobbery and his enthusiasm was infectious.

On a personal note, an acquaintance (aged 60) died on Monday. She had been suffering from brain cancer and although the tumor had been removed, had been very sick for the past two years with various ailments. The cause of her death was bleeding from the brain.....but she had been so determined to live and fought until the very end.

So sad that some people are in so much emotional pain that they choose to die by their own hand, whilst the juxtaposition is that others are in physical pain and want to survive, but their bodies give up the fight. ;(


Someone who founded a suicide hotline in NYC was on NPR today and said studies show most young children who lose a parent to suicide never truly recover from it. She said maybe with two famous people leaving behind young daughters this week, maybe some of the stigma will lessen and society will begin talking more about this. Some (most) of what she shared was extremely disturbing. 


I work next to the people who answer this line. They are amazing. If you need help, call the NJ Hopeline: 1-855-654-6735   http://www.njhopeline.com/



I somehow missed Bordain until just a couple of years ago. I'd hear his name every now and then, and whatever I heard I guess didn't appeal to me. And I'm very much into food-as-entertainment, so I can't explain why I didn't at least check him out.

But I came to appreciate him more and more over the last year or so, and I can say I was really shocked and dismayed when I heard of his death.

And now I'm going to try and learn more about this most fascinating man.

And to think about how incredibly powerful depression can be. To think that people like Bourdain and Spade - living lives that most of us can only dream about - decided that not living was better than living that apparent dream life - that's a profound thing.



so true. With young children, no less. If having a child who will live the rest of their lives feeling guilty and haunted by your decision isn’t enough to keep you here- well, depression is some powerful s&*t, isn’t it? Hopefully these poor souls are at peace now.


Crushed by this news today.  Just brutal in all respects. 


I haven't read this myself yet, but this is the original article that sort of burst Bourdain onto the scene. I understand that it became the source for the Kitchen Confidential book..


https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1999/04/19/dont-eat-before-reading-this


I mourn the famous fallen............but of less notoriety are the distraught teens and seeming derelects..............they have their story and we our obligation to aid and comfort.

There but for fortune go you or I


Found this new Parts Unknown episode on Hong Kong on Youtube.  Maybe others are there.




So sad about this death and Kate Spade's.  Just don't understand how people who seem to have the best jobs in the world and young children can kill themselves while I continue contented with my far less than perfect life.  Or Alex Jones.  How can that guy continue to live with himself while making up such unbelievable crap.

Alex Jones: Bourdain Was Killed By Globalists Because He Was Pro-Trump




Your life will be better if you ignore Alex Jones.


I only follow Alex because I'm trying to keep up w/ his family.


nan said:
So sad about this death and Kate Spade's.  Just don't understand how people who seem to have the best jobs in the world and young children can kill themselves while I continue contented with my far less than perfect life.  Or Alex Jones.  How can that guy continue to live with himself while making up such unbelievable crap.
Alex Jones: Bourdain Was Killed By Globalists Because He Was Pro-Trump






 Nan. It's called depression. At it's darkest (and I've had some experience ) it is an oppressive, all-encompassing illness. The darkness that it inflicts on your everyday life is hard to describe, but everything just seems hopeless. When waking up to face the day is an almost unburdenable chore, the step to ending your life is not too far away. The pain has to be relieved.



nan said:
So sad about this death and Kate Spade's.  Just don't understand how people who seem to have the best jobs in the world and young children can kill themselves while I continue contented with my far less than perfect life.  Or Alex Jones.  How can that guy continue to live with himself while making up such unbelievable crap.
Alex Jones: Bourdain Was Killed By Globalists Because He Was Pro-Trump






 I'm thinking hi slife was also far less than perfect despite having a "great career." Who knows? Perhaps he thought his daughter would be better off without him.


drummerboy said:


nan said:
So sad about this death and Kate Spade's.  Just don't understand how people who seem to have the best jobs in the world and young children can kill themselves while I continue contented with my far less than perfect life.  Or Alex Jones.  How can that guy continue to live with himself while making up such unbelievable crap.
Alex Jones: Bourdain Was Killed By Globalists Because He Was Pro-Trump

 Nan. It's called depression. At it's darkest (and I've had some experience ) it is an oppressive, all-encompassing illness. The darkness that it inflicts on your everyday life is hard to describe, but everything just seems hopeless. When waking up to face the day is an almost unburdenable chore, the step to ending your life is not too far away. The pain has to be relieved.


 Yes, I've been around that also.  Just seems so unbelievable for these two since I don't know them personally and they have enough money to get proper treatment. But, yeah, it can happen to anyone.  These are not the first famous people to do this.


Heynj said:
Someone who founded a suicide hotline in NYC was on NPR today and said studies show most young children who lose a parent to suicide never truly recover from it. She said maybe with two famous people leaving behind young daughters this week, maybe some of the stigma will lessen and society will begin talking more about this. Some (most) of what she shared was extremely disturbing. 

 Those who survive the suicide of a loved one can be at grave risk for suicide themselves.  It's challenging enough for adults, but for very young children to lose a parent in this way is catastrophic.


nan, do you think that money is the main barrier to proper treatment? No way. Sure, we have an f-ed up medical system when it comes to paying for mental health but I’d bet the stigma and the lack of recognition/unwillingness to admit there’s a problem are far greater barriers than cost.


Heynj said:
Someone who founded a suicide hotline in NYC was on NPR today and said studies show most young children who lose a parent to suicide never truly recover from it. She said maybe with two famous people leaving behind young daughters this week, maybe some of the stigma will lessen and society will begin talking more about this. Some (most) of what she shared was extremely disturbing. 

I can only imagine. If even divorce does what it does to children, I can’t even imagine the guilt, feeling of worthlessness and horror after a parnt’s suicide. Ultimate abandonment issues.


conandrob240 said:
nan, do you think that money is the main barrier to proper treatment? No way. Sure, we have an f-ed up medical system when it comes to paying for mental health but I’d bet the stigma and the lack of recognition/unwillingness to admit there’s a problem are far greater barriers than cost.

 I don't agree with that.  My insurance used to cover out of network therapy at 80% and now it's barely 30%.  A good therapist can cost well over $100 an hour.  Who can afford that?  They do have in-network therapists, but good luck finding a good one. A bad therapist can make things worse instead of better. Most people can't afford an emergency costing 1K or more.  How are they going to afford mental health treatment?  I agree about the stigma/unwillingness, but I don't see how that can be shown to be greater than cost.  Also, a good part of the stigma/unwillingness is because it costs so much.  Who wants to tell their kids they won't be having Christmas or their house anymore because Mom needs to see her shrink. 


you seem very out of touch with the reality of mental illness in all of your posts on this thread.


conandrob240 said:
you seem very out of touch with the reality of mental illness in all of your posts on this thread.

 There are many different realities of mental illness.  I'm most familiar with the financial problems associated with treatment, the limited options available, and dealing with a range of therapists using varied approaches.  I have no idea what it is like to be a rich celebrity with mental health issues and I did not claim to understand that, so not sure why you think I'm out of touch.  


I am dipping my toe in a pond which I claim no expertise.  But I have had extensive experience in trying to provide aid and comfort to some one near and dear to me.

She had a brother who was so ill he had virtually no contact with reality.  He had his breakdown

in the Service.......as this was many years ago his disability was deemed Service connected. Today it would not be.  It entitled him to VA benefits.....including hospitalization.  a mixed blessing but it kept him alive till his mid 60's.

A sister has what a laymen would call a milder case.  In other words she could pass briefly for untroubled.

She married....a Princeton man no less.   Since the late 80's she has been convinced the government

has been trying to kill her.   Two years ago she walked away from a decent subsidized apt in

Central Jersey. .........Made a foolish trade in on her new car for a leased model.   Along with her 

siblings she received $85,000.00 in inheritance monies......virtually all pissed away,  Her ultimate goal is to get to Paris..where the voices won't bother her and the Government agents are powerless.

For the past two years she has been traveling up and down the East Coast........never staying anywhere for more than three months.   And she has decided once again that at she is fine and the various many hospitalizations were a mistake.

So where do you draw the line between compulsory hospitalization and preserving one's rights

And try finding decent housing for the severally mentally ill upon their hospital discharge.

I have struggled with these things for decades.   It is like being on a treadmill.


Nan,

Because you 1) stated that you didn’t understand how people with the best jobs in the world could kill themselves. Representing a complete lack of understanding of the depths of depression as a disease. And then 2) acted like money was the main problem for people suffering from depression and that if they had it, then they should have been able to get cured. Again representing a complete lack of understanding of mental illness stigma, why people don’t seek help and how deep depression can actually be ( to the point where treatment can’t fix it for some)


conandrob240 said:
Nan,
Because you 1) stated that you didn’t understand how people with the best jobs in the world could kill themselves. Representing a complete lack of understanding of the depths of depression as a disease. And then 2) acted like money was the main problem for people suffering from depression and that if they had it, then they should have been able to get cured. Again representing a complete lack of understanding of mental illness stigma, why people don’t seek help and how deep depression can actually be ( to the point where treatment can’t fix it for some)

 I have known multiple people with depression (including people who committed suicide) and I know how debilitating it can be. I  don't know what it is like to be a famous celebrity and I wondered aloud about that. Perhaps they are just like "us."  I do think money is a super major issue for many, many people. It just is.  30 million people don't have health insurance. Half the people in our country are poor and don't have enough money for a $1000 emergency.  There is no way most people can afford decent mental health treatment (which often includes more than one doctor for meds and counselling and long-term treatment).  I had to stop my own therapy at one time because it was that or paying my mortgage. There is a big stigma about mental health, but you can't get to step 1 without a way to pay for it.  


Leaving aside money (which is a HUGE, insuperable barrier for many, don't kid yourself, and esp. for people whose life/work history can be sketchy), access to insurance and care is a another big wall to scale, esp. for someone whose illness manifests in part as inability to make decisions and "get going." 

Unless there's a clear, police-and-emergency crisis, often a person in need of care, even with insurance and money, will have to first see a primary care physician and then a therapist before being granted access to a psychiatrist or prescribing nurse practitioner who can start trying the various pharma treatments that may be effective.  Not to mention that the first available appointments may be months away.  Do other serious illnesses have to go through this kind of extended rigmarole?  

It takes a lot of drive and persistence for a person with this kind of problems (or for a caregiver, who may or may not have the cooperation of the "patient") to follow through with all this.  And meanwhile, as noted above by author, lack of stable work, housing, etc. affects availability of insurance, transportation, etc.

SOME of these difficulties might not apply to a person who has plenty of money and who is (apparently) not isolated, but the others remain.

(yes, been part way through this circus with a family member)


A few comments from mental health professionals:

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/13/reader-center/mental-health-therapists-suicide.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=timesinsider®ion=c-column-bottom-span-region

All were of interest.  I esp. appreciated the last one:  There is no "system."  That has been our experience, except in utter crisis.



mjc said:
  Do other serious illnesses have to go through this kind of extended rigmarole?  

 You forget, this is America where your insurance company, not your doctor, decides what is and isn't appropriate care.  

I remember when I needed an MRI and a PET scan.  Most places on the insurance list for the MRI were closed.  For example, they wanted me to go to Irvington General.  The PET scan was just denied outright.  My doctor's office appealed, still denied.  My doctor, with me in the office, finally called the insurance company himself and said "Don't even waste my time, just transfer me to your supervisor."  The supervisor stood by the test not being necessary to see if my cancer had spread.  My doctor, a very nice and polite man, then tore into the guy about how many years of medical school he didn't have and yet was making medical decisions and ended with "Fine, just keep denying care and wait until she dies from something that is completely preventable just so you can save a few bucks."  Amazingly, this tactic worked, and my PET scan was approved.  Other's aren't so lucky to have such a determined doctor.

This is true for mental health care, physical health care, worker's comp care, etc, etc.  Just about the only thing you can have done without jumping through hoops and fighting denials is a yearly wellness exam.  Hell, my husband was injured on the job in March.  The surgeon that the worker's comp insurance company sent him to said he NEEDS surgery.  This is THEIR guy.  Guess what, still waiting for the insurance company to agree that he actually needs the surgery that THEIR surgeon said is necessary.  Well over two months.  Oh, and he hasn't missed a single doctor's visit, not a single PT appointment, not a single visit with his coordinator at worker's comp.  They're now trying to label him as "non-compliant" so that they can just refuse all future care and deny the operation.  I wish I was making this up.

Health care as a whole, medical care, mental health care, and dental care, all just completely suck.  The rest of the developed world just looks at us and shakes their heads and wonders why we put up with it. 

Access to mental health care in this country sucks, even with coverage.  But unfortunately it is not an anomaly. 


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