S02.E17: Whitney's Ticking Clock/S02.E18: Big Whit's Debut

[OnceSane]

Quote

17.

Whitney babysits Tal's nephew and begins to think about her own fertility. Meanwhile, Whitney can only bring one guest to the Dancing Man party in Los Angeles, but she can't decide which friend to ask.

Quote

18.

Glenn fears the worst when he gets the results of his blood test; Whitney is asked to be the on-field entertainment at a Grasshoppers game.

[princelina]

So - the mascot she is replacing says, "Do you have any questions?"  and her response is "I'm sweating already and my feet hurt!"

 

People will be lining up to hire her after her 15 minutes is up!  heehee

[Snarklepuss]

So she was diagnosed with PCOS and never actually knew there were cysts in her ovaries?  Really?  I would think one of the first things a doctor would do is send you for an ultrasound to see what's going on in there.

 

Todd is really just too much.  He was acting like a big overgrown baby about not going to California.  There's something goofy and strange about him, in my opinion.  Tal is so much more together and mature.  I wondered last week if they are a couple.  Seeing them together at the table with Whitney made me wonder again.  That said, I think she should have taken Todd with her, after all it's a dance thing.

 

I split my sides when Whitney went to change that baby's diaper.  OMG, that was me when I was younger and had to babysit!  I thought Lennie should have helped instead of just sitting there.  At least he didn't leave like he threatened to.

 

Lennie seems like a nice guy and I don't care if Whitney would claim "no beard shame", it just has to go.  When something starts to take over your face it needs to be gone.  In the "podcast edition" of last week's episode Whitney asked him how long he had it and he said it was 2 years growth.  She casually asked him if he ever thought of shaving it and mentioned that she doesn't even know what his face looks like.  I'd say she made her opinion pretty clear there.  No beard shame, but she clearly would prefer to see his face a little more.  If he could trim it much closer to his face he'd look 10,000 times better, IMHO.  I just hope he takes the hint.  I have a feeling he's not a bad looking guy under it.

[princelina]

Todd is really just too much.  He was acting like a big overgrown baby about not going to California.  There's something goofy and strange about him, in my opinion.  Tal is so much more together and mature.  I wondered last week if they are a couple.  Seeing them together at the table with Whitney made me wonder again.  That said, I think she should have taken Todd with her, after all it's a dance thing.

 

I think they are all a little weird, but I blame it on the show.  Although it makes sense to me that they are boyfriends!  I actually felt bad for Todd the way he was set up, to hear about the invitation, fill with glee about it, and then be told (on camera!) "Yeah, I know you're my "dance partner" and all, but I'm taking my other friend to this dance party.  You need to stay here for big girls' dance."  When I originally thought she would be taking him, I thought it was a bitch move to tell both him and Tal about it on camera, when Tal wasn't invited!  So even meaner to do it to her fellow dancer :(

[leighroda]

Am I the only one who thinks most of the people in the big girl dance class are not actually that big? I mean they don't have the stereotypical dancer body, but I'm not sure I'd classify the majority big, some of them look tall I guess. I don't have a problem with it at all, Mary Kate Olson could be in the class for all I care... I just found it odd, and I hope it's not because they see themselves as big.

[ClareWalks]

Not the only one - there are several "normal" sized women in the class, and I hope they don't think they are big too. In fact, Whitney should call it the No BS Dance Class if she wants to promote her "campaign," whatever it is. Calling it a big girl dance class is kind of limiting and might encourage self-loathers to attend.

 

As I expected, the fertility testing was a total joke. The dude gave her an ultrasound, saw that she indeed had many cysts on her ovaries (which DUH, that's what polycystic ovarian syndrome literally means), and reassured her that hey, she has eggs! She can get pregnant! It totally does NOT work that way, dude, and you know it. You sugarcoated the shit out of it. Especially since she does not ovulate and has had 10 periods in her entire life (!!!). She will need, at a bare minimum, oral medication to ovulate ($50 a month), probably injectables ($2500 a month), and probably IVF ($15,000 per try). Any fertility doctor with a brain would recommend that she lose a substantial amount of weight to prepare her body for a possible pregnancy and to have a prayer of ovulating. But once again everyone handles Whitney with kid gloves, which is crazy. There is a lot of fat-shaming done by doctors but Whitney seems totally immune to it, and immune to doctors who give it to you straight and tell you "hey, you probably won't get pregnant at your weight, and if you do get pregnant by some miracle you are likely to have complications and a VERY tough delivery." It's like everyone around Whitney is contributing to her further infantilization and immaturity. The way she handled that dirty diaper was so friggin' dramatic, too.

 

I will admit to being impressed with her performance with her trainer. The fact that she did a one-minute plank tells me that she has actually been exercising, much more than she seems to be. Planks take time and practice to build up. Glad that her dad's A1C went down, hopefully Whitney has indeed made the changes she claims to have made (hard to tell since they don't show her eating much).

[jojomano]

I would've thought that Whitney would already have a doctor managing her PCOS. She just met this doctor.

I have to say in her favor, she can really move fairly easily at her size.

[Snarklepuss]

That doctor appointment was a total farce.  Maybe her "real" doctor didn't want to appear on TV so they got someone to play the part.  It was just so obvious that it was a total gloss over.  Don't they realize there are a LOT of people in the audience who know better?   Actually, her difficulty in conceiving has as much to do with her condition as her weight as PCOS creates the hormonal imbalance that impedes ovulation.  In addition to the stuff mentioned above by ClareWalks, following a healthy, low glycemic diet, losing weight, taking certain natural supplements and getting regular exercise (which she already does) can help her chances of ovulation.  I just hate how this show totally does not deal with these realities whatsoever.  Instead we see a dumb scene with her mother in a health food store talking about sex.  Ugh.  Why not focus on what her doctor told her to take and why?  I think they needed a different producer for this because it's a serious subject being handled like a typical ridiculous reality show.

Edited November 12, 2015 by Snarklepuss

[Dirtybubble]

 

As far as the OBGYN/Fertility doctor goes I think a LOT was let on the cutting room floor.  The whole scene seemed a little disjointed to me and I know for a fact that weight is going to be an issue in getting pregnant.  Why it wasn't mentioned on the show is beyond me.  My best friend is about 100lbs over weight and she had trouble becoming pregnant.  She was pre diabetic & had irregular periods as well so she was told to get her diabetes in check and loose some weight to get her periods back to normal and she would have better luck getting preggers. 

 

The fact that she did a one-minute plank tells me that she has actually been exercising, much more than she seems to be. Planks take time and practice to build up

Those planks are no joke!  They are difficult to do and within seconds you feel the burn in your lower abs which I guess is the point but my one quibble is that she really wasn't doing the plank correctly.  Your body needs to be completely parallel to the floor and she was in a yoga type of downward pose.  Maybe the fat around her midsection prevented her from doing the plank correctly?

 

 

I too have wondered if Tal & Todd are bfs.  It's 2015 and I think the general public can handle seeing them in an affection relationship if they are so IDK.  Anytime they are on screen together they are seated far apart and while friendly towards each other never seem to be close.  Maybe they are just friends--I heard somewhere that 2 gay men can be just friends ;)

 

 

 

[ClareWalks]

 

Those planks are no joke!  They are difficult to do and within seconds you feel the burn in your lower abs which I guess is the point but my one quibble is that she really wasn't doing the plank correctly.  Your body needs to be completely parallel to the floor and she was in a yoga type of downward pose.  Maybe the fat around her midsection prevented her from doing the plank correctly?

 

It's true, she was definitely putting her butt up a bit high. It is likely because she carries so much fat around her middle - not only would that possibly contact the ground with perfect plank form, but it would be extremely heavy to support in perfect plank form. The way she was doing the plank was not totally correct, but I think her trainer let it go (as I would) because she wasn't doing it in the wrong type of way that would actually injure her. Also I have seen so many people put their butts WAY higher in the air, that I would just figure "close enough" ;)

Edited November 12, 2015 by ClareWalks

[John M]

I can hold a plank for a long, long time if I get to put about 12 inches of pillows under my core to lay on.

[Granny58]

"As far as the OBGYN/Fertility doctor goes I think a LOT was let on the cutting room floor.  The whole scene seemed a little disjointed to me and I know for a fact that weight is going to be an issue in getting pregnant.  Why it wasn't mentioned on the show is beyond me.  My best friend is about 100lbs over weight and she had trouble becoming pregnant.  She was pre diabetic & had irregular periods as well so she was told to get her diabetes in check and loose some weight to get her periods back to normal and she would have better luck getting preggers."  

 

I don't know how much weight this angle should hold.  My best friend is also approx 100 pounds overweight and was able to get pregnant whenever she tried.  Me, well I was FIT and normal weight and had a hell of a time, and had to use fertility meds.  Also, I do medical transcription and there is no shortage of morbidly obese woman coming in for their C sections.  Being overweight probably does have a statistical element in infertility, but the more I see and experience the more dubious I am about how important it is.  

Edited November 12, 2015 by Granny58

[ClareWalks]

 

I don't know how much weight this angle should hold.  My best friend is also approx 100 pounds overweight and was able to get pregnant whenever she tried.  Me, well I was FIT and normal weight and had a hell of a time, and had to use fertility meds.  Also, I do medical transcription and there is no shortage of morbidly obese woman coming in for their C sections.  Being overweight probably does have a statistical element in infertility, but the more I see and experience the more dubious I am about how important it is.  

 

On an individual level, yeah, there are lots of fat women who have no trouble conceiving, but generally speaking being a normal weight will almost always increase your odds of conception versus being obese. It has to do with hormonal balances more than anything, even if conditions like PCOS and diabetes aren't present :) Anyway, to bring this to topic, that's why I'm kind of surprised that Whitney doesn't understand this, or hasn't even googled PCOS to find that out. I really wish the doctor had helped her see that she needs to be more proactive if she is serious about wanting kids in a couple years, since she could start a modest weight loss plan now and be 100 lb (or more) lighter by then with much less effort than if she had to lose that much weight "now now now, we need to get pregnant by 35."

Edited November 12, 2015 by ClareWalks

[Dirtybubble]

 

I don't know how much weight this angle should hold.  My best friend is also approx 100 pounds overweight and was able to get pregnant whenever she tried.  Me, well I was FIT and normal weight and had a hell of a time, and had to use fertility meds.  Also, I do medical transcription and there is no shortage of morbidly obese woman coming in for their C sections.  Being overweight probably does have a statistical element in infertility, but the more I see and experience the more dubious I am about how important it is.

 

Yeah simply being over weight may not be such a big factor in getting pregnant but my bff was having very irregular periods (not 100% sure if that was caused by the weight or something else) so everything combined would wreck havoc on her getting preggs.  PLUS the she really, really, REALLY wanted to be a mom so stress of all that played a part as well.  FYI--in the end she and her hubby ended up adopting twins.  So to go not too far off subject but adopting can always be an option for Whitney as well. 

 

I would figure any doctor worth their salt would have already explained all this to her already--my gut is telling me a lot of this was for T.V. but I can sympathize with her not really worrying about not having periods too much because they are the WORST so not having one is kinda...fun =)

 

 

[bichonblitz]

What the hell? Why doesn't Whitney get periods? I missed the beginning of the Dr. visit but when I heard that my ears perked up! Does she really think she's going to be able to get pregnant? 

[BellyLaughter]

 

 

As far as the OBGYN/Fertility doctor goes I think a LOT was let on the cutting room floor.  The whole scene seemed a little disjointed to me and I know for a fact that weight is going to be an issue in getting pregnant.  Why it wasn't mentioned on the show is beyond me.  My best friend is about 100lbs over weight and she had trouble becoming pregnant.  She was pre diabetic & had irregular periods as well so she was told to get her diabetes in check and loose some weight to get her periods back to normal and she would have better luck getting preggers. 

 

So I wasn't the only one who thought that the Doc. was gonna suggest that losing a lot of weight is only gonna help??  He looked like he was gonna say it and then suddenly he didn't.  That scene could have been helpful for a lot of women watching the show but ended up doing a disservice....I'm glad Whitney has eggs but that's the least of her worries....

[Alapaki]

Those planks are no joke!  They are difficult to do and within seconds you feel the burn in your lower abs which I guess is the point but my one quibble is that she really wasn't doing the plank correctly.  Your body needs to be completely parallel to the floor and she was in a yoga type of downward pose.  Maybe the fat around her midsection prevented her from doing the plank correctly?

 

 

Putting your butt too high (like a pyramid instead of a plank) takes a lot of stress of the abs.  I'm not surprised she could hold that for 60 seconds.  She probably could've held it twice as long.

 

The trainer should have had her fully extend her arms (like she would be at the top of a push-up).  That way she could keep her back flat.

 

They might be having a dance party in L.A., but if they plan on having a "flash mob", they better have a time machine, to go back to ​when they were a fucking thing!

 

"I know I have poly-cystic-ovarian-syndrome, but no one told me about those cysts on my ovaries!"

 

And Whitney, going to a no-name "health food" store is not "taking control" of anything.  

[princelina]

My feeling with this Dr appt is just like I posted a few episodes ago - yes, she does these things for her show (trainer, nutritionist, breakfast, now OBGYN) - do they mean anything in the real world, or are they just storylines -- "Let's discuss my fertility and show me at a gyno appt!"

 

Interesting that her "boss" at the baseball field has finally been bullied/shamed into "admitting" that Big Whit is a great employee =O!

 

Finally - as a yoga teacher - plank is hard, and when people are in good form it is harder, and when they get a little tired, the first thing that happens is that their butt begins to rise, taking pressure off of the abs/core muscles.  The better way to modify the pose is to drop to your knees and maintain the plank ("stiff as a board" pose, rather than turn yourself into a downward dog - nothing wrong with that pose but you are not working the same muscles.  As the instructor, I would walk around the room giving "bum pats" while they held the pose, and they knew to either straighten out or drop to their knees and straighten out, depending on how they were feeling.  So Whit's pose tells me that once again she's being given a break bc it's her show and she is only to be applauded.  I wouldn't want her in my class and then have to watch her on TV talking about how I hurt her feelings or something!

 

ETA:  also:  doing plank on your elbows rather than hands is a common modification for people with wrist issues (like carpal tunnel) and I think would be valid for one who is holding up that weight.

Edited November 13, 2015 by princelina

[leighroda]

I really hope for the sake of all man kind that she does actually know the implications pcos has on fertility, but she followed along with the clueless act for the sake of the show. The way it seemed at the doctor was that she googled pcos when it was first mentioned, read that it causes weight gain in the first sentence and stopped reading because eureka! She knew why she gained weight.

[ClareWalks]

She wasn't in downward dog, it was still a plank, albeit one with a high butt. Her butt was maybe 4-5 inches higher than flawless, which is not close to being in a total triangle - let's be real, she is not flexible enough for that. A high plank (on the hands) would have probably been too stressful on the wrists. I am no fan of Whitney (see: all my other posts, haha), but she legitimately improved with that plank since the first time we saw her do it, and I will give her credit for that. The rest of the stuff she did these two eps, she ain't getting much credit from me, at least ;)

[PityFree]

I really could have gone my whole life without seeing Whitney's uterus and I would have been quite happy. I don't think I will recover any time soon. She has no shame.

[Pepperminty]

That was really mean of her to tell Todd like that, she set him up. Todd would probably appreciate that experience more than Tal, so I completely understand his disappoinment. I realize she can take someone else but that conversation should have been off camera. I'm hoping somehow Todd ends up going, since she taught him the dance routine. From the previews, though, I only saw Tal in LA.

I didn't like her in that moment at all.

Edited November 13, 2015 by Pepperminty

[Alapaki]

That was really mean of her to tell Todd like that, she set him up.

 

 

My problem with that scene was that they were all acting like she'd found the Golden Ticket to Willy Wonka's factory.  

 

IT'S ONLY LOS ANGELES, FOR CHRIST SAKE!  Frontier Airlines flies there for under $300!  

 

It's like Whitney's "big announcement" for "her" dance class, which actually had nothing whatsoever to do with them.  Having those women (most of whom appear to have more rhythm and grace than she does) learn her "flash mob" dance was not "bringing L.A. to them."  

 

AAAARRGGHHH.  I really am just hate-watching this show at this point.  The only good thing to come out of this season for me is that I saw the preview for that Coach Charming show, and that guy is pretty funny.

[AnJen]

Referencing the PCOS, you actually can have PCOS without cysts present; despite the obvious-sounding name, cysts on the ovaries is just one of many possible symptoms of PCOS, and isn't a requirement. You can be diagnosed by blood tests alone. Whitney presents with plenty of other symptoms: hirsutism (which is caused by the excess testosterone/androgens), elevated blood sugar, obesity, irregular periods. So that she didn't know she had cysts isn't totally surprising. I was diagnosed with PCOS at 13, and the first time a doctor checked me for cysts on my ovaries was when I was 24.

 

What I am surprised by is that Whitney's doctor doesn't have her on Metformin and birth control; the Metformin would treat both the T2 diabetes and helps with the hirsutism and lack of ovulation (it also makes you crazily nauseous for like the first 2-4 weeks you take it, so you lose weight when you take it and anytime the doctor ups your dosage, which for most women with PCOS is a desired side-effect). But the birth control one surprised me most. I had several doctors explain to me how important it is for a woman's body to menstruate at minimum 4 times/year; irregular periods create a much higher risk for endometrial cancer.

 

I was put on birth control at age 15/16 to "force" my body to bleed regularly. If Whitney has had "10 periods in her life" at age 32, the only thing I can assume is that she hasn't been seeing any doctor regularly in the 11 years since she has been diagnosed. 

 

As far as fertility goes, from what I understand, most women with PCOS really have no idea whether they'll be fertile or not until they're actually trying. After a few months of trying and failing, it might be a quick fix or it might be a hopeless case. I've been a member of a few PCOS forums since I was about 16, and honestly there doesn't seem to be any ability to predict fertility before you're actually trying. I could be wrong about that, though, as I have never tried to get pregnant and am not planning to anytime in the forseeable future. But from my experience talking to others, it seems that some expect it to be impossible and are pregnant right away, some get pregnant easily but miscarry every time or almost every time, some require a bit of medical help and then do fine, some spend thousands of dollars on every possible method available and still can't conceive. 

 

For Whitney, all of this seems pointless given that Lenny seems vaguely disinterested in her, at best, and slightly repulsed at worst.

 

As always, the show cut out any actual advice the doctor may have given. Losing weight is going to be Whitney's best chance if she truly wants to conceive. I was very much in the same situation (maybe that's why she annoys me so much? Her PCOS symptoms are almost exactly the same as mine), rarely if ever menstruated on my own. I was 310lbs, and by the time I got to 260 I was having regular periods. It doesn't have to be a massive feat. I went from 310 to 260 with minimal effort, but it improved my PCOS symptoms greatly. I still have many other of the symptoms, but as I lose weight, I expect that they'll also improve.

Edited November 13, 2015 by AnJen

[RCharter]

Congratulations AnJen, losing 50 pounds is no small accomplishment!  I'm having a hell of a time dropping 15!!

[leighroda]

Very true anjen, I guess my point with Whitney and the cysts (horrible band name) isn't so much that that she was surprised she had them, the scene kinda read to me that she seemed shocked that they could be there, but I have no idea what she was actually thinking, so who knows.

And on the fertility note, I am 33 and I don't have kids, so I can actually understand her just wanting to know, I'm not even dating anyone or have any potential of having a child anytime soon, but I have also never even had a pregnancy scare, and I sometimes wonder at what point I should consider doing testing because my chances are just going to decrease, so if I'm already at a point where it's not possible or unlikely to get pregnant I would like to know now if I need to keep other options on hand, I have no idea if I have any fertility issues, for all I know I may have had trouble getting pregnant even if I were younger. I just sometimes feel crazy for even worrying about that if I'm not in a place where children are a possibility right now.

One of my best friends had difficulty getting pregnant at first, she had pcos and thyroid issues, she did the metformin, tried to lose weight (she's not obese by any means but was slightly overweight, so her doctor told her that would help) she eventually got pregnant, and had a baby girl, and then 2 years later no effort at all got pregnant again. So to a degree fertility with pcos can vary even within the same person so, I can see that saying pcos in general makes fertility harder isn't really true.

[Alapaki]

Referencing the PCOS, you actually can have PCOS without cysts present; despite the obvious-sounding name, cysts on the ovaries is just one of many possible symptoms of PCOS, and isn't a requirement. 

 

 

I agree.  But Whitney's reaction was like "well, I knew with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome I'd have hair-growth, weight-gain, blood-sugar, but no one told me about ovarian cysts!!!" Which is ridiculous.

 

What I am surprised by is that Whitney's doctor doesn't have her on Metformin and birth control;

 

 

Maybe I'm making this up, but I could swear I head Whitney say once that she's trying to deal with her PCOS "drug-free", which may be why we never see or hear about her treating with an endocrinologist.  Again, I may have misheard.  But, either way, given how much emphasis Whitney places on her PCOS, and how far she goes to script enough daily activities to provide enough footage for this show, I don't understand why we don't hear more about how she's actually treating for her PCOS.

[DanaMB]

 

I had several doctors explain to me how important it is for a woman's body to menstruate at minimum 4 times/year; irregular periods create a much higher risk for endometrial cancer.

 

 

I, too, had my doctor explain that to me and she was adamant I go on something to prevent endometrial cancer. I hope Whitney is on something, because it's not healthy not to menstruate.

[Snarklepuss]

Referencing the PCOS, you actually can have PCOS without cysts present; despite the obvious-sounding name, cysts on the ovaries is just one of many possible symptoms of PCOS, and isn't a requirement. You can be diagnosed by blood tests alone. Whitney presents with plenty of other symptoms: hirsutism (which is caused by the excess testosterone/androgens), elevated blood sugar, obesity, irregular periods. So that she didn't know she had cysts isn't totally surprising. I was diagnosed with PCOS at 13, and the first time a doctor checked me for cysts on my ovaries was when I was 24.

 

I can understand not giving you an ultrasound at 13, but at least your doctor tested you when you were 24, not 31. And Whitney was only having the ultrasound because she was curious if she could have children.  I know my doctor would have wanted to see what was going on in there.  As soon as I had some bad periods he had me do an ultrasound to see what was going on in my uterus.  It turned out I had fibroids.  Then he had me come in for an ultrasound every few months for a year or so to monitor them.  Fortunately they didn't grow and I went through menopause soon after so no more bad periods.  So I still don't get why Whitney never had an ultrasound before this.  I understand that the cysts in that syndrome aren't harmful but I still wonder why her doctor wasn't more thorough than that.

Edited November 14, 2015 by Snarklepuss

[Stripper Glitter]

"As far as the OBGYN/Fertility doctor goes I think a LOT was let on the cutting room floor. The whole scene seemed a little disjointed to me and I know for a fact that weight is going to be an issue in getting pregnant. Why it wasn't mentioned on the show is beyond me. My best friend is about 100lbs over weight and she had trouble becoming pregnant. She was pre diabetic & had irregular periods as well so she was told to get her diabetes in check and loose some weight to get her periods back to normal and she would have better luck getting preggers."

I don't know how much weight this angle should hold. My best friend is also approx 100 pounds overweight and was able to get pregnant whenever she tried. Me, well I was FIT and normal weight and had a hell of a time, and had to use fertility meds. Also, I do medical transcription and there is no shortage of morbidly obese woman coming in for their C sections. Being overweight probably does have a statistical element in infertility, but the more I see and experience the more dubious I am about how important it is.

We might be friends ;-) I am considerably overweight and was during each of my 4 pregnancies/deliveries. I had no trouble conceiving or carrying to term. 3/4 were c-section births with no complications. No high bp or gestational diabetes. Fat doesn't automatically mean trouble having children.

[Granny58]

We might be friends ;-) I am considerably overweight and was during each of my 4 pregnancies/deliveries. I had no trouble conceiving or carrying to term. 3/4 were c-section births with no complications. No high bp or gestational diabetes. Fat doesn't automatically mean trouble having children.

quite right!  My overweight friend had NO high BP or gestational diabetes or any of it.  Start to finish....easy.  I guess because, aside from weight, she had no other problems.  Another poster remarked that weight is probably a factor when there are other issues involved and altogether it makes it more difficult, which seems reasonable.  As I mentioned, I had to use the fertility meds and then I had a weird complication that nobody in my circle had ever heard of before (and frankly, my ob/gyn was unaware)....cholestasis of pregnancy.  Only my reproductive endocrinologist knew.   Oh well, I guess it serves me right.  I had been blase about conceiving....never figuring I would have problems.  It does make me so much more emphathetic towards people who do.

[OnceSane]

Personal anecdotes belong in the Small Talk thread.

[okerry]

I agree.  But Whitney's reaction was like "well, I knew with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome I'd have hair-growth, weight-gain, blood-sugar, but no one told me about ovarian cysts!!!" Which is ridiculous.

 

 

Maybe I'm making this up, but I could swear I head Whitney say once that she's trying to deal with her PCOS "drug-free", which may be why we never see or hear about her treating with an endocrinologist.  Again, I may have misheard.  But, either way, given how much emphasis Whitney places on her PCOS, and how far she goes to script enough daily activities to provide enough footage for this show, I don't understand why we don't hear more about how she's actually treating for her PCOS.

I hate to say it, but I don't think she IS treating it. Unfortunately, PCOS has given her this high-paying and hugely attention-getting gig. If she really does treat her PCOS and/or obesity in a serious way, bye-by TV show.

 

Although I'd much rather see a TV show like that. I'd watch a woman taking a serious journey to overcome PCOS and obesity, and show others how it can be done. But this way - with Whitney desperately, desperately, desperately trying to convince everyone that she really is healthy and fabulous even though she weighs in the neighborhood of 400 pounds and has serious gynecological issues - I think she's doing a lot more harm than good.

 

Whitney does remind of Ruby, another hugely overweight woman. She seemed to have some kind of molestation issue in her past but it was never resolved on the TV show. Why? Because if it was, no more TV show. That one got canceled anyway. IMHO, Ruby was a huge narcissist and Whitney shows signs of that, too.

 

No, I don't think overweight people should hide and be ashamed. But going to the other extreme can be just as harmful. JMHO.

Very true anjen, I guess my point with Whitney and the cysts (horrible band name) 

OMG, you owe me a new keyboard! Too funny!

[preciousperfect]

No, I don't think overweight people should hide and be ashamed. But going to the other extreme can be just as harmful. JMHO.

She is definitely not hiding. What is the deal with constantly wearing tank tops/sports bras around? I feel like she dresses like that so everyone will say oh look she's active/dancing! It's not appropriate for people of any size to dress like that. Yick.

 

Maybe instead of the No BS campaign she could start a clothing line. 

[winsomeone]

She needs to cover herself up. Normal 31 year olds do not go out into public dressed like she does, no matter what size they are.

[Tosia]

Amen to the wearing of sports bras outside of the gym or dance studio. PULLEESE! Not a good look on anyone of any size. ....particularly since Whit wears the cheap stretchy ones, instead of the new built-in bra ones which are some much better in terms of support and looks. SERIOUSLY, she also need to get some better, sturdier tennis/athletic shoes. The old, worn out gray/beige (used to be white) speeds look like shit. Whit wore them in California with a stretchy sun dress. What the help is she spending money on?

What the hell, not help. I really need to edit more on my phone. Sorry.

[Alapaki]

I bet the Sports-Bra-As-Shirt thing is something Whitney does to show us how "comfortable she is in her own body", which IMO she is quite obviously not.

[Tosia]

I think Whitney is a slobby dresser...the stretchy sports bras, the incessant yoga pants, the worn out tennis shoes. She wore a couple of stretchy sun dresses in California but we didn't hear about the thigh chub rub then. Too bad she doesn't even try to be a better role model....there has got to be a big size women's clothing line that would sponsor her somewhere.

[RCharter]

I think Whitney is a slobby dresser...the stretchy sports bras, the incessant yoga pants, the worn out tennis shoes. She wore a couple of stretchy sun dresses in California but we didn't hear about the thigh chub rub then. Too bad she doesn't even try to be a better role model....there has got to be a big size women's clothing line that would sponsor her somewhere.

I don't often cut Whitney much slack, but I imagine that at 400 pounds she has given up on "dressing pretty."  I'll do it because it makes me feel good, but even at my fairly regular size when I dress nice, its not nearly as comfortable as dressing in a sports bra/tennis shoes.  At her size, she isn't going to get a ton of positive feedback about how she looks when she dresses "pretty," and so she probably doesn't feel pretty.  If  you don't have the incentive of feeling good, I guess you just dress for comfort.

 

I feel like Whitney's size is a little beyond the pale.  I feel like even plus size clothing companies still want to dress a girl of a certain size....Lane Bryant models are generally just thicker women from what I can see.

[Tosia]

Whitney still vould wear better (cleaner, not old or dirty) tennis shoes, as well as a real blouse/top vs. Weak, saggy sports bra in public. I'm sorry, but I have "around the house" big, baggy comfort clothes and nicer casual clothes when go out of the house. Workout wear is another category to go to the gym, or maybe with a side trip to the store, IF and only IF I have a hoodie or jacket so my nips dont show through my t shirt from my sports bra. Whitney needs a personal styler stat. And clothes dont need to cost that much if she just started building a wardrobe......with tailoring for when she loses weight. Stacy and Clinton drilled that message home over the past ten years on WNTW. Instead of no body shame, how about some self respect for dressing your body. Stacy and Clinton also warned women NOT to wait until they lost weight to buy nice, appropriate clothing. Do it now so you feel better. Whitney seems to have many (exhausting) issues, although it seems she should also have the time to take care of some of them, since she does not work full-time or have kids.

Edited November 20, 2015 by Tosia

[Bugfrey Von]

I am super distracted by the two different make up styles during Whit's talking head. It's obvious that they had her come back and comment on other things and one make up job is significantly more impressive than the other.

I would have been pissed as shit at "Big Whit".

[Alapaki]

I am super distracted by the two different make up styles during Whit's talking head. It's obvious that they had her come back and comment on other things and one make up job is significantly more impressive than the other.

 

 

I noticed that particularly during the confessionals in the finale her makeup was noticeably better than at other times.  

 

It also seems like several of these late-season episodes were aired out of order.

 

So there may have been a lot of editing and scene-swapping, along with some added confessionals, in order to either put together a full season or to squeeze a few more episodes out of the material they already had.

[Alapaki]

I also think that some of the clothing Whitney wore on her trip to L.A. (especially to the "brunch" with Sean) shows that there are clothes in her size that can make her look presentable.  Maybe TLC paid for those.  But it reinforces for me that the reason she goes with the sports bras and ratty leggings is to show how empowered she is about her own body.

[leighroda]

I noticed at the game she was in black leggings (the game where she was following the guy, not when she was. Acting as him) so I guess Kate lost the kahki battle, didn't she say she would let the leggings slide for that game, but I thought she was expected to still get Kakhi pants.

[monagatuna]

I agree that her makeup looked really good in a lot of the THs. She looked really pretty, and her eyes just sparkled.

 

Is it weird that I thought she did really well at the game? That kind of job needs a big, over-the-top personality, and she fits it pretty well.

[cynicat]

I think they needed a different producer for this because it's a serious subject being handled like a typical ridiculous reality show.

 

You are being way too logical.  Ridiculous reality show is the the point, and there is no payoff for them to be serious, or even medically correct.  

[lallalla]

Scroll down to see a pic of Lennie sans beard and where to view some of his original artwork.

Something unsettling about that pic, I can't quite place it, maybe one of you, who always seem to perfectly and eloquently state what I'm thinking and feeling, can put words to it. :)

Lennie Unbearded

[RCharter]

that beard is awful.

[lallalla]

20 minutes ago, RCharter said:

that beard is awful.

Did you check out his artwork linked in the above article? It's odd drawings/paintings of things/people with beards. No, seriously, that's what he draws.  

[RCharter]

1 minute ago, lallalla said:

Did you check out his artwork linked in the above article? It's odd drawings/paintings of things/people with beards. No, seriously, that's what he draws.  

I think it was removed from the article :(

I can't believe he wasted paint to draw that terrible beard.