Just saying her name can elicit a strong response and more often than not, that of the eye-rolling variety. Many think she's a spoiled little rich girl and because she's been with the likes of Brad Pitt and Chris Martin that even though those didn't work out, what could she know about problems?
 |
| (Source: Giphy.com) |
When she started Goop back in 2008, you could almost feel the collective eye roll from the world. "What does she know? She's promoting woo woo crap!" (Talking about steaming your vagina probably didn't help matters but you do you, boo.) But really, what do any of us know but what we experience and the path we're on to try to make ourselves better people? (Hopefully) Growing up in Hollywood has to have pressures and drawbacks that balance or even tip the scales to outweigh the privilege most of us can't understand. She relates her experiences which aren't in line with what most of us have, so to many she sounds pompous when discussing problems or sharing something from her wellness routine.
I'm neutral where she's concerned. I've never seen Shakespeare in Love or really many movies with her in it other than 7even. I think she's got this natural beauty that is almost calming just to look at for me. Even though I wouldn't pay $75 for any candle, I think if her 'this smells like my vagina' candle of "geranium, bergamot, and cedar with hints of rose" were about $40 cheaper, I'd get it and just turn the label. (She said it as a joke btw but apparently, the perceived elite aren't allowed to joke.) 😏
It's no surprise when the Goop Lab series popped up on Netflix that the sharks began circling to attack her for "promoting pseudoscience." I had no plans to watch it but the backlash was so loud, I ended up having it on in the background...and liked it. I couldn't relate to the polar plunge episode so I didn't watch that one all the way but watched the rest. I didn't see anything that should have people up in arms other than the fact it's presented by her. One article talked about "what she got wrong about mental health." First off, at the beginning of every episode, there is a clear notification that it is for entertainment purposes and shouldn't be a substitute for medical advice. The episode that the article is referring to is when some of her staff tried this MDMA-assisted psychotherapy (mushrooms) in a controlled environment as a tool for healing grief and PTSD. Many of these people said traditional therapy hadn't worked for them. That is an important statement that seems to get swept aside just because therapy does work for many people. Sorry, but if the FDA recognized the benefits of the therapy then it shouldn't be dismissed for those who still need help. If people try various forms of therapy without success, there's no harm in trying a less conventional one. If those people poo poo traditional therapy it doesn't mean it's trying to persuade everyone to do so as well, it just means that was their experience.
There are other things to jump on like the episodes about mediums, anti-aging methods like diet and varying facials from acupuncture and vampire varieties as well as cryotherapy and energy healing. All things considered a little "out there" by those still clinging to old school medical mentalities and let's face it, what we don't know or what isn't proven, we're skeptical of. I'm the first person to give a healthy dose of side eye. Watching Julianne Hough getting "exorcised" from her booty by an energy healer, has people freaking out. Would I ever do it? I kind of have. It did zero for me but I think a lot of it had to do with the woman had just gone on for 30 minutes before going into Reiki about her boob rash and keto and it pissed me off. The only energy being released that day was when I punished her with a carb fart on my way out and shut the door. For some therapies, the mind has to be completely open and I do believe the body has an ability to heal itself given the right circumstances.
As far as what's presented, the best episode, in my opinion, was "The Pleasure is Ours" because it has a very powerful message about women's bodies that we all need to hear. Just like one of the women says, "intimacy is hard" and it is. You can be vulnerable and tell your partner all kinds of things but it's hard to really feel yourself sometimes, especially if you have body issues. It's also hard to do something as simple as keeping eye contact with someone saying nothing and feel exposed in a way that has nothing to do with sex. I want to be Betty Dodson when I grow up!
In the end, the decision is ours if we want to do what is currently considered alternative therapies. If we find out about it from Gweynth or a Google scroll, so what? If Julianne wants to have whatever bad juju she was storing in her butt realigned, she's got the money to shell out and it brings her relief whether real or perceived, WTF do I care? Given traditional medical communities have personally failed us in certain situations, the Mr and I are very open to alternative therapies in addition to traditional therapies. I don't care how I find out about them. I don't care if the person is rich or poor or if I like them or not. It's my job to research it to see if it's something that would help me/us on our journey to wellness. If all we get is lighter in the wallet, lesson learned. But for some people who didn't know these alternatives existed, they could be lifesaving. People who don't buy into those therapies shouldn't mock those who do. You don't get it? Fine.
I'm sure Gwenny doesn't need the likes of this lady defending her but I'm so tired of this mob mentality culture looking for chum in the water. We all live our lives differently and that doesn't make us wrong, it makes us different. I actually bookmarked Goop and while some of the things are unrelatable to me, other things are. If they continue to crank out content I like then I might just start saving up for that candle.
What celebrity do you feel gets targeted unfairly?
====================
Like this post? Don't miss another one...subscribe via email or RSS feed. (Or you can follow me on Facebook ) Some posts may contain affiliate links which help keep this blog running at no cost to you. See the Disclaimer page for more info.
I wasn't really aware that there was such animosity toward her out there but I guess I've been indifferent. I liked her in the movies I've seen her in and she seems like she'd actually be an interesting person to hang out with. But the sentiment of what you're saying is solid and ultimately it comes down to trying to respect each other in this world even in spite of differences. It's like society expects us to all have the same experiences, thoughts and beliefs. It doesn't work that way but there are so many who expect it to. Not sure where they ever got the idea that society would just bend to their will but the world would be a better place if we would all try a bit harder to see eye to eye.
ReplyDeleteI don't follow her enough to know about any of this, but I am aware of negativity following her. I guess to me, adults are one thing. I don't like all this focus on their personal lives when they're just trying to live their lives but as adults they can handle it. The thing that I wish is the celebrity kids and child actors could be left alone and just be kids.
ReplyDeleteI get it. She's not just a rich actress, she's Hollywood royalty, daughter of Blythe Danner and Bruce Paltrow. She's about as sheltered as one can get. And she's promoting products with outrageous prices as if they can make us better. Just drink all your calories from a blender like Gwyneth and you too can have seemingly immortal beauty and glide through life without a care!
ReplyDeleteIt's the "without a care part" that I think ticks people off the most. Ironically Dr. Oz is slinging worse sh!t than GOOP and doesn't get anywhere near the backlash. Then again, he's a relatively good looking MALE doctor. And she does have cares.
In an interview she was asked about the "conscious uncoupling" statement after her divorce and the backlash she got. Gwyneth said she understands that things looked easier than they actually were. Of course it was hard but her private life is private and they both had to do what was best for the kids, which included not dragging everything into the open. Which shows how smart and thoughtful she really is. But you have to look for it. You have to know she is actually involved in GOOP, not just handing assignments off to lackeys. She's a hard-working actress and business woman and mother and as much as she seems to strut around as if her poo doesn't stink, she seems pretty self-aware. She deserves more respect than the public gives her.
And I totally get your comment about "mob mentality." The anonymous commenting public is so eager to jump on anyone. It seems the noise is loudest when a woman is at the center of it.
She seems a little "out there" to me, but to each his own. Selling a vag candle? Strange but not my worry.
ReplyDeleteI don't follow her so I'm not aware of any animosity towards her. But then, I'm like that with most Hollywood stuff. I'm just very out of touch. I do recall an interview with Patricia Heaton where she said it's very difficult to be a conservative in Hollywood and how she and her husband had been blackballed throughout the years and she missed out on roles because of it. A friend of mine went off on a tangent the other day about Meghan Markle about how she's a gold digger and ripping apart the royal family. I was like you don't actually know this woman or any of their circumstances, other than what you hear in the media, so why all the hate? It's very odd to me how vicious people can be about people they don't even know.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, I fully agree about how there is a mob mentality about everyone having to do something the same way. And I've seen it both ways. Either follow 'traditional' ways or follow 'whatever's trending.' I, for one, do a therapy that is not "of the norm" by any stretch, and there are only two people I know of who've done it, much less heard of it. It's not mainstream therapy (except in PTSD situations which is the basis of it), and it's scary to go through it, but very effective for me. I've never done biofeedback therapy with being hooked up to sensors, so I can't speak to that, but I don't poo-poo anyone's belief on what works for them, whether it be trying different things for mental, physical, or spiritual well-being. Nothing in life is "one-size-fits-all" so when someone finds something that really resonates with them, I applaud that.