Tom Cruise and Pscyhiatry: Not a Fan

The New York Times has a brief article about the Today' show host Matt Lauer's interview with Tom Cruise and Mr. Cruise's attack on pharmaceutical cures for mental disabilities and his rather negative view of psychiatry in general.  Here are some choice excerpts from the show, curtesy of the Detriot Free Press,

Cruise also told Lauer he didn't understand the effects of prescribing the drug Ritalin when the host asked Cruise about Brooke Shields, whom Cruise previously slammed for promoting medication and psychiatry to deal with postpartum depression.

 

Cruise's tone grew fiercer -- Cruise accused Lauer of being glib -- and when Lauer mentioned how psychiatry helped Shields, Cruise declared: "I've never agreed with psychiatry, ever. Before I was a Scientologist I never agreed, and when I became a Scientologist, I never agreed. ... All it does is mask the problem."

 

Cruise also insisted, "There is no such thing as a chemical unbalance," and that through "vitamins and exercise" a person's problems can be cured. "Drugs are not the answer," said Cruise. "I think there's a better quality of life."

I am not a psychiatrist but perhaps someone could use some counseling . . . . [bm]