Cruise is a Scientologist with little to NO real experience or training in any of the specialty fields he is talking about.
He claims to have studied the "history of Psychiatry" and that it is a pseudo-science with no evidence for using the meds that are used. He actually states, "there is no such thing as a chemical imbalance"! He believes that exercise and vitamins will get you through anything! (Well, those two and enough money, anyway!!!) /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon6.gif
His recent interviews are causing huge discussions in all kinds of forums, including here, my wifes favorite photography forum, and so on.
One of the big problems with celebrity is that it allows someone who is famous for one thing to have a huge pulpit for something else, regardless of their training or experience. We have seen huge disservice done to varied interests by celebrities who actually know nothing about what they are saying but think they do! Meryl Streep on Alar in the late '80's was another example.
While undoubtedly a fine actor, Mr. Cruise has a long way to go before he has any chance at actually BEGINNING to understand depression and other mental illness. Brooke Shields had a very good response to Mr. Cruise's criticism of her use of Paxil for treatment of her postpartum depression that is available elsewhere on the Web.
Finally, it's interesting that Mr. Cruise's conversion to Scientology occurred because he claimed it helped him overcome his lifetime problems with dyslexia, leaving behind his supposedly devout adherence to Catholocism. He actually was studying to be a priest at one point before his conversion. Now he says Scientology is a religion, but that you can be both a Scientologist and a Christian, however he couldn't explain how to do that during his recent interview with Matt Lauer.
Leaving out his religious beliefs, which is hard to do since they impact his beliefs on medical and psychiatric care so heavily, he seems to have developed a chemical imbalance of his own lately! His actions on the Oprah show would seem to confirm that!
Bill