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Dr. Drew

Comedians Reveal Private Pain

Aired August 13, 2014 - 21:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. DREW PINSKY, HLN HOST (voice-over): Tonight, psychiatric illnesses secret no more. Robin Williams` death rips the lid off the

shame, the blame and the stigma of depression.

Millions have taken to social media to share their stories and fellow comics are here with me, publicly revealing the private pain suffered by so

many.

Let`s get started.

(MUSIC)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PINSKY: Good evening. My co-host is Samantha Schacher.

And coming up, we have Jamie Kennedy and Carlos Mencia. They will take us inside the not-so always funny world of comedy.

SAMANTHA SCHACHER, CO-HOST: That`s right, Dr. Drew.

Many are coming from a dark place and they admit it now that Robin Williams` death has called attention to mental illness.

PINSKY: Yes. And, Sam, they`re also talking about how -- I talked to some comedians this afternoon who were saying that, you know, we`re really

kind of thinking about our comedy as a drug. You know, we go up there and get high from it and then we get off and we`re left back in an empty hotel

ram with that same emptiness.

And tonight, we`re going to try to answer the question so many of you are asking, on Twitter and Facebook, are comedians prone to depression? If

so, why?

Listen to what some of them have told us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Comedy is a lonely existence.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You know, I -- we`ve lost so many comedians in the last few years to drugs and depression. I mean, you know, what John Lennon

said it`s getting better all the time. It couldn`t get much worse.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All the other comics, part of the drug is going out on stage and feeling the connection with people because you get to be

so close with those people, but yet you`re so not close with them because the second you leave that stage, they`re out of your life.

PINSKY: That`s right.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s like a sickness and a drug.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PINSKY: Joining us: Vanessa Barnett, HipHollywood.com, Jillian Barberie, TV personality, co-host of KABC`s "Midday L.A.".

And comedian Heather McDonald, star of her own special on Showtime. "I Don`t Mean to Brag", it`s on August 29th. But trust me, she will brag

about it.

But, Heather, my question to you is, is pain -- you don`t strike me as somebody who is in pain, Heather. Is the idea of pain essential to be

funny false?

HEATHER MCDONALD, STORY PRODUCER, "CHELSEA LATELY": You know, it is really interesting, because we were talking about it with the other

comedians and "Chelsea Lately" and so many have been saying that. You`re not really funny unless you do have pain.

I`m lucky enough not to suffer from depression but I do have it in my family. I have seen some dark things in my life. I don`t know if that`s

what makes me funny.

I do agree that there is something weird about someone that wants to get in front of strangers and have them look at you and the high that you

get off of that. I have it and I love it. And you cannot go to bed right after no matter what. Like, you know, I --

PINSKY: You get high.

MCDONALD: Well, I don`t get high but I do like a glass of chardonnay. I cannot go to sleep right away, no matter what. Even if I have a flight

at 5 clock the next morning, I cannot go to sleep for hours after. I kind of know that about myself now.

PINSKY: Now, you take Ambien.

MCDONALD: No, I don`t take Ambien.

PINSKY: You said something about Ambien in the past.

MCDONALD: I take ZzzQuil because a doctor told me he would not give me Ambien because so many people become addicted.

PINSKY: There you go. So, Heather would be funnier if she were in more pain, Jillian.

JILLIAN BARBERIE, TV PERSONALITY: Heather is funny anyway. I`ve known Heather for many years. She`s funny on and off the camera.

But, you know, I`m brought back to Richard Jeni. I don`t know if you guys spoke about Richard Jenny. But I knew his girlfriend Amy very well

and still speak with her, and she literally went out for coffee, came back and he had shot himself and she found him.

And he`s a guy who had the biggest heart, very similar to Robin Williams from what I gather. I don`t know if the pain and the torture,

look at Jerry Seinfeld, he seems to be fine and he`s had huge success and he`s very funny.

So, I don`t know how it relates. We don`t know what happened in Robin`s personal life and it`s just heartbreaking all around to know that

someone -- you know, people can call this a selfish act, but how much do you have to hate yourself to do something like this? Who are we to judge?

PINSKY: Well, Jillian, I`m going to bring, what we`re talking about next is Robin Williams` daughter Zelda who quit social media. And, Sam,

you`re going to tell me what went down with that.

My understanding is some of this was about people accusing him of being selfish. Let me just address that real quick.

Two things, I`ve said it before in the show. What is -- you try not to think of yourself if you`re in so much overwhelming pain, whether it`s

physical or emotional, it`s impossible, number one. And number two, people who are severely depressed start feeling worthless and like they`re a

burden to everyone, especially the family and believe the family would be better off without them.

Sam?

SCHACHER: Yes, that`s heartbreaking. And did you want me to respond in regard to Zelda now?

PINSKY: Yes, please. That`s now.

SCHACHER: OK. So, Zelda, this is so sad and infuriating. Zelda is Robin Williams` daughter. And as you said, she quit social media,

primarily her Instagram, her Tumblr, her Twitter, because not only did she get a lot of support, she also got a lot of harassment, Dr. Drew. And we

like to call these people "Internet trolls". And they were tweeting her really cruel things. They were also photo shopping pictures of her

father`s dead body, depictions of her father`s dead body, and she could not grieve in peace.

So, she thought the only way that she could grieve in peace was just to quit it all together.

I do want to say really quickly that Twitter did suspend those accounts in question, thank God.

PINSKY: Great, great.

Vanessa, listen, so actually the trolls are criticizing her for not putting enough pictures online when the private pictures should be on your

mantle in your house. I mean, what`s going on here?

VANESSA BARNETT, HIPHOLLYWOOD.COM: Absolutely. But the problem is you have so many of these people that hop online under this cloud of you`re

never going to know who I am, and so, they feel like they can do whatever and say whatever.

A lot of times I don`t think they mean the things they say. I think they`re just looking for a reaction. They`re looking for their 15 minutes.

They want the retweet. They want someone to address what they`re saying so then they can say, oh, Zelda spoke to me. They`re very sick individuals.

I also did want to comment on the selfish act, because as someone who has used that phrase before. I am now embarrassed to say that I have said

that, but I will own it and I will say it. And I`ll say the only reason I have changed my mind is because of you. But knowing people who have also

used the phrase, I don`t think it`s ever said in a derogatory sense.

We`re not talking away --

PINSKY: You`re angry. It`s OK to be angry. It`s OK. Anger is normal.

BARNETT: Exactly. Now, we know.

PINSKY: Listen, I want to go on the phone, I`ve got comedian Carlos Mencia.

Carlos, thanks for joining us. You know, everyone has brought up this idea of getting high on stage. Is that accurate? And what happens when

the high is over?

CARLOS MENCIA, COMEDIAN (via telephone): (AUDIO GAP) you get adrenaline, and you know, endorphins get into your body and you`re actually

brighter and faster, your brain functions are actually more acute when you`re on stage, and it takes awhile for it to go away. That`s where

you`ll hear comedians say, we can`t go to sleep.

But if you think about it, you know, the one thing that we talk about when we say comedy from when I can remember is that the formula is tragedy

plus time equals comedy.

PINSKY: Yes.

MENCIA: So, so much of what we do comes from that. Now somebody mentioned Jerry Seinfeld. Jerry is one of those comics, luckily, the

things that he talks about aren`t, you know, being a minority, you know, being oppressed or being beaten or being abused as a kid, that kind of

stuff.

When comics like that get into those dark places and they`re being comedians, we see everything is funny. Whatever tragic moment, we

literally think, how long do I have to wait before I tell this joke. That`s why you hear comedians always say, oh, too soon? Because the

audiences are ready to hear what we thought of the minute the tragedy happened.

PINSKY: Wow.

MENCIA: One of the problems is when that switch is turned off and we`re in those dark places and we don`t see the comedy. Where we don`t see

the humor and the darkness of the Palestinian and Jewish conflict or my mother beat me or my dad abused me, or whatever those really harsh dark

moments are and we`re not in comedy mode, and we can`t get out of it and that depression takes you to a much, much darker place.

That is, that is a big problem. And if you think of Richard Pryor, one of his greatest standup routines was talking about how he lit himself

on fire and tried to kill himself. We laugh at it. We`re laughing saying, God, this is brilliant.

The problems with comics like that and myself included is when we`re at our darkest, sometimes that`s when we`re the funniest to other people.

So, it`s almost counterintuitive.

How can this guy be depressed? He`s having a great set. This material so insightful, so there, so into himself. This is great.

And those are the times sometimes where you really need to look out the most because those are the times when we are the darkest and we`re the

most vulnerable and we do, you know, do drugs sometimes and go to that other high. And when those are done, then the depression is even worse

after you take drugs.

PINSKY: Yes, I think that`s the point. That the fixes, whether it`s stage or drugs or people or the audiences, the fixes feel good in the

moment and leave you empty on the other side, or craving more and unable to fill that void.

Carlos, thank you so much for joining us.

I`ve got to move on to the next segment. I`ve got Jamie Kennedy here who met Robin Williams when they worked on the "Dead Poets Society".

And later, adult star Jenna Jamison, police are still fighting the MMA fighter who beat up and almost killed her friend.

She will join us to discuss. Back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The most fun with Robin was being alone with him, because he would calm down and you would get the real him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Instead of being one of these comedians where I want you to see me, I want you to, you know, notice and like me. It never

seemed to come from that. It seemed to come from a space of I know you`re having a rough week and I know it`s my job to make you forget that for a

time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: FALLON: He would just -- you get into, like, oh, yes, thank you, the guys sitting at home going, what the hell is going on

there, yes, and the kid going, that`s not the way, yes, and then he`s like Martha grandma, ball and chain and kicking (ph), yes, thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He bought me this bicycle and had it delivered to my house and I was the most absurd bicycle that you have ever seen.

UNIDENTIFEID MALE: It looked like a Mardi gras parade.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It did.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He would cry laughing and you would think I`m never going to see anyone like this human ever.

(END VIDEO CLIPS)

PINSKY: Back with Sam. Back with our behavior bureau.

Judy Ho, clinical psychologist, professor of Pepperdine University; Erica America, psychotherapist, TV host; and Leeann Tweeden, social

commentator and host of "Tomboy`s Podcast" on Blog Talk Radio.

You just heard a handful of tributes to Robin Williams. There are so many out there, so many on social media and twitter.

But, Sam, there`s a tweet that is being criticized. Tell me about this.

SCHACHER: Yes, I want you to take a look at this tweet. And it`s from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, Dr. Drew. And in

honor of Robin Williams, they tweeted a photo from "Aladdin" with a caption, "genie, you`re free". It`s been retweeted over 300,000 times.

So, tell us. Isn`t it sending a wrong message here?

PINSKY: What are they taking issue with, Sam? What is it --

SCHACHER: People -- I`ll tell you what, if you read the comments, because there is controversy surrounding this photo and the commentary is

the fact that people believe that they are promoting suicide. That if you commit suicide, then you`re all of the sudden free from all of the hell

that you`re going through.

PINSKY: Look, Erica, I`ll let you comment. But it`s clearly from a sweet place. It`s a tender memory. I`m getting emotional thinking about

it. It triggers an emotional spot that we all have with one of his favorite characters. This was my children`s Robin Williams.

Erica, wrong message?

ERICA AMERICA, Z100: Yes. Absolutely not. I want to say that Robin Williams fought for 63 years against an illness that he did not choose. I

want to take the time it doesn`t matter how rich you are, how smart you are, how amazing and successful you are, mental illness and addiction has

no boundaries.

And, specifically, he`s working hard, being successful and has the job of entertaining so many people when inside, he might not have that much.

And I just want people to think of in their everyday circle of the people they know, there are people that have mental illness that are not

saying it because it`s not okay. There`s still a stigma. We need to abolish the stigma.

PINSKY: But, Erica, I think Robin has left us with that gift. A lot of people are talking about -- we heard Karamo on this program coming

forward with something he`d never spoken in public. He talked about on this television program, and a lot of people talking about their -- it`s so

common, Judy. It`s so common, A.

And I want to go back to the cartoon that Sam was talking about there. I mean, what if he had had cancer or heart disease and passed away and they

tweeted this same thing. It`s the same thing. Why do we have to treat brain diseases differently?

JUDY HO, PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY: Right. And so, we`re speaking again of the stigma that`s pervasive even though we`re trying to do this re-

education, that this is, in fact, a brain disorder.

And you know what? I think the criticism is coming from the fact that when you look at the statistics, 25 percent or 40 percent of people in

their lifetime will have experienced depression at some point. So, that affects a lot of people and a lot of people that we know.

So, I think the criticism is coming from people who`ve either suffered themselves or seen somebody suffer. And they`re very, very sensitive.

It`s a very, very tough issue for them.

So, anything can be kind of -- you know, not good territory because they can`t process it when they`re thinking about their friends.

PINSKY: Well, Leeann, you`re nodding your head, Leeann.

LEEANN TWEEDEN, SOCIAL COMMENTATOR: Well, I`m guilty. I retweeted that last night because I follow the Academy. So, I retweeted it because I

took it -- look, you can perceive words any way online. And that`s the problem sometimes when we`re trying to communicate, right? Some people can

say something and you take it one way, somebody could take it another.

I understand. I read today where the people who are trying to prevent suicide say, hey, this means you`re giving people an option because you`re

making it seem like you`re free and you got free because of suicide. And they don`t want that message to come out.

But I think that`s just taking it a little too far, because I took it as -- like you said, Dr. Drew, it was a sweet thing. We all loved him as

genie. It was because his was dealing with these issues that he did take his life and we`re saying he`s free now of the pain that he had. That`s

what they`re talking about.

PINSKY: Two things, Leeann. Thank you for, A, not saying dealing with demons.

(CROSSTALK)

TWEEDEN: I`ve been guilty of that, too.

PINSKY: And, two, we saw a tweet from Buzz Aldrin reminding us that so many veterans suffer from depression and PTSD. There it is.

TWEEDEN: Well, Dr. Drew, you know, you and I talked about this earlier.

PINSKY: But, he says, Buzz Aldrin is talking about his depression in that tweet. I didn`t know Buzz Aldrin had depression and there it is right

there. This has given us the opportunity.

(CROSSTALK)

HO: On my social media --

PINSKY: You guys, I got to get to Jamie who is sitting there calmly waiting, patiently waiting for us. He`s on the phone.

Jamie, I know you`ve got a ton of thoughts on this. You e-mailed me last night. Go ahead.

JAMIE KENNEDY, COMEDIAN (via telephone): First of all, I want to say I don`t know Robin personally. I met him on the set of "Dead Poets

Society" when I was 18 years old. I was an extra. I told him I wanted to be a comedian, he`s like, get on stage, kid. He`s great.

He didn`t know me at all and he was very, very encouraging. So, you know, he`s a wonderful man.

But all of the talk about the link between depression and comedian, first of all, I want to say this, comedy is not something you go into if

you`re well-adjusted, OK? It`s not something that`s just like -- it`s a lifeline. It`s a last resort, at least for me. I believe a lot of

comedians are like that.

It`s also -- everything that you are vilified in the normal world and emotional, all of these different things you`re free to do and on the

stage, you`re free to do it, and they go, he`s a comedian, he`s so funny.

Like an example in my personal life, if I get mad, I recently got mad at a cashier, and the lady didn`t take me seriously. She goes, you`re not,

you`re so funny. No, I`m actually mad. And she`s like, you`re so crazy funny.

And I think sometimes as comedians, you get tired of people thinking you`re the joke all the time. That`s one thing that happened. Again, I

have a lot of thoughts. I`m sorry, go ahead, Drew.

PINSKY: Well, Erica, you wanted to raise a question, Erica?

AMERICA: Yes. No, I just want to say, it is hard for a lot of people to understand who have depression and who haven`t that when you`re in that

dark place of, you know, potentially suicide it`s like a black tunnel. You can see nothing else. The thought of tomorrow is gone. You can come on

spontaneously. He could have been OK, you know? He could have been OK with his life.

PINSKY: I think when we get the autopsy results there`s going to be some biological hint there of why there was a sudden -- sudden problem with

his mood why he became suddenly suicidal.

TWEEDEN: Drew, can I make one quick statement?

PINSKY: Yes, sure.

TWEEDEN: We talked about this earlier. On my social media space, people really wanted to say they were angry at us talking about Robin

Williams` suicide and mental health issues when 22 veterans are committing suicide each day.

I`m a veteran supporter. I know a lot of people that are suffering from these problems. But this is going to help everyone.

PINSKY: Yes, in a conversation.

Jamie, I want to give you the last kind of thought here. I know you`ve got a ton to say about this. My research has shown, in fact -- I

did research a group of comedians. They did have a lot of trauma and addiction in their background. I think that you`re right, that getting on

stage is a bade, an attempt to feel better. But when you get off stage you`re left with whatever pain was there in the first place.

KENNEDY: Totally. Really my opinion, comedians do not want to be funny, OK? We would rather tell you information. But we want to give it

to you.

The humor is a little bit of spice so it`s more digestible for you. Let`s take Chris Rock, a simple day, he`s a hilarious (INAUDIBLE).

I just want to make sure my daughter is in college so I can keep her off the pole. That`s hilarious, but there`s truth in that because you

laugh because it`s a joke and there`s truth in there, right?

PINSKY: There has to be truth.

KENNEDY: And so that`s where it is. To me, comedians are philosophers and they just do the comedy so you can basically digest it

better.

PINSKY: Well, Jamie, it`s funny. I just said that of Richard Pryor, that he was a modern poet. I agree with you.

Panel, we have to move on. I`m switching topics. Thank you, Jamie.

The search for an MMA fighter goes on. Dog the Bounty Hunter joins that manhunt.

Later, a mother so-called is arrested after allegedly helping her son take part in a dangerous social media stunt. You`ve seen it before here,

lighting himself on fire.

Back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: MMA star fighter Jon "War Machine" Koppenhaver, he`s wanted for multiple charges of assault and battery on his ex-

girlfriend, porn star Christy Mack.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mack claims she was with a friend when Koppenhaver whom she had broken up with months prior showed up unexpectedly to her Las

Vegas home.

PINSKY: Both are hospitalized with serious injuries.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She can`t walk. She`s unrecognizable.

SCHACHER: He also cut off most of her hair with a dull knife. He ruptured her liver. He also forced her to strip for him.

BARNETT: This man is still on the run. He`s further victimizing her. He`s taken to Twitter.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He tried to make it into the UFC and he didn`t quite cut it. He seemed to be an A-hole.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PINSKY: Back with Sam, Vanessa, and Jillian.

Joining us, Mark Eiglarsh, attorney from SpeaktoMark.com. It also happens to be mark`s 14th wedding anniversary tonight.

Thank you, Mark, for spending your 14th anniversary here with us tonight. I`m sure your wife is excited about this.

MARK EIGLARSH, ATTORNEY: Thank you, Drew.

BARBERIE: How romantic, spending it here.

EIGLARSH: Yes, she doesn`t mind me spending time with you tonight.

PINSKY: Thank you, Mark.

Police are hunting for that man right now. He`s taken to Twitter to defend himself. There he is while on the run.

Here is a reenactment of what he has tweeted.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m not a bad guy. I went to surprise my girlfriend, help her set up for her show and give her an engagement ring,

and ended up fighting for my life. The cops will never give me fair play, never believe me. Still deciding what to do but at the end of the day it`s

all just heartbreaking.

I only wish that man hadn`t been there and that Christy and I would be happily engaged. I don`t know why I`m so cursed. One day truth will come

out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PINSKY: Jillian, he seems to be defending himself. What`s your reaction?

BARBERIE: Psychopath. Clearly, he did it. Everyone knows it was him.

She`s spoken and the other person he was there that he beat down. They know it`s him. And if you`re innocent, why aren`t you talking to the

cops? Why aren`t you going to the cops saying, oh my God, I wanted to ask this woman to marry me and this is what happened. Why are you on the lam?

Now, Dog the Bounty Hunter is after you. I hope he gets caught. Nothing is real until it happens on TV.

SCHACHER: Yes, boohoo. Are you serious? You`re in the one in the hospital fighting for your life.

And irony here, I looked at his social media, Dr. Drew, and on his Twitter, he often calls himself a real man and on Instagram he`s showing

off his muscles wearing a tank top that screams alpha male.

No, I was just going to say something really bad, I`ll push, but no -- insert the blank, you are not a real man. Real men do not beat up their

girlfriends and then Jillian just said, run and hide from the consequences like a coward. And I hope to God that he does get caught.

PINSKY: Vanessa he says he was fleeing for his life, his life was in danger. Come on. He`s an MMA fighter. He`s got a 4`11" girlfriend.

BARNETT: Exactly. And, even if there is other man that was in the house did attack him, there is still no reason why he attacked her, like

you cannot be defending your life against this 4`11" woman. It is bizarre. He is trying to make himself the victim. He says that his life is cursed.

He is running from the law. He is literally breaking the law every single day. He is tweeting. Why is not there some kind of GPS on these tweets?

Why cannot they find him?

PINSKY: Well -- Funny, you would say that. Mark, I am sure if you were his attorney, you would be thrilled that he was out there in social

media.

EIGLARSH: No, no, no. This would not be my client. Let me say this about this guy, OK? First of all, it is not just the fact that he is

abusive and arrogant jerk. It is that it is all about him. With that tweet when I saw "I must be cursed", what, everybody is against him.

It was self-defense when you took a dull knife and cut her hair off? It is a laughable defense. This is the kind of guy who comes into my

office and says it was not kidnapping. It was a surprise adoption.

(LAUGHING)

PINSKY: Let`s bring in Jenna Jameson. Jenna is Christy Mack`s friend. She actually visited her in the hospital. And, Jenna, you kindly

described the scene to us last night. It was something -- some sort of murder scene. And, you spoke to Christy recently. How is she doing?

JENNA JAMESON, CHRISTY MACK`S FRIEND: I just spoke to her 5 minutes ago and she is broken. She is having even more problems because of the way

people are treating her on social media. They are building him up and saying that she deserves it because she was a porn star. This is

embarrassing.

PINSKY: Wait. Wait. Jenna --

JAMESON: -- that a woman that is wearing a short skirt deserves to be raped.

PINSKY: Yes. Jenna that is actually really gets me -- And, Mark, is not there some legal remedy for that? That seems like bordering on hate

stuff, hate crimes. Mark?

EIGLARSH: Yes. Unfortunately, the first amendment gives wide latitude for people to spew this offensive outrageous stuff. The answer is

do not read that crap. Mother Teresa would take a beating in today`s world.

PINSKY: All right. So, Jenna, you have sort of a recommendation of what the MMA should be doing to prevent some of this stuff. Last night you

said something about testosterone being used excessively. That is a concern of course. That makes people violent just by itself, but go ahead.

JAMESON: I have been thinking this over a lot. I mean this has been my life for a long time. I understand this. But, there needs to be some

sort of mandate in this sports industry. If they have any kind of background of mental illness, if they are testing positive for any kind of

medication or illicit drugs, they need to not be allowed to go pro.

And, we need all of the men out there that are fighters, regular men, to stand up and stop falling in line and blaming the victim. I am tired of

it. It is not the way it should be. This little girl did not deserve to get beaten within inches of her little life.

PINSKY: Yes.

JAMESON: She will never be the same again because of this dirty coward.

SAMANTHA SCHACHER, SOCIAL COMMENTATOR: Yes.

JAMESON: We should not even be talking about him. This is about Christy.

PINSKY: But you do bring up an interesting point, that there has to be something -- maybe require people to be in treatment or be on medication

or something, or screen them out if they really look like they are dangerous. Well, it seems reasonable.

JAMESON: Well, they should not be taught to kill.

PINSKY: Well, there is an interesting problem there with that whole sport in general in terms of how they look at it.

EIGLARSH: Right.

PINSKY: Jenna, did you say what you need to say? Do you feel good about that?

JAMESON: I do. I just really want to be able to be kind of a mouthpiece for Christy. She is really broken and she needs everybody out

there to just stand up for her.

PINSKY: OK. Fair enough.

JAMES: And, realize what she has been through and this does not have to keep happening. Please, if you are out there on social media, support

her and tell her that she is a hero and a survivor.

PINSKY: All right, guys. Thanks, panel. Now, we mentioned "Dog," the bounty hunter is out looking for this guy. We will talk -- hear from

him in a minute. Later, teens are taking part in potentially deadly social media games. It seems that parents may actually be helping them out --

carry this nonsense out. We are going to hear about that after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DUANE "DOG" CHAPMAN, BOUNTY HUNTER: She could see her blood, you know, splattering all over his face and into his mouth. And, she said,

Dog, there was no referee to stop it. He just kept beating me and beating me.

We have got people stationed at every single spot. It is amazing what we can do with these social networks. All this guy has to do is make

one mistake. The only way this guy can outrun us right now is to starve himself to death.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PINSKY: Back with the Behavior Bureau, Judy, Erica and Leeann. We are talking about that MMA Fighter for allegedly having beaten his ex-

girlfriend and another person. And, Leeann these pictures showed just how vicious the attack was. What do you think about what Jenna Jameson was

saying about trying to deal with the violence in that culture?

LEEANN TWEEDEN, SOCIAL COMMENTATOR: Right. Well, I mean, a full disclosure before I got pregnant and had my baby, I co-hosted UFC Tonight

over on FOX Sports 1. So, I was around it all of the time. And, I am a fan of the sport. I am a fan of how they train and all the different

martial arts techniques that they used and they training. But, I think there is something to it that she says maybe we should do more of a

background check and understand their history and may be check them even more for drugs, and steroids and all of these testosterone --

PINSKY: Or maybe criminal.

TWEEDENT: Sure. And, we do know that he had a violent background. We know when we was younger his dad died in his arms. His mother was a

drug addict. He had to take care of his younger kids. So, I do not think he was in the right place in his mind any way, do you know what I mean?

PINSKY: All right, Yes.

TWEEDEN: And, my commentator friends that I asked about him, they did not know him really personally but he was crazy

PINSKY: But, Judy, it is hard for me to understand, you know, how we -- I do not mean to be funny, but how do you screen out people like that

when you are trying to get people to beat each other to death in on octagon, you know what I mean?

JUDY HO, PH.D., CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Right. So, what are we exactly looking for here on the screener.

PINSKY: Exactly. What are we screening out? We want them to be violent but not criminal, is that it?

HO: Right. What kind of specific small population that we are looking for that is going to be violent on the job but not violent when you

go home? And, it bleeds over as you know, Dr. Drew. These types of aggressive tendencies, they did not just occur in one domain of your life.

So, I understand where Jenna was going with that. I certainly think there needs to be some revisions but I am not sure what the answer is.

But, I do think there has been this sort of idea that people just kind of stand by, assume everything is OK. The fact that there is so many people

actually defending him on Twitter, just shows you how many people actually support in some ways what he did or at least think do not think that he is

wrong as we are saying here.

PINSKY: And, Erica before you react, I want to show you a Tweet he did about a year ago. Here it is, "Just raped Christy Mack. She tried to

make me wait until after errands, as if." OK, Erica. Now, you can react.

ERICA AMERICA, PSYCHOTHERAPIST: OK. You know, Dr. Drew, I do not want to call myself the queen of empathy. But, I am really an emphatic

for almost everyone. This guy is really hard to find empathy or sympathy for, OK? Let`s start with the fact that he changed his name to War

Machine, OK? That is just ridiculous.

And, violence and aggression is this guy`s only form of communication with people. And, not only did he beat up his ex-girlfriend, he tortured

her, what Sam described the other day so well. I mean, poked her with knives. Cut off her hair. Made her shower. This guy is sick. Could have

killed her, almost killed her and now he is on the loose. And, I think that he is a danger to the society because someone with this amount of rage

could definitely murder someone else. So yes, this is a huge, a huge problem and he needs to be found.

PINSKY: Samantha.

SCHACHER: Yes. Dr. Drew, that tweet that you just put up.

PINSKY: Yes.

SCHACHER: There was actually a tweet that he -- about a year ago, right after that, he then followed it up with saying that in so many words

-- he said well actually, "Real men rape their girlfriends and their wives."

AMERICA: What?

SCHACHER: Yes. And, then so many people -- of course there was controversy. But a lot of his followers retweeted it and said that they

agree. If it is their wife or if it is their girlfriend, then they should have to do this. It is not necessarily rape. And, to me, I am just like

who is this guy and his followers.

All of them seem to be they are not right in the head. And, Dr. Drew, that is a question to you, or Judy or Erica, we know that he has

possibly substance abuse. We know he is narcissistic. We know of the trauma in his upbringing as Leeann said. Is he a psychopath? What is

wrong with him?

PINSKY: Judy, I will let you answer when I add in -- let`s add in some steroids and some criminality. Go ahead, have at it. So, what are we

going to do with this guy? And, he is clearly bipolar, has a mood disturbance too.

HO: Clearly. Right. So, this is a great illustration, Sam, of this idea that we have about psychological illnesses, the stress model where

there are certain predispositions that are underlying brain chemistry issues but are then exacerbated by the environment that this person

surrounds himself with and the types of activity that he participates in, because in this MMA fighting, it actually just further push aggressive

tendencies and his impulse control problems, right? Of course, the substance issues add to that, and you know the rest.

PINSKY: Yes. We got to --

SCHACHER: And, he feels that the world is against him.

PINSKY: Well, that is the personality problem. It might be paranoia from his mood disturbance. It might be paranoia from the steroids. We are

going to have to leave it. Teens injured, lighting themselves on fire. Mothers helping out. One has been arrested. We will tell the story after

this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PINSKY: Back with Sam, Heather, Mark and Leeann. The so-called fire challenge lit up Facebook and YouTube and left some kids seriously burned.

Now, the mother of a teen that, I guess, is in this video is in trouble. Police say she was there when the son doused himself in nail polish remover

and she quote facilitated the recording. Heather, I know you are not in enough pain to be funny, but this is painful to watch.

HEATHER MCDONALD, HLN CONTRIBUTOR: I mean all of this stuff is so horrible, teaching people to do things that are so dangerous and they are

all seen on the internet whether it is glamorizing cutting or this horrible thing, which someone can be severely burn. And, that this idiot mother was

part of it and videotaping it? I mean, yes, she would absolutely be arrested and hopefully if she has any other kids, they should be taken from

her.

PINSKY: Samantha?

SCHACHER: Yes. Who is this woman? Is she like a wannabe mom, trying to get her kids famous on YouTube? I mean, it is laughable, Dr. Drew. I

cannot wrap my head around it. Not only did she condone it, but as you said, she facilitated it. Unbelievable.

PINSKY: And, Leeann -- you guys, put the video back up here. Leeann, I want to show you the thing that really gets people get in trouble with.

The same one -- you cannot really see it here. But, he got his underpants on still. That is what catches on fire. There is actually a layer between

the solvent and his skin and steam can develop there and give him a second degree burn but the clothing can burn him to death.

TWEEDEN: Right. And, then he jumped out of the tub, if you remember? He could have set the whole house on fire and killed everyone involved and

burned down other people`s houses.

PINSKY: Yes.

TWEEDEN: The only thing I am going to say about this. We always talk about this on the show and I always say that usually if people are

bad, it is bad parenting. But, I do have to say that maybe it is two generations back.

Now, maybe she had bad parenting. That is why, she is an awful mom. Maybe, she just set her child in front of the T.V. and video games and

everything else and just thought that they could raise a good kid and she did not know any better.

PINSKY: Well, Mark, I have set you up with like ten different issues. What do you think about the legal aspect of this? Leeann brings up the

intergenerational transmission of bad parenting and trauma. I will leave with those two.

EIGLARSH: Well, first of all, I do not know if I am the old fart on the panel here, but I remember when challenges back in the day did not

involve this, it was book reading challenges or collecting money challenges.

(LAUGHING)

TWEEDEN: Let`s bring it back.

EIGLARSH: You know? Fire challenges? It is so sad to think that the apple does not fall far from the tree. I would not necessarily lock

her up and throw away the key. I would want to hear her side of the story and no matter what she should still be prosecuted. But, the question is

what do you do with her?

PINSKY: Right.

EIGLARSH: May be a long-term plan to help her with her parenting skills, you know? I feel sad that there are people like this who are

passing down this type of judgment to their offspring.

PINSKY: Yes. Heather --

MCDONALD: Yes. It is just sad that people this stupid. They are so stupid. I mean, the kids are stupid. At 16 you should know not to be this

stupid. And then to have your mom encouraging it and being part of it. It is just -- it is very -- it is just very depressing to know how ignorant

people are.

PINSKY: Well, I do not want to -- you are sort of saying intellect, OK? And, I am saying executive function, this part of the brain right in

the front.

SCHACHER: Brain lesson.

TWEEDEN: OK.

PINSKY: The brain is out again. This is the part I keep talking about that we do not develop. And, that develops from parenting and

personal experiences and from judgment and from experiences, not necessarily from reason. Though reason helps, but we have left out all of

that, so people cannot even -- well, adolescent males typically cannot project the consequences. But, the problem is, they are relying on our

functioning frontal lobes to contain our impulses. Well, when we were at that age, Mark, we were 17 --

EIGLARSH: Drew, Drew. Drew.

PINSKY: Yes. Last thought, go ahead.

EIGLARSH: Drew.

PINSKY: Mark?

EIGLARSH: You do not need some fancy -- whatever you have there, which is turning me off a little bit.

SCHACHER: Turning you on?

EIGLARSH: Yes. But here is the point. You do not need that. A 30 or 40-something-year-old adult knows you should not do this.

SCHACHER: Exactly.

EIGLARSH: Period. This part of the brain, that part of the brain. Teenager, they are stupid, they are developing. But a parent? Come on.

TWEEDEN: You have known since you were a baby, fire is bad.

(LAUGHING)

PINSKY: Next up, another social media trend, the pass-out game. Be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PINSKY: Back with Sam, Heather, Mark and Leeann. We are discussing - - we were discussing the fire challenge. Now, we have got another trend. It is called the pass-out challenge where teens demonstrate how to make

themselves hyper ventilates and then they grab each other -- grab when someone from behind and get them to faint or they help someone do it.

And, they go out. They can fall and hurt themselves. They can stop their heart and the heart can potentially not start again. Now, Sam, I do

not want the talk about exactly how this is done. But, we should tell people about all of the different aliases of this because parents may not

be aware. Particularly, sort of younger teen males are into this.

SCHACHER: Yes. Take note, parents, because it is not only known as the pass-out challenge or the pass-out game, but also blackout game,

choking game, the fainting challenge, space monkey, flat liner and suffocation roulette. So, please educate your kids on the dangers of

social media and monitor their activity.

PINSKY: CDC says 82 kids died between 1995 and 2008, but the critics say the numbers are higher because the deaths have been misclassified and

most of those teens the deaths were boys, age 11 to 16. Heather, do you have younger -- what is the age of your son?

MCDONALD: Well, my kid is 11, but you know what? This happened to my sister.

PINSKY: Tell me.

MCDONALD: And, I think she was about in 8th grade and it happened in the bathroom. And, this girl said I can make you pass out and she passed

out and they had to, you know, revive her. It was really, you know, like a serious thing. And, to see it coming out again like this.

And you know, it is just -- there is -- recently there was a lifetime movie about it. They did a movie about kids doing this pass-out game.

That always kind of worries me a little bit because I remember people learning about bulimia and anorexia from movies.

PINSKY: Yes.

MCDONALD: I remember after watching an anorexic movie, everyone run back to school and said, "I did not know you could take laxatives."

PINSKY: Right.

MCDONALD: That should make you lose weight.

PINSKY: Yes.

MCDONALD: And, so I always feel like even if it is a cautionary tale. It is like -- you are teaching kids something they may not have

known before.

PINSKY: Mark?

EIGLARSH: True. I come home every day as early as I can to spend as much time with my children and engage them in conversations to increase the

chances that they do not engage in this behavior.

SCHACHER: Thank you.

PINSKY: Bring your son in there. I know he is wanting around that studio. Let`s ask and see --

EIGLARSH: Come here. Come here.

SCHACHER: Oh my Gosh. So cute.

TWEEDEN: Dr. Drew it is so true. I always say you do not want to know what the name of the game is because you want to tell your children

not to do it. You want to try to raise your child that they understand that it is something they do not want to be a part of. You want that to be

part of who they are as a person. And, that is what I am trying to raise in my son. You tell them right to wrong and they make their own good

decisions.

PINSKY: Well, and Heather, there was a tweet that was up a second ago, that I thought was pretty good. It says, some of this may be the

result of the parents trying to be the friend rather than the parent.

MCDONALD: Exactly. I definitely think that is a lot happening. When people go, "I am my daughter is best friend." She does not want you to be

her best friend and you should not be.

TWEEDEN: And, it is not your job, be a parent. Tell them the right from wrong, so you give them the boundaries that they need to be a good

person in society when they are older.

PINSKY: And, be like Mark, when you cannot spend enough time at home, take them to the studio with you.

(LAUGHING)

TWEEDEN: That is awesome.

SCHACHER: I love it.

PINSKY: All right, you, guys. We got to get going. I think there is an opportunity here to think about how our children respond to our

parenting input. They do not want friends. They got plenty of friends. They have two parents hopefully, and you need to be just at it. It is an

awful job sometimes. But friendship is only a lucky few -- later they will be your friend. Forensic Files begins, next.

END