Ellen DeGeneres Admits To Suffering From Osteoporosis And Mental Disorders In Her New Netflix Special
Ellen DeGeneres has revealed that she has been diagnosed with osteoporosis, OCD and ADHD after stepping out of the public eye amid accusations of creating a toxic work environment. Former presenter The Ellen DeGeneres Show He spoke candidly about aging in his new Netflix special, “For Your Approval,” which premiered Tuesday.
DeGeneres, 66, told the public that she underwent a bone density test and found out that she has osteoporosis. “I don’t even know where I stand right now. I’m like a human sandcastle. “I might fall apart in the shower,” he remarked.
Osteoporosis is a bone disease that develops when bone mineral density and bone mass decrease, leading to decreased bone strength and an increased risk of fractures, according to the US National Institutes of Health.
In addition, DeGeneres said that one day she experienced excruciating pain and thought she had torn her neck, but after an MRI, she was told it was just arthritis. “How did I come up with that?” he asked, to which the doctor replied, “Oh, that just happens at your age.”
The comedian also explained that she began going to therapy after the backlash and hate from online crowds affected her mental health. During the session he discovered he had OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) and ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder).
OCD is a disorder in which a person experiences uncontrollable, repetitive thoughts (obsessions) and performs repetitive behaviors (compulsions), according to the NIH. DeGeneres admitted she didn’t know much about OCD at first, thinking the “O” stood for “organized.”
“I was raised in a religion, Christian Science, that does not recognize disease or disorder. So when I was growing up, nobody talked about anything. Nothing was discussed,” he explained. As she gained a better understanding of OCD, she realized that her father probably had it too and that it could run in families. Then he asked his wife: Portia de Rossiwhether he believed he had OCD, to which de Rossi responded in the affirmative.
DeGeneres also discussed her diagnosis of ADHD, a developmental disorder characterized by persistent symptoms of inattention and/or hyperactivity and impulsivity that interfere with functioning or development. “My ADHD makes it really hard to sit down and focus on anything. Do you know how hard it was for me to put that together? Of course not. Why would I ask that? It’s hard for me to focus,” he told the laughing audience.
In her segment on aging, DeGeneres concluded by saying, “I have ADHD, I have OCD, I lose my memory. But I think I’m pretty well adjusted because I obsess over things, but then I don’t. I have enough focus to stick with it and quickly I forget what I was obsessed with, so I think that leads to me being a good fit.”
The Emmy winner also addressed the public controversy surrounding her after she was accused in 2020 of creating a work environment that fostered “racism, fear and bullying.” The show ended in 2022 after 19 seasons. “When you’re a public figure, you’re open to everyone’s interpretation. And I’m sure you’ve heard the saying that ‘what other people think of me is none of my business.’ Because people will say all sorts of things and you have no control over it. But you know the truth and that’s all that mattershe shared.