Confessions of a TV Junkie

A big part of having an anxiety disorder involves fear. That is clearly obvious - it's right there in the name. A slightly less obvious part, but no less big, is having a mind that races. We anxiety types are constantly running scenarios in our heads, and it's exhausting. It's the reason we don't sleep at night, it's the reason we panic about seemingly innocent events, and it's horrible. One way of distracting your brain is to watch TV (there are other, better ways, and I'll discuss them in future posts), and I have been using TV as a distraction long before I knew why I was doing it.

All this brings me to my point, although it does appear that I've taken the scenic route to get there. I love TV. I love trashy TV, serious TV, documentaries, some reality shows (really, only Survivor and Amazing Race, I swear), comedies and drama. But the one thing I love more than anything else about TV is good writing.

Currently, the best-written and acted show on TV in my opinion is The Good Wife. If you've not watched it, then run, don't walk, to the nearest video shop and rent it immediately, or if you were born after 1980 download it off iTunes or Netflix. Don't be put off by the somewhat soap-operatic title. It's beautifully written, superbly acted, and has managed to stay fresh through five stellar seasons, and the sixth is shaping up to be no different.

The reason why I have singled out The Good Wife particularly is because Gloria Steinem appears in the latest episode, as herself. This got me to thinking about people who have inspired me, especially women. The women of the early Feminist movements are, by and large, regarded with scorn now. It's very difficult for us to imagine a world where women had to fight for the right to go to work, to be educated, to make choices about their bodies. Although, actually, it isn't that difficult to imagine. It's still happening in many countries all over the world. Feminists are ridiculed, shamed, hated, shot at and somehow made to feel less than. This is unacceptable. As a woman, as a feminist, and as someone who was raised, by and large, by a man, I feel this very deeply. I am lucky. I have a wonderful education, I have a fulfilling and interesting job which enables me to be independent and support myself. Many women don't have these options. So ladies, to all of you, from Emmeline Pankhurst and Emily Hobhouse through the first, second and third waves of feminism right up to young Malala Yusufzai, who is a shining example of what a young woman should be, I salute you, and I thank you for the path that you cleared for me.