As a child I loved watching Sesame Street. Not only was it hilarious, but it was also educational. They teach you about words and numbers directly, but they also teach you about other things indirectly, like mental illness. Each of the muppets on Sesame Street had some kind of mental illness. Being exposed to this early in my life helped me prepare for the friends I would meet as I grew up.
For those of you who never got to see Sesame Street, I'll walk you through some of the major characters and their more obvious illnesses.
Bert and Ernie
Ernie was an insomniac, who could never sleep no matter what he tried: drinking water, counting sheep or even playing the drums. He was perhaps the first character I saw on TV with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) although I don't think that diagnosis existed yet. He just couldn't enage in quiet activities, and would lose interest in games quite suddenly.
As for Bert, where do we begin? With his paperclip and bottle cap collection? His obsession with cleanliness, pigeons and the letter W? Clearly Bert had a very serious case of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), and most probably a low grade depression as well. And definitely anger management issues.
The Count
Speaking of OCD, the worst case on the whole Street was the Count. He had a need to count everything, and took delight in knowing just how many there were of everything he ever came across.
Cookie MonsterFor most children, the Cookie Monster was our first glimpse into the world of eating disorders. He would binge eat, and not just cookies. He also had a learning disorder, too. He may know that C is for cookie but that's about all he learned of the English language (and that's good enough for him).
I wonder what would happen if the Cookie Monster got together with Bert and the Count, ate his cookies, and left crumbs all over the floor? The Count would want to count them, and Bert would want to clean it up.
Two-Headed Monster
Schizophrenia. That's an easy one, I think every kid caught that one.
Grover
The most lovable muppet was raised by a single parent, and couldn't hold a job. He was quite possibly a manic depressive, and certainly had anxiety disorder (aka panic attacks). His "Super-Grover" alter-ego was an obvious escape from a difficult childhood that left him with a dangerously low self-esteem.
Don Music
One of the more obscure muppets, I'll concede. But I can't write a blog on mental illnesses and Sesame Street without mentioning the composer who would fail to play a simple song and then bang his head repeatedly and violently on the piano. I don't know exactly from what he suffered, but I don't want it.
Big Bird
Big Bird was my first introduction to depression. In his loneliness he invented an imaginary friend Snuffleupagus, who has an even more serious case of depression. When you have to make up imaginary friends that are even more depressed than you are, I'm surprised they never found Big Bird hanging from a noose.
I'm very grateful for Sesame Street having exposed me to these mental illnesses as a child. Now when I encounter an adult suffering from depression, OCD, ADD, anxiety disorder or even schizophrenia, I can see him as a fuzzy little muppet and give him the compassion he needs. Thank you Sesame Street!
Labels: bert, big bird, cookie monster, ernie, grover, mental illness, sesame street
