Married At First Sight - Season 1 - General Discussion - **Spoilers**

jlccaz wrote:Yeah, why is Jamie good for Doug, is what I find myself thinking.  I'm on Team Skeptic with his Mom on that front.  Even if they are together now, there is a LOT for her to work out.  She needs a lot of healing/change, and that ideally, that internal work should happen or be well underway before marriage.  Of course, she is basically getting counseling/therapy through this strange experience.

The episodes do really draw you in, until you stop and think about how little time has gone by.  Two weeks so far!  Just a little longer than spring break, LOL!

While Jamie is damaged, I still think she may have a lot to offer Doug if she genuinely falls in love with him. It's admirable that she picked herself up from the mess she grew up in and went to nursing school. She definitely has drive and the good sense to plan for her future. Not many young people accomplish that without someone in their lives encouraging them so that says a lot about her imo. As Doug said he likes her "aura". She is a by nature, a positive and fairly happy person. She seems to have some anxiety and lacks self confidence, but put her in a solid, stable relationship and she just might thrive and never take it for granted. She wouldn't be my first choice for my boys, but they could do worse... like Andi for instance.   j/k

Are we allowed to post the link to the Dr. C forum discussion? I know we're not supposed to post links to RS but I didn't think y'all cared about other links. TIA

What great behind the scenes info from the Dr. I love reading how seriously they took this. The fact that it took them 5 months to choose 3 couples tells me everyone involved cares about these couples and is invested n a successful outcome.

I'm so glad they fought for Jaime. She and Doug are by far my faves!

Beeleever wrote:What great behind the scenes info from the Dr. I love reading how seriously they took this. The fact that it took them 5 months to choose 3 couples tells me everyone involved cares about these couples and is invested n a successful outcome.

I'm so glad they fought for Jaime. She and Doug are by far my faves!

Me too. They have a great chance of making this work.

Thanks for posting this. It adds so much to a show I am already enjoying watching. I think all the couples said the reason they did it was because they trusted the experts and they wanted to see where they would lead them.

ElonM wrote:

Beeleever wrote:What great behind the scenes info from the Dr. I love reading how seriously they took this. The fact that it took them 5 months to choose 3 couples tells me everyone involved cares about these couples and is invested n a successful outcome.

I'm so glad they fought for Jaime. She and Doug are by far my faves!

Me too. They have a great chance of making this work.

ditto... thanks for bringing over Dr. C's excerpt... interesting that he said that Jamie was extremely naive going into TB. and i think that was the very case when she entered her wedding venue as well... it continued on last epi when she danced with Doug and squeled: He swept off my feet!   

given her poor upbringing and horiible experiences with male figures in her childhood i cant help but feel sorry for her. Hope she realize soon enough that she got a gem and perfect fit in Doug!

Bringing over more of Dr. C's thoughts:

"DrCilona
Posted 6 hrs. ago
Hi everyone!  So, against my better judgment, I'm going to respond one final time on the subject of authenticity of the participants.  Assuming everyone that is commenting and questioning this at this point has read all my previous posts on this topic, my better judgment and analytical mind tells me that if they are still questioning, then they are not likely to be swayed by anything further I could comment.  But, there is another part of me that just gets so frustrated by this, perhaps because I have invested so much in this project, so, my final comments:
I will first say that part of me is really shocked that anyone who is actually watching the show at this point is still questioning whether or not this is real.  It's shocking to me that anyone could think these people are acting. For me, if they are, they should be nominated for (and win) the Oscar. .
 
Perhaps my perspective is a bit distorted because I witnessed a lot of it first hand, and maybe something is lost when it is viewed on television by someone who didn't witness it first hand. However, I'm aware and observant enough to know that the authenticity of the emotions we are witnessing following the experiences of the participants through this journey through the small screen is clearly (to me) potent and powerful.  I think it would require an exceptional and extraordinary amount of talent for them to pull this off if they were actually acting.
I also feel that the phenomenal success of the show is primarily due to this very fact:  that it is for real and the participants are 100% authentic.  I don't think people would be resonating with this so deeply and intensely if it were at all fake. In fact, I had that strong belief early on in the process, and felt that the only way this would/could work is if we found a way to be absolutely certain that the participants were authentic.  So, this was very prominent in my mind during the assessments, and I paid very careful attention to it throughout the process.
I don't really know how else to explain how powerful the assessment measures I used are.  Not only in determining personality traits, but also in assessing authenticity.  For anyone who is interested, review the link where I list the names of the measures used.  Again, they require extensive (doctoral level) training and professional licensure to administer and interpret, and they not only assess personality traits, but also have what's called "Validity Scales" that tell if a person is lying or attempting to present themselves in an inaccurate manner.  Do some Googling of the names of the measures and the validity scales, particularly of the MMPI-2. There is more that 30 YEARS of clinical research backing the validity and reliability of this measure alone.  There is just no way anyone can fool these tests.  I additionally administered four more similar measures, and Jamie, as well as all the other final participants did not have a single "blip" on any of these scales.  

I cannot emphasize enough how certain I am about this.  And I have learned over the decades that I have been a professional psychologist to be conservative about saying anything so definitive.  However, in this case I am quite comfortable.

I had my assistant collate all of my comments on these two threads for me, so I will follow this comment with repeating what I have said already.  

I will also say a few more things:

1.  Monet is in "fashion," but a product developer.  Publicity and notoriety would not benefit her career in any discernable way.  And again, did you all see her on the wedding episode?  Please give this woman an Oscar and fast track her to the A-list actors club if she is not for real.  ;)

2.  Cortney is an aspiring make-up artist and has a day job.  She describes her burlesque as something she did for herself to make her feel more comfortable in her own skin.  She comes from a very traditional and southern religious family, and was a bit a of black sheep and "wild" in many ways.  For me, the burlesque fits very neatly in to her history and explanation of it all. And really, are there any "celebrity" burlesque dancers?  I don't  think this is a means of becoming rich and famous for anyone.

3.  The same goes for Jason.  His wrestling is a passion for him and he loves it, but he is TOTALLY committed to becoming a fire fighter and completely invested in that career and life path.  I spoke with him at length and numerous times about worries and concerns he had about being involved in the show possibly undermine his entry into the fire academy and how it might affect him while he was there (e.g. his superiors and peers reactions and judgments, etc.).  He really had nothing to gain in terms of his personal goals and aspirations, and actually potentially some big risk with regard to potential fame and notoriety from being involved in the show.

4.  Jamie I addressed already, but I will reiterate that she was very upfront about her side work as an aspiring TV host, and felt comfortable with whatever impact being on the show might have on that, either positive or negative. And I think she was very on target in identifying that it could go either way. For me, this did not matter at all. What mattered is that her PRIMARY and central reason for agreeing to the experiment was her sincere belief that she might find love this way.  And I believe wholeheartedly that she was sincere in that.

As for me, i took on a lot of risk agreeing to the show. I have a very successful and thriving private practice in one of the most competitive cities in the US, if not the most competitive.  I have worked VERY long and hard to build my proactive to it's current level of success, and to establish my professional reputation.  I would be a fool to risk undermining this, my passion and my livelihood, for something I didn't fully believe in.  I have turned down more than a dozen other projects for this very reason.  I chose this because I felt that it had something of value to add THROUGH it's authenticity.  It was a gamble for me because i had no real guarantees that all the promises the producers made about how it would be executed, but my gut told me to take the risk.

I'm very happy I did in the end.  I'm so proud of what we did, and I think we have really provided a lot of value in so many ways to so many people.

And that's my final word on that topic!   
I'll now re-submit previous comments on the topic.
  
On the authenticity of Marriage at First Sight  Jamie's previous participation on The Bachelor  and its impact on how she is perceived now appearing on her second show:
Hi Everyone.  I'm actually the psychologist on the show.  I can tell you all that this really is for real.  It's not scripted, and these are not actors.  Regarding Jamie (former Bachelor contestant), I hear all your comments about being skeptical, but they are actually misguided.  In fact, we (the experts) had to fight to include Jamie.  Both the network and the production company were reticent about Jamie because she was on The Bachelor.  Does she have media aspirations?  Perhaps.  However, for me, this was not an exclusionary variable. She was very open about that (she's an RN, but also an aspiring TV host).  What I was assessing was whether or not the potential participants were genuine and sincere about wanting a marriage, and one that will last, and if they could handle doing so in such an unconventional manner.  I can tell you that Jamie is genuine and authentic when it comes to her desire for real love and a lasting marriage.  I used very sophisticated psychological assessment measures to look into this, and it was clear across all of them that she was authentic. 
More about my decision to do the show and my role in it here:

www.facebook.com/drcilona/posts/849...

One more thing about Jamie, I can honestly say that I was ultimately very impressed with and inspired by this young woman.  The show delves into her troubled past, but I can tell you it was much more extreme than is depicted.  She grew up in a trailer park in extreme poverty with a mother who had severe struggles with addiction and destructive/violent relationships.  At a very young age, Jamie became the legal guardian of her two younger siblings and raised them herself in these dire circumstances. She educated herself and pulled herself out of that situation while taking care of herself and her siblings alone.  She is now a Labor and Delivery nurse at Columbia, and works hard to advance her side career as a TV host.  She is determined, ambitious, intelligent, articulate, kind, generous, and overall a really lovely person.  I hope you all give the show a chance.  I think you might be surprised to find what it's really about. "

gadgetqwn, thanks for bringing that info over...very informative. That helps tap down my growing doubts. His positivity also leads me to believe this show has at least one success -- and I put my money on two.

Litta123 wrote:gadgetqwn, thanks for bringing that info over...very informative. That helps tap down my growing doubts. His positivity also leads me to believe this show has at least one success -- and I put my money on two.

I know, right?  I've been so disappointed in the bachelor/bachelorette shows because of the editing and cast members who were not there for the "right" reasons that I was skeptical myself.  But this show is starting to make me believe in romance and love again.  And that romance/love does not just happen - it's hard work.  So for all of us that still believe in the fairytales, this is showing that it doesn't just happen.  A good relationship takes commitment and work!

Something the bachelor series just gloss over.

For all the conspiracy theorists...we've been proven correct (guess he's a little frustrated?):

DrCilona
Last edited 14 mins ago
In reply to BabyBears4Us:
I'm not drinking any haterade, I'm just realistic Dr C- have you...


Okay.  You've figured it all out!

All the participants are the secret adoptive love children of Constantin Stanislavky and Stella Adler.  They were kidknapped from orphanages and raised all together in hiding until:

Cortney's  mission to overthrow the one notable Burlesque dancer on the planet earth was finally put into place by the unsuspecting television execs at the A & E Networks through their brilliant reality-TV scam vehicle Married At First Sight.  Her parents actually don't exist.  That's why we haven't seen them!  And that North Carolina accent?  Well, obviously that was a part of her daily method acting training since early childhood.  After grueling daily 10 hour acting exercises, she was forced at gun point to research and learn the impossible task of fooling sophisticated psychological assessment measures.  But it was all worth it, because she is also psychic and knew that MAFS would be the one out of a thousand reality shows that would make it and build her brand to be large enough for the ultimate burlesque overthrow of Deeta Von Teese.  There is NOT room for TWO BURLESQUE SUPERSTARS.  And Cortney has been trained to win!

Jamie fabricated her entire tragic back story to be the one and only superstar spawned after (was it 16 seasons?) of The Bachelor.  She used her secret inheritance from Stanislavky and Adler to pay off the entire staff of Columbia Presbyterian Hospital and the New York State Department of Professional Regulation for a fake nursing license, because all that money would mean nothing to her without FAME!  The trailer park you'll see on coming episodes and family members you saw at the wedding?  All paid for by the production company because, you know, they have gigantic budgets for these kinds of things and can afford to pay off everyone to be sure that America is duped by these fame hungry acting machines.

Monet's performance at the weddings will actually be submitted to the Academy now that the gig is up, and she's already writing her acceptance speech, which will include a special sneer and dig for Meryl Streep.

Jason's entire backstory was constructed to aid in his plan to become a superstar pro wrestler, because the fans of pro wrestling are the same demographic of the core viewing audience of MAFS (women 25-45), so of course, THIS is the vehicle to realize his dream.

And I'm actually lying about EVERYTHING here because I have a bizarre and compelling need for housewives on a Babyboard to believe that this is not the obvious and complete and total sham that it is.  I'm actually corresponding via satellite wifi from the radio on my yacht in the South of France, because I made millions fooling you with this show.

The skepticism is very real for those of us who have been loyal fans of The Bach/ette and have been "taken" numerous times. It's hard to recover from a situation where you are given information from people you trust, only to find out you were lied to and "played" for a fool by TPTB.
Having said that, I believe Dr. C because of the integrity of his character and the moral compass he exhibits in his posts. I actually feel bad that he has to work this hard to convince us that this reality TV show is actually "real".

gadgetqwn, thank YOU for bringing them over here!

MAFS is very, very refreshing especially after the recent *cough* drama from the Bach/'Ette. It can be exhausting actually. Ive still a "fatigue" hangover from the "drama" hence ive skipped Vaughn & Monet scenes.    I just wanna chill!

i super, super love Jason/Cortney & Jamie/Doug. I never thought for one second they are acting!