Blog #227: Why “Hell’s Kitchen” is Bad for My Mental Health?

As promised, here is that blog I promised you about why I stopped watching “Hell’s Kitchen” and found it to be bad for my overall mental health. Now, to put in a disclaimer, I have nothing but the utmost respect for Gordon Ramsay. Like him, I hold myself to a standard and have zero tolerance for any slackers or lazy workers.

But the show that introduced me to him and his impressive resume has become more than just a cooking show and no, it’s not for the best. For one thing, “Hell’s Kitchen” is one of those shows that feeds off of drama from its contestants and that’s what I think keeps it on the air.

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Now, to be fair, I used to love “Hell’s Kitchen,” for a variety of reasons: the foul language, the hilarious antics of some of the contestants and the chance to study my food pallet.

But, like all reality shows, “Hell’s Kitchen” has to rely on individuals who can’t do anything but can pull in ratings. This is something that greatly bothers me as a neurodiverse individual. You see, “Hell’s Kitchen” is run like a legitimate business with wait staff and a Martie D. People get paid and that they have to deal with customers who are impatient and hungry. What is more is that drama from the customers also is what fuels the show’s survival.

As I watched “Hell’s Kitchen” over the years, I began to see the show as a representation of what happens when we deal with useless people in the workplace. We want that useless person or colleague gone, but the boss sees something in them and keeps them around. I don’t know if Gordon Ramsay or the showrunners see something in the useless person that we don’t, but either way, the yelling and fighting that occurs on the show is enough to turn as much people off as on.

I mean, who wants to see someone filled with nothing but drama on a weekly basis? I know I wouldn’t, but “Hell’s Kitchen” relies more on them than those who want to win the competition. There have been numerous contestants who are nothing but drama queens and kings that are kept around far longer than they should have. Some of those include

1. Sabrina from Season 8

2. Elise from Season 9

3. Robyn from Season 10

4. Jackie from Season 15

All these people, in my eyes, were not chefs, but merely actors who are only kept around to produce ratings.

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Now, keep in mind, that some of the methods brought into “Hell’s Kitchen” and are still in practice today are methods that made me drop the show altogether.

For one thing, there is a service that seems like it’s easy (such as Southern Night in Season 10) and both teams end up losing. Now, I don’t know if it is because it is a sabotaging moment on the cast, but as a neurodiverse individual, I am also very observant. I knew from the moment I saw that episode that I knew that everything was staged to make it seem like everyone did a poor job.

Remember that not everything that is set on “Hell’s Kitchen” will work in real life. If you have people that are going to be bothersome, you have to get rid of them and if you are going to keep them around, then the people that should be around will not be there. Keep that in mind the next time you watch an episode of “Hell’s Kitchen” or any reality show out there.

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Catch you all later!!

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The question I ask the showrunners of “Hell’s Kitchen” is this: are you trying to send a message that all businesses should be like what they are showing the audience? What’s more, a lot of companies don’t tolerate such behavior from their employees and yet, “Hell’s Kitchen” keeps its deadweight on for as long as possible..

When it comes to hiring neurodiverse staff, keep this in mind: we will be observant and will speak up when necessary if someone is giving us a hard time. I think that “Hell’s Kitchen” is a poor representation of a business that cares about the wrong people that should have been gone a long time ago.

#Diversity #Disability #Neurodiversity #Equality #Autism #Inclusion