“It's hard to be honest about aging and seem cool,” the comedian, 66, said
In her final Netflix special For Your Approval, Ellen DeGeneres opened up about multiple health conditions she’s been struggling with as she’s gotten older.
The comedian, 66, revealed that she has "full-on osteoporosis," which she discovered after taking a bone density test. Osteoporosis is a disease that weakens the bones and causes them to break easily, according to the National Institutes of Health. It affects about one in five women over age 50.
“I don't even know how I'm standing up right now. I'm like a human sandcastle. I could disintegrate in the shower,” DeGeneres said in the special, which premiered on Sept. 24. “It's hard to be honest about aging and seem cool.”
“I had excruciating pain one day and I thought I tore a ligament or something and I got an MRI and they said, ‘No, it's just arthritis,’” she continued. “I said, ‘How did I get that?’ And he said, ‘Oh it just happens at your age.'”
Additionally, DeGeneres said that while in therapy — which she began after toxic workplace allegations made against her affected her mental health — she learned that she has OCD.
According to the Mayo Clinic, "Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) features a pattern of unwanted thoughts and fears that lead you to do repetitive behaviors (compulsions). These obsessions and compulsions interfere with daily activities and cause significant distress."
“I may have OCD because a therapist said so and I said, ‘Yes I am very organized,’ because I thought that was the O,” DeGeneres shared. “I didn't know what OCD was. I was raised in a religion, Christian Science, that doesn't acknowledge diseases or disorders. So when I was growing up, nobody talked about anything. There was no discussion of anything.”
“I look back now and I realize my dad for sure had OCD,” she added. “He would check the doorknob 15 times before we'd leave, he'd check the faucet 15 times, he would unplug all the appliances before we left the house because lightning could strike and it could catch fire. They say it could be hereditary.”
Portia de Rossi — the former talk show host’s wife of 16 years — immediately agreed that she has OCD and noticed some of her tendencies. However, DeGeneres admitted
In the special, the comedian added that she also struggles with attention deficit disorder (ADD). (ADD is now considered an outdated term for what experts now call attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD.)
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders and can result in difficulty paying attention and controlling impulsive behaviors, or being overly active, according to the CDC.
“My ADD makes it really hard to sit down and focus on anything at all,” she explained. “I mean, do you know how hard it was for me to put this together? Of course you don't. Why would I ask that question? It's hard for me to focus.”
“So, I have ADD, I have OCD, I'm losing my memory. But I think I'm well-adjusted because I obsess on things, but I don't have the attention span to stick with it, and I quickly forget what I was obsessing about in the first place,” DeGeneres said. “So, it takes me all the way around to being well adjusted, I think.”
Ellen Degeneres: For Your Approval is now available to stream on Netflix.
The Quran - Chapter Al - Muzzammil: 15 - 16
Indeed, We have sent to you a messenger as a witness over you, just as We sent a messenger to Pharaoh.
But Pharaoh disobeyed the messenger, so We seized him with a stern grip.
