My Essay on SheKnows: “Why Grey’s Anatomy Is My Comfort TV Show”

Oh, friends! I’m pretty sure it’s not a coincidence that I posted about fall TV shows yesterday and then am sharing my newest essay for SheKnows today! And of course, I’m extra excited because I got to write about one of my favorite shows: Grey’s Anatomy!!!

When my editor emailed me last month to see if I had any ideas for health essays to coincide with the return of all our favorite shows, I had to do a bit of thinking. How could I possibly relate TV shows to health topics, especially to something like my disability? Was there even anything worthwhile to say?

And that’s when it hit me: OF COURSE!!! Like a metaphorical light bulb shining over my head, it came to me. The idea was practically staring me right in the face! I’ve realized that I don’t just watch Grey’s Anatomy and other medical dramas for the uber cute doctors; I mean, those docs are a very nice perk, but my love definitely goes much, much deeper than that.

Here’s an excerpt of the essay, in which I talk about how watching medical dramas is basically like watching a home movie that brings on all the feels of happy family memories…

It started in the small living room of our apartment, where we would gather every weekend for frozen pizza and episodes of ER and Chicago Hope, my mom and sister lounging on the couch and my dad curled up under a blanket on the floor. Sometimes, we’d even diagnose a patient before the doctors on the screen. It was as if all those years in the hospital were the perfect training — our own private “med school,” if you will…

As odd as it sounds, I’m reminded of happy times when I was young and with my family. It’s sort of like going home again. In a world where everything is constantly changing, I can spend an hour each week catching up with the Grey’s crew and also feel like my past is still close to me, like I can still somehow hold onto a piece of my father even in his absence.

You can read the full essay here and I’d love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to email me anytime at mellow1422@aol.com and let’s chat! And of course, feel free to share my essay on Facebook, Twitter or even your local refrigerator. If you share on Twitter, be sure to tag me @melissablake so we can connect! I can’t wait to hear from you! Love you all… xoxo