Erika Jayne has exhibited a lot of shocking behavior on this season of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. And that’s saying a lot. But one of her more shocking moments came during an exchange with castmate Crystal Kung Minkoff. Crystal has been open and honest about her struggles with an eating disorder. And a seemingly drunken Erika made gross comments about it on camera, catching Crystal completely off guard.
Crystal spoke with The Daily Beast about how Erika’s words affected her. The episode itself was aptly titled “The Weight of Words.” After Erika told Crystal that laxatives were a good way to get weight off and told her she couldn’t have a piece of chicken offered by a waiter, Crystal was obviously shocked. Along with viewers.
Crystal shared, “I felt embarrassed. Like suddenly the show didn’t exist, and I just felt embarrassed. There’s a feeling of embarrassment being on the show, the idea of being filmed. And then, you know, I got made fun of, as a child, for being chubby. That’s how it felt.”
When it came to the laxative comments, Crystal was left equally caught off guard. Said Crystal, “It was very uncomfortable for me. Because when she mentioned the laxative, I actually explained that my best friend suffered from that. And I’d discovered that later and she didn’t know it was an eating disorder. She had always known about mine. And then I found out she was doing that. And I was like, you know that’s a problem. So I explained that story.”
Kyle Richards also grilled Crystal about her ED habits, asking her if she threw up. Which tasked Crystal with awkwardly shutting things down. “I said to them, this is starting to feel a little too graphic for me,” she revealed. Sadly, producers cut out all of Crystal’s responses, which would have been an opportunity to educate fans on eating disorders. But her castmates’ reactions just furthered Crystal’s discomfort in the situation. She stated, “I’m so used to people not understanding. That’s why I pull away.”
Crystal then acknowledged that last year’s trip to Tahoe likely contributed to how the cast currently handles her. She noted, “In Tahoe, I opened up. It could have been a conversation, of explaining ‘violation’ and my eating disorder, and me diving into an educational moment. But it was not done like that. And it wouldn’t have spiraled to what it was. But it doesn’t work like that. I can’t control it. It’s a show. Had it been like an opportunity, that it was encouraged to talk about, that could have been the learning moment, then. And I would have been happy to open up about it. I was like, ready. I was like, ‘OK.’ Because I needed them to know. It felt very intense how they were treating me.”
Crystal continued, “It’s the experience of the show. There’s an expectation that I’m going to ask people questions and they’re going to ask me questions that are far more invasive than normal, because the show is designed to hear your inner thoughts. So maybe these are questions that many people have wanted to ask me. Right? That they didn’t because of politeness, or etiquette.”
For Crystal, “it’s very, it’s so deeply embedded in me. Those words are very hard to say. So I just would never say those words. I find other words that make me feel more comfortable. So when people are like, asking me directly, ‘Do you do that? Throwing up?’ I’m like, ‘Ugh, you guys. This is a lot. I’m an open book. But try to be a little more gentle.’”
When it comes to how the show portrays insensitivity as Housewives drama, that doesn’t sit well with Crystal. She remarked, “I got a lot of comments like, ‘Why don’t you fight back? Where’s Crystal’s clapback?’ I’m like, this is not something you ‘clap back’ at. This is not, like, you’re making fun of my clothes. This is so deep and painful and rooted in, like, my view of life and my view of myself. It’s not frivolous, that I’m going to ‘clap back’ at you. I’m just going to walk away and protect myself, and that’s all I can do.”
Crystal concluded, “I have to protect myself when it comes to this. Because when the show is over, I still have my eating disorder.”
TELL US – ARE YOU DISAPPOINTED IN HOW THE PRODUCERS HANDLED THE SITUATION? SHOULD THEY HAVE INCLUDED CRYSTAL’S RESPONSES TO THE CAST? HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT ERIKA AND KYLE’S COMMENTS?
[Photo Credit: Bravo]
