It seems clear now that Jason “Mayhem” Miller needs help more urgently than we perhaps first thought.
The appearance of the former TUF coach on the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani was cringe-inducingly bizarre. Indeed, I haven’t felt that uncomfortable since, well…I don’t think I have ever felt that uncomfortable.
Posing as “Lucky Patrick” throughout the interview, Miller’s outlandish behaviour gradually escalated until he stormed out of the studio, but not before telling Ariel Helwani to “f*** off.”
I’m sure “Mayhem” thought he was being funny, but the truth is it was a tragically misguided piece of theatre.
It’s as though Miller is taking a tour of the DSM-IV, acting out the symptoms of every major psychological disorder on record.
As someone who has studied psychology for the past seven years, I feel sufficiently qualified to say that his behaviour is so eccentric that it almost defies diagnosis.
In the past, he has exhibited all the signs of suffering from manic depression (or bipolar disorder), yet today’s performance was positively schizophrenic in nature.
His behaviour has been so unpredictable that one wonders what histrionics Miller’s ailing mind will engineer next.
Unfortunately, the response to “Mayhem’s” obvious issues has been far from sympathetic.
Who can blame the uninitiated for thinking that his behaviour is little more than attention-seeking from a fighter struggling to remain relevant in the sport that made him?
From the outside, it certainly seems as though the Bully Beatdown star is simply being obnoxious for the sake of nabbing a few headlines.
However, to those with the benefit of experience in these issues, it is obvious that Miller is very sick indeed—in a clinical sense. Moreover, his behaviour has arguably gotten more erratic since he was caught naked in a church a couple of months ago.
Therefore, he either hasn’t sought help or the prescribed treatment is not working. Whatever the case may be, those around him must intervene and help him before things get any worse.
Whatever your feelings towards the man, no one should take pleasure in watching someone wrestle with some fairly formidable emotional demons.
One can only hope that Jason Miller gets the help he needs before he does something with permanent consequences.
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