brianlittrell - Jezebel

posts about #brianlittrell more →
Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
You Can't Stop The Duggar Family Baby Makin' Machine

Your version of Internet Explorer is not supported. Please upgrade to the most recent version in order to view comments.

Dsmvwl Admin Promote to frontpage Approve user Ban user ×

ILiketheWord'Pugilist'
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
While their belief in Scientology most likely wouldn't allow for the 'autism' diagnosis I don't believe it necessary to get a diagnosis. The only reason to do so is to get resources you can't afford on your own.

I also understand why the Travoltas wouldn't treat seizures - the treatment is tranquillizers - I for one would rather deal with seizures rather than be or watch my child tranquilized.

I feel for them, I don't know what could have been done to keep him more safe, I'm sure something could have been done but in hindsight it's always easy to judge.
Reply

Aesop's Foibles. YES.
01/22/09

@captainolimar: I take medication for epileptic seizures, and mine are definitely *not* tranquilizers. According to my neurologist, anti-seizure meds regulate electrical activity in the brain, thereby preventing the irregularities which cause the seizures. So your information doesn't sound accurate, at least not to me. If you have any clarification to offer, please do. Not in any mean way, mind you, just because I find the whole subject very interesting.
Reply

deeemer
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
Autism is a diagnosis that can destroy your whole life. Do you realize how many parents DENY that their kids have autism (as do I, to anyone except my immediate family), because of the stigmas these children receive?

The teacher that knew of my child's diagnosis treated my child like an incompetent individual, retarded and unable to learn. Which was the opposite of the truth. But believe me, it is not an uncommon stereotype. So screw all of you for judging any parent for simply doing what they feel is best for their child.

No one is obligated to be the Role Model for a disease. Let them grieve in peace. They had the kid on seizure meds, for goodness sakes. What on earth do you want from them?
Reply

deeemer was starred deeemer was unstarred

ellaesther
01/22/09

@deeemer: Oh girl. You and I have had (and will no doubt continue to have) some mighty loud disagreements about Israel and the Palestinians in the past, but I don't want that to get in the way of this:

You do what you need to do. I am so sorry that your child had to undergo that kind of treatment, and I hope that as the years go by, you find yourself and your family surrounded by an ever-greater circle of wise and informed people: family, educators and folks on the street.

And I agree about the Travoltas. Whatever we may think about what they believe, they should be left entirely alone. We are in no position to judge. Is there an opposite of that position? Because that's what we, the general public who know neither them or their pain, are in.
Reply

ellaesther was starred ellaesther was unstarred

Aesop's Foibles. YES.
01/22/09

@deeemer: Thank you. And your experience illustrates very clearly how little understanding most of us have of autism; celebrities, doctors, teachers, average joes included. And I agree that no one has the responsibility to be a role model for anything, even celebrities.
Reply

RainbowBrite
01/22/09

@deeemer: The Travoltas don't "owe" anyone an explanation, and definitely aren't obligated to become poster children/role models for a disease. However, I do find it objectionable to spread incorrect medical information, like that Kawasaki syndrome Jett had a decade ago caused seizures in his adolescence. I completely agree with you that they have the right to keep their son's diagnosis secret, but don't confuse people by lying!
Reply

RainbowBrite was starred RainbowBrite was unstarred

AthertonMerriweather
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
Google says this guy's now dating Carrie Underwood.
Reply

CrossWord
01/22/09

@AthertonMerriweather: Really? I heard that now that she's a big star, she only dates black belts.
Reply

CrossWord was starred CrossWord was unstarred

AthertonMerriweather
01/22/09

@CrossWord: haha! I meant the doctor...whoops!
Reply

Aesop's Foibles. YES.
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
What a cute little guy. I know fa about Kawasaki Syndrome, but I'm glad it's curable and that the tyke is feeling better. As for poor Jett, I think it's pretty much assumed that since his parents are Scientologists that he wasn't treated properly. I don't know anything about that either. What I do know is that watching your child suffer the effects of any illness or condition would be heartbreaking for anyone. Let alone surviving your child. Regardless of someone's religion and what we do or do not know about it, I feel like calling bs on any parent who has just lost a child is just insult to injury. That being said, for all any of us know, Scientology had everything to do with the boy's treatment or lack thereof. If that is in fact true, then yes, his parents beliefs are to blame for his death, but that doesn't mean they aren't devastated. Again, I'm not claiming to know anything in particular. Just feeling bad about kids dying for whatever reason as I'm sure we all are.
Reply

nellicat
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
Yeah, taht doctor is EASY on the eyes. Unfortunately, he was once on "The Bachelor," which makes him a big douche in my eyes. Sigh.
Reply

nellicat was starred nellicat was unstarred

badmutha
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
Wait, Dr. Hottness! I have a rash right here on my chest! Can you come and check me out? What do you mean its a childhood disease? Can't a woman get a kid's disease? Where are you going? MY CHEST!!
Reply

badmutha was starred badmutha was unstarred

CrossWord
01/22/09

@badmutha: Oh! I think I have what you have. Except my rash is down...there. I think that doctor needs to come and poke around a little, if you know what I mean. WINK WINK. Is the disease contagious? Because, doctor, I think you have a fever--you look sooooo hot! WINK WINK. Let's take an oatmeal bath!
Reply

CrossWord was starred CrossWord was unstarred

AthertonMerriweather
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
That doctor was on The Bachelor before he was on this show.
Reply

LunaLLena
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
Is it wrong that I wanted him to just stop, look at the camera and sing, "Baylee's back alright!"?
Reply

LunaLLena was starred LunaLLena was unstarred

Hazel
01/22/09

@Monsita: oh my god, he's back again. brothers sisters everybody sing.

can someone please post that video? i don't know how and am also very lazy.
Reply

Hazel was starred Hazel was unstarred

Dictator for Life
01/22/09

@Monsita: That would be precious!
Reply

Dictator for Life was starred

Raspberry Swirly
01/22/09

@Hazel (nee Azliza):
Reply

Raspberry Swirly was starred Raspberry Swirly was unstarred

Hazel
01/22/09

@R.S.: i was going to friend you because i love you for this. then i saw the little heart under your name was already red =)
Reply

Hazel was starred Hazel was unstarred

Raspberry Swirly
01/22/09

@Hazel (nee Azliza): Heehee. Double friending! I could use it.
Reply

Raspberry Swirly was starred Raspberry Swirly was unstarred

ellaesther
01/22/09

@Monsita: Since the wee little lad is fine, it's not only not-wrong, it's TOTALLY right!

Brian was always my favorite. I know I frequently comment on these threads about the loud music I like, but I respect talent in all its forms, and those boys can *sing*. And I really loved him for some reason.

I actually did some PR for them, when I briefly worked at a record company in a foreign land, and when I ran into AJ, Kevin and Nick at an airport a few years later, they could NOT have been sweeter. But I was bummed, because Brian wasn't with them.... (But mah gracious if that Kevin isn't dreamy!)
Reply

ellaesther was starred ellaesther was unstarred

CrossWord
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
I would definitely not have my child fake that disease in order to be treated by that hot-as-hell doctor. Nope. I would never do that.

Rashes, you say?
Reply

CrossWord was starred CrossWord was unstarred

gold_gato
01/22/09

@CrossWord: Honey, rub this three-leaved plant on your leg...
Reply

gold_gato was starred gold_gato was unstarred

morninggloria
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
That syndrome sounds like a disease that one gets from too much ninja related activity.
Reply

morninggloria was starred morninggloria was unstarred

AthertonMerriweather
01/22/09

@morninggloria: or when your snowmobile gets a flat tire.
Reply

WaltzingMatilda
01/22/09

@morninggloria: I am pretty confident that Jeremy Piven thought he could claim Kawasaki Disease because of his increased sushi consumption.
Reply

WaltzingMatilda was starred WaltzingMatilda was unstarred

Breamworthy
01/22/09

@WaltzingMatilda(theOriginal): Nah, he's no dummy - it was because he rode a motorcycle to work.
Reply

Breamworthy was starred Breamworthy was unstarred

poorlittlerischgirl
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
Holy hell. I want the doctor who's wearing the scrubs. Who is he?
Reply

Katxyz
01/22/09

@poorlittlerischgirl:

FOR REAL. Once again, I'll have to pretend to be a terminally ill child to get something I want.
Reply

Katxyz was starred Katxyz was unstarred

Fridge Hussy : Is finally heading back to uni!
01/22/09

@poorlittlerischgirl: He works on the show. He used to be on The Bachelor.
Reply

Diziet_Sma
01/22/09

@poorlittlerischgirl: Me too!
Reply

Diziet_Sma was starred Diziet_Sma was unstarred

Breamworthy
01/22/09

@Katxyz: Hahaha!
Reply

Breamworthy was starred Breamworthy was unstarred

MarlaHooch
01/22/09

@Katxyz: HAHA, I know! When I was thirteen I thought Brian Littrell was the dreamiest, but Scrubs Doc made him look like A.J.
Reply

MarlaHooch was starred MarlaHooch was unstarred

pinkiedeathhead
01/22/09

@MarlaHooch: And I think the doc in scrubs is Dr. Phil's son. That gives me a BIG pause.
Reply

pinkiedeathhead was starred pinkiedeathhead was unstarred

Breamworthy
01/22/09

@pinkiedeathhead: NOOOO! I'm pretty sure it's not him. I used to watch when Dr. Phil's son (Jordan? Justin?) was doing the weight-loss thing for teens. This was back before I gave up Dr. Phil as a new-year's resolution (best goddamn thing I ever did).

As I recall, the kid had no qualifications for being involved in that except for the fact that he was young himself. He was definitely not a doctor. Plus, he was almost bald back then. And his voice was high and annoying, not lower and attractive and... um... er, what were we talking about?
Reply

Breamworthy was starred Breamworthy was unstarred

Miss Scarlett
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
I had Kawasaki Disease as a child in the early 80's and at the time there were very few cases and I remember going to a lot of hospitals because it was hard to diagnose. I had a doctor who heard I had it and asked me a lot of questions because it is still rare. I was under the age of five and don't remember a whole lot and luckily have no effects as an adult. I hope his son makes a full recovery and I still call B.S. on Jett still having long term effects like they keep mentioning. I believe the long term effects can he heart and hearing trouble not all of the symptoms staying this long.
Reply

Miss Scarlett was starred Miss Scarlett was unstarred

Miss Scarlett
01/22/09

@Miss Scarlett in the Hall with a revolver.: BTW: I feel incredible sad that Jett lost his life when he was so young and my heart goes out to his family and friends. I just think that the Travolta's are spreading misinformation about the disease and I wish they would stop.
Reply

Miss Scarlett was starred Miss Scarlett was unstarred

RainbowBrite
01/22/09

@Miss Scarlett in the Hall with a revolver.: Interesting! My mom is an pediatric infectious disease specialist and I was talking to her about Kawasaki when this story broke. She said it's been getting more and more common - she sees about 4-5 new cases a year. But yeah, at that time it was much rarer and they didn't have many options to treat it! She also said there was a year in the late 80s when she seriously got like, 12 within a couple of months. An outbreak, kind of! It's still very mysterious what causes it. Glad you're ok!
Reply

RainbowBrite was starred RainbowBrite was unstarred

bibliophage
01/22/09

@Miss Scarlett in the Hall with a revolver.:Are you me? I got Kawasaki's at 4, also in the early 80s. My parents gave me a polaroid camera, so I have some pictures from the hospital of the EKG nurses holding up my test results and a vague memory of all of my fingers and toes peeling at the same time, but that memory and those photos are the ONLY things that lasted more than a month or so after I was diagnosed.
Reply

bibliophage was starred bibliophage was unstarred

Miss Scarlett
01/22/09

@bibliophage: We were in AZ and I remember flying to hospitals in NV and CA. I remember the peeling also. The doctor who asked me a bunch of questions was about a month ago and I asked my mom some questions after that. She said it was one of the worst times in her life. Glad you are okay!

I do think it would be nice to have some more information available to people since it is being more common and there is so much misinformation out there. I'm glad there are some celebrities that are trying to get correct information out there.
Reply

Miss Scarlett was starred Miss Scarlett was unstarred

Hazel
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
oh. my. god. that child is adorable. so is the doctor talking to him.

seeing brian litrell always reminds me of his werewolf persona in that halloween-y music video.

lastly- have these doctors treated Jett Travolta? At the end of the clip, the doc says his Kawasaki syndrome has nothing to do with his seizures. I know nothing about medicine and I tend to believe that that is probably true, but should he be making such a blatent statement without reminding people that he's never treated Jett?
Reply

Hazel was starred Hazel was unstarred

Inescapable Picnic
01/22/09

@Hazel (nee Azliza): Seems appropriate that doctors should, when the symptoms and parental diagnosis are spread all over the media, make sure the real lack of connection is known. Not as a jab at the Travoltas, but in the interest of public well-being.
Reply

Inescapable Picnic was starred

RainbowBrite
01/22/09

@Hazel (nee Azliza): Yeah, I mean, unless the clip got cut off, it didn't seem like there was a big long discussion about Jett Travolta, which would ahve been very inappropriate. I think it is ok to say that seizures aren't a symptom of Kawasaki's disease a person had a decade ago, though, because there is a lot of misinformation floating around.

It probably would have been better to make that point without mentioning Jett Travolta by name, though.
Reply

RainbowBrite was starred RainbowBrite was unstarred

Hazel
01/22/09

@Inescapeable Picnic: I suppose that makes sense. I just always get a little leery when doctors make claims about people they haven't treated. I probably should stop reading US Weekly.
Reply

Hazel was starred Hazel was unstarred

funnyface
01/22/09

@Hazel (nee Azliza): Seizures are simply NOT associated with Kawasaki's. It's just a fact. It would be like saying seizures are associated with diabetes and not expecting to be called out on it.
Reply

funnyface was starred funnyface was unstarred

Hazel
01/22/09

@funnyface: I wonder why this is the first I've heard about it. When does the respect for the Travolta's privacy end so that the MSM can cover it?
Reply

Hazel was starred Hazel was unstarred

Breamworthy
01/22/09

@Hazel (nee Azliza):

that child is adorable. so is the doctor talking to him.

yes, and YES.
Reply

Breamworthy was starred Breamworthy was unstarred

zlady
01/22/09

@funnyface: Not to be annoying, but seizures actually are associated with Diabetes (the boyfriend gets them from his blood sugar going too low). I totally get your point though, the doctors are just trying to make sure people know the facts.
Reply

zlady was starred zlady was unstarred

funnyface
01/22/09

@zlady: Dangit, that's what I get for trying to pair a random symptom and an unrelated disease without verifying first.
Reply

funnyface was starred funnyface was unstarred

sportz.star
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
Everyone cheers, and Baylee's all, orange belt ain't no thang.
Reply

sportz.star was starred sportz.star was unstarred

Annabellie
01/22/09

In reply to Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome
First of all, that child is adorable.

Second of all, I think that it's great that they're talking about Kawasaki Syndrome, a little-known disease that obviously made national headlines not long ago. I think that it's great that this kind of awareness is spreading.

BUT.

Do they have to do things like emphasize that seizures are not part of the disease? Really? I mean, yeah, Jett probably did have autism, and it should have been diagnosed, and Scientology is probably to blame for him not getting treatment. But does a show that's supposed to be spreading awareness about Kawasaki Syndrome REALLY have to turn into a "the Travoltas are full of shit" platform?
Reply

Annabellie was starred Annabellie was unstarred

funnyface
01/22/09

@Annabellie: I just think it's important to differentiate between reality and the misinformation celebs put out there about things like kawasaki's and autism. My husband is a pediatrician, and you would not believe how many parents believe the medical info they get from people like Jenny McCarthy and the Travoltas.
Reply

funnyface was starred funnyface was unstarred

rocknrollunicorn
01/22/09

@funnyface: I still maintain that this is simply called "natural selection."
Reply

rocknrollunicorn was starred rocknrollunicorn was unstarred

Annabellie
01/22/09

@funnyface: Sigh. I know. I used to babysit a little dude with autism, and it really opened my eyes to all the craziness and controversy.

It just makes me sad that Kawasaki Syndrome is now known only as "the disease that Jett Travolta didn't really have". Which probably isn't that helpful for parents whose kids really do have it.
Reply

Annabellie was starred Annabellie was unstarred

Miss Scarlett
01/22/09

@funnyface: That is terrifying to me. I was also incredibly worried when Tom Cruise gave Brooke Shields a hard time about postpartum depression because I am afraid it stopped women who were suffering from getting treatment. I am glad people are speaking out and saying this information is wrong to try to help other people.
Reply

Miss Scarlett was starred Miss Scarlett was unstarred

Diziet_Sma
01/22/09

@funnyface: Yes. I agree.
Reply

Diziet_Sma was starred Diziet_Sma was unstarred

rocknrollunicorn
01/22/09

@rocknrollunicorn: ooh I just re-read this and realized we're talking specifically about children. Natural selection when your own idiot "beliefs" affect you. Evil when they affect your kids.

How are people so fricking dumb, anyway?
Reply

rocknrollunicorn was starred rocknrollunicorn was unstarred

Jenloveshercurves
01/22/09

@rocknrollunicorn: Also, when Jenny McCarthy and her ilk don't inoculate their children, when they contract whooping cough or the measles or whatever, they give it to infants who have yet to be inoculated or children with compromised immune systems. These children then die. Also, not inoculating for polio is really fucking stupid and playing Russian roulette with your child's future.
Reply

Jenloveshercurves was starred

Earlier discussions Other discussions Show all discussions Show featured discussions only Start a new discussion

#brianlittrell

Jezebel

SUBSCRIBE TO Jezebel

Backstreet Boy's Son Suffers From Kawasaki Syndrome

You Can't Stop The Duggar Family Baby Makin' Machine

Login

Reset Password

Register

Submit Your Comment