Former Married At First Sight star Ella Ding has responded to claims that she spread misinformation in a recent episode of the podcast she shares with Domenica Calarco, Sit With Us.
In the episode titled “Practising Gratitude”, Ella and Dom discuss the power of positive thinking. But instead of promoting the benefits of mindfulness, the duo basically told their listeners that they have the power to cure cancer ~ with their minds ~.
Think it sounds like too much of a huge fuck up to actually make it to a podcast with such a large, impressionable audience? You’d think so.
But if you don’t believe me, here are the quotes.
“We can program our brains to do pretty much anything,” Ella began.
“Your mind can kill you. It can make you sick. If you’re sick in whatever way it may be, whether it’s with illness, if you have cancer, or if you have depression, you can literally make yourself sicker by focusing on how sick you are. You can end up terminally ill.”
She went on to introduce a book by Dr Joe Dispenza, called How To Rewire Your Brain. More on him in a bit.
“[Dispenza] has hundreds of case studies of people who were sick with cancer, and he literally trained them to just imagine not being sick,” she said.
“Imagine the cancer is leaving your body. Imaging the cells are going away. Imagine this, imagine that. He’s literally cured patients without chemotherapy.”
Huge claims from Miss Ding, who proceeded to tell the story of her friend’s mum, whose cancer was allegedly healed from a four month alternative treatment retreat in Mexico rather than chemotherapy.
Clearly, these are some pretty wild claims and listeners have taken issue with Ella’s hot take, leaving negative reviews of the podcast for spreading misinformation in the episode.
After dozens of negative reviews, Ella responded to a post in their closed Facebook group for Sit With Us listeners to address the critiques of this episode.
“I didn’t say you can, but that people have and there’s many stories online and in research out there,” she wrote, per So Dramatic!.
“Definitely not saying you can cure cancer, referencing to Dr Joe Dispenza who is a doctor and a neuroscientist who helps heal people through the power of their mind. And sharing where to find his most recent interview with Jay Shetty.
“Of course I will say on the podcast like all our experiences, we share not to do or follow but to take things with a grain of salt or however you would like to,” she said.
The thing is, while Dr Joe Dispenza has more than two million followers on IG, old mate is not a neuroscientist or a medical doctor. He received his doctorate in chiropractic science.
Despite referring to himself on social media as a “best selling author” and “researcher of epigenetics, quantum physics and neuroscience”, these claims are heavily disputed.
Although Ella has every right to share the experience of her friends mum on the pod, claiming that a new-age guru has completely healed people without conventional medicine without citing any actual evidence really fits into the ‘misinformation’ category, I reckon.
Look, I’m not trying to drag them for no reason. I am such a woo-woo person. I truly believe in the power of positive thinking, manifestation and all that bullshit. I even understand first-hand how easy it is to go on a podcast and run your mouth when you’re excited to be discussing something you’re passionate about.
But they are public figures and influencers with over one million followers combined. No matter how you slice it, what they say matters. It has influence.
Ella’s take that people with cancer, terminal or not, could pick up a book to help heal themselves is pretty fkn insensitive and flippant. Then, to say that their podcast should be taken with “a grain of salt” when they’re acting like an authority is also pretty insensitive and flippant.
I’m all for discussions of wellness and mindfulness but when podcasters and influencers are outright saying people with cancer can heal themselves without chemo?
That’s a bit much, hey.
I’m sure they meant well, but as someone who has recently lost a friend from terminal cancer, this shit struck a chord with me. I watched as my friend tried all sorts of hollistic mindfulness practices along with conventional medicine, and shocker, it didn’t really work out.
Food for thought, I guess.
Ella and Dom are yet to make a statement on their public social media accounts. PEDESTRIAN.TV has reached out to Ella for a comment.
