Special: Are You Rude?

From October 15, 2008: Oprah takes her audience through a test to determine if they are rude. Professor at John Hopkins University and author of Choosing Civility: Twenty-Five Rules of Considerate Conduct, P.M. Forni, discusses the principles of respectful people, the difference between being rude and mean and explains why our quality of life depends on the quality of our relationships. Steve Dublanica, author of the New York Times bestseller, Waiter Rant, shares restaurant etiquette that most people don’t know. P.M. Forni passed away in 2018.

From October 12, 1998: Television personality, author and former psychologist Dr. Phil McGraw helps guests dealing with devastating loss. JoAnn Compton Powell shares that she has been unable to move forward after the death of her daughter, Laurie, over a decade ago. Dr. Phil shares his five coping skills for grief, causing JoAnn to have one of the deepest aha! moments in Oprah show history. Oprah and Dr. Phil also speaks to Brian Janette, who stopped taking care of himself after losing his mother.

From March 28, 1989: Oprah talks to adults who share stories of the emotional abuse they suffered as children and how it still affects them today. Psychotherapist and author of How to Raise Your Self-Esteem, Dr. Nathaniel Branden explains the difference between conscious living and unconscious living, and how making small changes to be more conscious in your life can improve your self-esteem. He also explains why some people are able to transcend abusive circumstances when others cannot. Dr. Branden passed away in 2014 at age 84 from complications with Parkinson’s disease.

From October 9, 1997: Oprah talks with author and psychiatrist Elisabeth Kubler-Ross about her autobiography, Wheel of Life. A pioneer in death and dying studies, Elisabeth shares the greatest lessons she’s learned from those who are dying, how she is welcoming death at the end of her own life and how she’s able to never give up. Also, journalist, philanthropist and author Mitch Albom discusses his New York Times best-selling book Tuesdays with Morrie. He explains how death is an opportunity to teach, and shares why he believes the love we create in our lives continues after death. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross passed away in 2004 at a nursing home in Scottsdale, Arizona.

From June 27, 1989: Oprah talks to grieving parents who lost their young children to handgun violence. Oprah also mediates a discussion on handgun legislation and education with a panel of guests including pediatrician Dr. Katherine Christoffel, National Rifle Association member Marion Hanner and former executive director of the Center to Prevent Handgun Violence, Barbara Laughton. 

From November 27, 1989: Oprah talks to Rudine Howard, a woman weighing only 60 pounds, about her battle with anorexia nervosa. Rudine discusses her fear of food and how treatment with medical hypnotherapist Dr. Henry Parker helped her self-esteem. Other women suffering from bulimia share their patterns of bingeing and purging, the role of denial and why they see food as their only friend. Plus psychiatrist Dr. Patricia Santucci describes the characteristics of those who suffer from eating disorders, the adverse side effects and why it’s important to break the chain of secrecy. Rudine Howard later succumbed to her disease, passing away in 1996.

From February 5, 2001: Oprah talks with author and lifestyle makeover expert, Cheryl Richardson about her New York Times Bestselling book, Life Makeovers. Cheryl explains why boundary-setting is the number one way to improve your life. She gives three components to boundary setting, tips for staying calm in confrontation and explains the importance of the phrase, “I need you to hear me.” Cheryl also discusses internal boundaries, how to recognize where boundaries are needed and why it’s important to not ‘over-explain’ yourself. 

From October 19, 2001: Oprah talks to Mattie Stepanek, an 11-year-old boy who, despite having muscular dystrophy, has written two New York Times best-selling inspirational books of poetry, Heartsongs and Journey Through Heartsongs. He aims to help create world peace. Mattie shares his poetry, describes what he calls “Heartsongs,” and details how he sees miracles every day. Oprah then talks with singer, author and motivational speaker Tom Sullivan about how it feels to be blind. Mattie, who later became one of Oprah’s most memorable guests passed away in 2004 at the age of 13. 

From May 4, 2011: Oprah celebrates the 50-year anniversary of the 1961 Freedom Riders movement with 178 surviving Freedom Riders in the audience. The American heroes share their reasons for risking their lives to defy the segregation laws of the Deep South. Congressman John Lewis is reunited with Elwin Wilson, one of the men who beat him at a bus station in Rock Hill, South Carolina. They open up about the beating and Wilson’s subsequent apology in 2009. In 2013, Elwin Wilson died in a South Carolina hospital at the age of 76. 

From December 2, 1992: New York Times best-selling author, counselor, motivational speaker and television host John Bradshaw discusses his book, Creating Love: The Next Great Stage of Growth. John asserts that most of us don’t even know what love really is. He explains how love can cause misery instead of pleasure in what he calls “mystified love.” John speaks about the effect our childhood has on our adult relationships. John also leads the audience in a meditation and shares how to achieve the “soulful love” we all deserve. On May 8, 2016, John Bradshaw died of heart failure at the age of 82. He is survived by his wife and two children.