9. My Extreme Animal Phobia
This list is not only about physical torture, but mental and emotional torture as well. I found it hard to find a show that encompasses both as well as My Extreme Animal Phobia, which is not a game show, but a life changing experience for its sufferers. An Animal Planet creation, this show selects its subjects based around the amount and uniqueness of their animal phobias. When selected, they are subjected to bouts of extreme interaction with the objects of their phobias, which is called exposure therapy. Day one, the sufferers are shown to their bedrooms and asked to decorate them with pictures of their biggest fear, be it spiders, snakes, butterflies, or even dogs. On day two, host Dr. Robin Zasio initiates the exposure therapy by introducing a real-life version of their enemies into their lives, though nothing too drastic. The therapy continues on until the final day of treatment when the subjects are forced to confront their fears head on in an almost challenged-based test of their willingness to ward off their heebie jeebies. What makes this show so torturous is how relatable the subject matter is. We all have a fear, even if we dont want to admit it to ourselves. Not everyone is eager to pick up tarantulas in their bare hands and carry them to a plastic bin twenty yards away. Not only can we relate to their fear, but we can relate to their utter torment of being forced to confront it. When you are so shackled by fear that you cant motivate yourself to overcome it and someone else has to force you to, it becomes torture. Watching the pain and anxiety that each sufferer has to go through is almost too much. What makes the show enjoyable is the end result. Even though the show is only an hour long, we feel as if we have been on this journey every step of the way. To see a person who, at one point, would faint or scream at a picture of an animal grow to touch, examine, even relate to that same animal later is as satisfying for us as it is for them. It gives us hope that we can, one day, overcome our vices and get on with our lives. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDvDCqLCdEE