Let’s talk about Betty’s tumor!

Okay, I hope that if you’re reading this, it means you’ve watched the latest episode of Mad Men, or at least are not concerned about spoilers.

On April 1, we learned that Don’s ex-wife, Betty Francis, has a tumor on her thyroid. This is after she goes into the doctor to get a prescription for diet pills, as she’s gained quite a bit of weight since we saw her last season. She says nothing she does has worked to help her lose weight, which made me wonder how much she’s actually tried. I’ve never seen Betty do much physical activity, except horseback riding, and don’t even know if dieting is a possibility for her considering how little she seemed to eat to begin with.

Anyhow, the doctor says he has to examine her first before he can prescribe her any pills and finds some kind of growth on her thyroid gland which may be cancerous. Yet, at no time during the show or follow-up articles/reviews of the episode does anybody appear to draw the connection between weight gain and thyroid problems.  Instead, when Betty finds out that the tumor is benign, she complains that she’s been put through the ringer only to find out she’s “just fat.” Then at the end of the episode, she finishes her own dish of ice cream and then starts on her daughter’s leftover ice cream. She’s just an eatin’ machine!

It can’t be a coincidence that the show put Betty’s tumor on her thyroid. Depending on how long it’s been there, it could also explain her horrible attitude and general dismal outlook on life, not to mention the distance she keeps from those around her. Because when you go to a doctor to be treated for depression, one of the first things they do is test your thyroid. Because treating a person’s thyroid problem is a much more permanent fix for depression than giving them pills to regulate their dopamine and such for the long term.

Hey, I know something that could cause a thyroid problem: A tumor ON a thyroid! No crap, right? Like, hey, even if it’s benign, that’s no reason to just forget about it and move on. There’s no indication made that she plans to have it removed. Also no indication made that she’s been informed the tumor could have caused her weight gain. And yet those two things could most certainly be directly related, and the people who wrote that into the show surely are aware of it. So what the heck? Why isn’t this being addressed? Why does she find out the tumor’s benign and consider that the end of the issue? Why am I the only person who’s even mentioned the correlation between depression, weight gain and disruption in the thyroid? Is it because it’s just so obvious? Because IT IS SO OBVIOUS.

Get that thing removed, Betty! It could be the answer to a lot more problems than you realize.