“Well, This Isn’t Nearly as Dramatic as it Seems” Says Neuroscience About the Whole Kelly and Michael Debacle

Thursday, April 28, 2016

In light of the events that transpired between Kelly, Michael, and ABC executives last weekend into this week after Michael’s exit announcement, the web is buzzing with overly-dramatized renditions of what happened and suspicions about whether their amicable reunion is staged, and fans are taking “Team Kelly” and “Team Michael” sides. We’re here to represent “Team Kelmichael” and present you with the facts according to personality neurochemistry, which actually says there’s no such thing as fact. Read on for our scientific opinion 🙂

#1: Kelly loves the heck out of Live! Kelly is blessed with neurochemical activity that gives her an incredible work ethic and an undying devotion to her purpose in this world. So when she says “I don’t consider this just a workplace. This is my second home. This is a place that I’ve devoted myself to not just because of you, our loyal viewers, but because of all of the producers and the crew who work on this show. We have an incredible team… We are incredibly devoted to one another. We are family” you can believe her without doubt.

#2: Kelly has standards and values of behavior to which she holds herself and others. It works for her. It doesn’t have to work for you. Kelly doesn’t back out of commitments. You can always count on her. Responsibility and accountability are ingrained in her very essence. One of the most distressing experiences for someone with inherent qualities like these is finding out that someone you thought you could count on has backed out of their commitments. After all, you hold others to the same standards you hold yourself.

#3: Not being told of Michael’s departure wasn’t a justifiable action on the part of ABC execs, and that was the only justification Kelly needed for her reaction. For the same reason as #1 and because she has an inherently keen sense of, and desire for, justice, fairness, and equity, you bet your horses Kelly’s emotions flew high because she felt personally disrespected and that Live! was being devalued and treated unfairly by ABC producers. Others may perceive this as Kelly being opinionated and fixed in her ideals but we see it as a woman passionately standing by the values she holds close to her heart. And we’re grateful to her for it.

#4: Secrets. Secrets are no fun. Secrets hurt everyone. Especially those with lower oxytocin levels. It’s in Michael’s nature to be very trusting. Kelly, on the other hand, doesn’t have consistent oxytocin running through her cells (though she has many other wonderful neurotransmitters in abundance) which leads her to be cautious of who she trusts and confides in, and certainly to not trust those who hide information from her. To her, not being in the loop about something as close to her heart as Live! is really, truly feels like a secret was kept from her which she interprets as an act of mistrust.

#5: Kelly wasn’t the only one who took Michael’s exit announcement by surprise. Kelly is born with loyalty in her blood. And she expects loyalty from others – the kind that’s there whether or not sacrifices need to be made. Regis co-hosted Live! for 28 years, Kathie Lee for 15 years, and Kelly has now been a co-host herself for 15 years. Loyalty runs through the show’s blood just as it runs through Kelly’s blood. Needless to say, Michael’s announcement was surprising to host and audience alike.

#6: This decision wasn’t a piece of cake for Michael to make. Michael’s neurochemistry also gives him a loyal character. Though it may be Kelly’s nature to at first interpret Michael’s actions as indicative of his unloyalty and as a betrayal of her loyalty, we venture to say that there is likely more going on here. Given Michael’s deep connection to family and those he considers to be like family, it’s possible that he received some solicited or unsolicited guidance or an “okay” to leave Live! for Good Morning America (GMA). Michael is driven for stability, not change in his work, his relationships, and his life. It’s possible that over the last two years of his stint on GMA, he has found himself in the presence of another group of people, who like the Live! crew, have begun to feel like “family.” What we know for sure is that this decision was incredibly difficult for Michael to make. For this reason, we feel for Kelly, and Michael too. There’s no villain here folks!

#7: They made up. It’s sincere and for real. We know y’all love drama, but just give it up already. Kelly’s naturally expressive and transparent. She’s straightforward and in your face – that’s why we love listening to her every morning. Michael naturally strives for cohesion and cooperation. He’s likely to avoid confrontation at all costs and may withdraw into thought in order to figure out mutually beneficial outcomes for the two of them. To someone with Kelly’s natural expressiveness, this may seem like avoidance or taking the easy way out, but it’s just Michael’s natural way of keeping himself and those he cares about at heart. So if not telling Kelly was his own doing (which we don’t think it was), then it came from a very loving place of not wanting to hurt or upset her. When he said “”I’m so happy you’re back” to Kelly after her introductory monologue on Tuesday’s show, you can be certain that he was being sincere. It doesn’t get more sincere than these two.

Drama can be fun. So can knowing your inherent tendencies, which arise with your neurochemistry and make you who you are. To find out your natural tendencies, needs, wants, and preferences for how you respond to your world and the people in it, check out ph360™, the very first application to customize health and happiness specifically for your unique body and mind in real time.

PS Kelly, we agree with your dad. We are all crazy.