Top 10 My Strange Addiction Episodes That Could Only Exist In the 2010s
The first time I watched My Strange Addiction, I honestly thought it had to be fake. Laughing, but also horrified, staring at the screen thinking, "there's no way this is real people doing these things??” That moment I realized what the show calls "addictions" often look more like obsessions that have been cranked up so far they start behaving like an addiction.
My Strange Addiction is a TLC reality series from the early 2010s, that follows people with unusual compulsive behaviors. Through interviews, daily life footage, and professional help, the show explores how these obsessions have engulfed each person's life. Every episode is fascinating, and the show remains one of reality TV’s most unforgettable creations. For this list the episodes were ranked with three main criterias:
How extreme the addiction is
How viral this person would become if this was filmed in current times
How distinct the 2010s the episode feels, the shock factor, spectacle, and something that modern day TV wouldn’t touch
The 2010s was an era where reality TV was pushing boundaries, this list revisits the top ten episodes that could have only existed in that era.
10. Addicted To Eating Sand
She scoops it, snacks on it, and sprinkles it onto her meals for that “crunchy” effect, an interesting seasoning choice. Eating sand is pretty low on the severity scale because at least it’s not toxic and she's not harming anyone except maybe the beach's ecosystem. It’s ranked 10th, last on the list, because honestly, humans have probably eaten weird things on TikTok. Still, sand can cause some less severe health issues, hence it’s still not great and made it onto the list. Also, imagine being on a beach with her, you turn around, and she just licks the sand, eugh. It’s the kind of episode that’s mildly absurd yet oddly earnest, behavior that reality TV in the 2010s loved to spotlight. A balance today’s more regulated and socially sensitive media landscape wouldn’t bother filming.
9. Addicted To Eating Cat Hair
This woman eats cat hair straight off the brush, and sometimes even directly from her cat. She claims that the texture is comforting, which I guess is a personal preference. It’s ranked 9th because it’s strange, but knowing that there are people eating walls, and ashes, a little furball snack isn’t that disturbing. But also think about how this episode would translate today, this woman would probably be labeled on the internet as an “animal abuser” instead of focusing on the fact that she's eating cat hair, only in the 2010s would she not be labeled, and feel comfortable with sharing her addiction with the world. Though it is still very unsanitary, and risky for her digestive system, and honestly probably quite confusing for her cat who probably wasn’t expecting to get licked by its owner.
8. Addicted To Drinking Gasoline
She drinks gasoline straight from a bottle, sipping it like it’s a cup of iced tea on a hot summer day. Every time she swallows you can practically feel the fumes hitting her lungs through the screen. Gasoline is catastrophic for the body, attacking everything from the kidneys to the nervous system. What keeps this episode lower on the list isn’t the danger value (which is off the charts), but the presentation is less visually shocking than watching someone sip literal paint. Instead, the horror comes from the fact that she tilts back her bottle and drinks something that should take her out on the sport. This is the kind of episode where you spend the time mentally dialing 911– one that really makes you wonder, why in the world would the network allow this episode to be aired, that’s why it’s on the list, an episode only in the 2010s would not be labeled as bad influence.
7. In Love With Inflatables
This man is romantically involved with over 50 inflatables: dolphins, dragons, etc. All are stored lovingly in his home like a collection of dolls. He cuddles them, talks to them, and treats them as if they are his life partners. What makes this episode stand out isn’t danger, his inflatable companions are harmless, but the only threat to his love life would be a stray needle turning date night into a deflation crisis. This addiction is more quirky than disturbing, but the commitment of maintaining a multi-inflatable relationship earned a place on this list. And again, he would never have willingly shared this information with the public today.
6. Addicted To Eating Her House
This woman is literally eating drywall. She takes chunks out of her walls like the house is one giant saltine cracker. The episode shows her walking around with a Ziploc bag of fragments from her walls, kind of like she’s carrying a snack pack around. It’s ranked 6th because the behavior is bizarre, but at least it doesn’t include anything seriously toxic like paint. The funniest part is to imagine people walking through her home and asking her what she’s going to eat for lunch, and she says “my walls”. This story line would be causing an insane spectacle if aired now. People on the internet would likely be trying to locate her landlord, and trying to create unnecessary drama. While in the 2010s the audience probably watched it though “damn, this woman needs help.”
5. In Love With His Red Car
Nathaniel’s relationship with his car, Chase, has become one of the most iconic episodes in this franchise. Nathaniel kisses the car, talks to it, and even engages in intimacy with it, things that the car was definitely not manufactured to do. He’s basically dating his car. This episode lands at #5, not just because Nathaniel is romantically attached to his car, but because of how sincerely he commits to the relationship. He treats the car the way most people treat their partners. That level of attachment requires some serious therapy. Though Nathaniel was quite sweet, the episode felt wholesome and cursed at the same time. It’s also the perfect snapshot of the early 2010s: a decade bold enough to document a man’s unique love life, long before the modern audience would have dissed him and his car.
4. Laxative Addiction
This one is less bizarre, but it’s an extreme health risk. This woman takes up to 6 bottles of laxative a day, eating them like candy. The weirdness comes from the fact that she essentially schedules her life around her digestive system, forcing it to work extra. It’s ranked 4th because although visually, for a viewer, it's not that “out there” compared to the ashes or the diapers, the physical consequences are just horrifying. This episode was tragic but it also serves as the world's worst advertisement for colon cleansing. Only in the 2010s would this episode not have been labeled as a promotion for an eating disorder, today, stricter health and ethics standards would have shut down this episode immediately.
3. Addicted To Drinking Paint
This woman drinks paint like how high school boys drink Gatorade, she describes it as a “thicker version of warm milk”. This addiction is highly ranked because the visuals in the episode are just insane, she sips on paint from a shot glass, and even straight out of the tube of a paint marker. It’s the kind of scene that makes you flinch. The disturbing part? Paint is highly toxic, and with every sip she takes, she basically sends a direct attack to her organs. But from a viewer standpoint, it’s the kind of episode that becomes a benchmark for how far the show is willing to go, defining the chaos level of the series. This is such a distinct 2010s moment: a time when the network had no problem airing someone casually drinking paint.
2. Addicted To Dirty Diapers
She hoards used diapers. She has them laying around her home, her car, even by her bed. She sniffs them for comfort, leaning into the smell the way normal people lean into floral or vanilla scents. It’s ranked 2nd because this behavior takes a certain amount of bravery. It’s weird, dirty, and one of those episodes that clings to your memory the way the stench probably clings to those diapers: you can’t escape it no matter how hard you try. PS Youtube has already removed this episode… that should explain how disturbing the visuals are and shows how unlikely it is for a network to green light this today.
1. Addicted To Eating Dead Husbands Ashes
This episode is the crown jewel of “WHAT DID I JUST WATCH?!” television. Casie, the woman in this episode quite literally eats her husband's remains, she dips her fingers into the urn like it’s Fun Dip. While yes, the backstory is her grieving but the behavior is just shocking. Casie redefined my upper limit of what counts as a strange addiction. Consuming human ashes is very alarming in every possible context. She even carries the urn everywhere, treating it like a portable snack bag. I guess you could say she really did love her husband to the grave. This episode is peak 2010s reality TV because only in that era would this episode have been socially acceptable. If it was now, this woman probably would be getting hundreds and thousands of hate comments.
These ten episodes show just how wild and unrepeatable the early 2010s were. My Strange Addiction captured a moment when reality TV pushed every boundary, airing stories that were unfiltered. Today, most of these episodes wouldn’t even make it past the initial pitch meeting, let alone air without backlash. That’s what makes this show a perfect time capsule: they reflected a decade when people shared anything on camera. Love it or cringe at it, the show is a reminder of how chaotic the 2010s really was.