"Desperate Housewives" - the Power of Humiliation

Beth is such a desperate housewife. Her husband, Paul, is mean. He keeps secrets, like the reason his ex-con, killer friend Yeager, came to town. Yeager is working and staying in one of Paul's vacant properties, but he's keeping her in the dark on that as well. Beth expects better, but Paul is treating her like a child. It's so humiliating.

It's only menopause

Bree would hate to have her good time cut short, but she may have no choice. Her boy toy is 17 years her junior. She's trying her best to keep up, but rollerblading left her hot, dizzy and face down in the grass. Her primary symptom? "A wave of heat." You could see the shiny, sweaty glow all over her face. The lady EMT diagnosed it as menopause and Bree's friends are talking pit stains and hormone patches. How humiliating would it be to explain that to her young lover?

So unnatural

Renee and Lynette are starting a design firm. The two of them working at home is just fine with Renee.' Now, if only she could tolerate baby Paige. (Breast feeding is "so unnatural.") Feeling Renee's discomfort, Lynette gave in to a bout of unjustifiable, working mother shame. She agreed to put her daughter in the hands of a qualified nanny.

Enough humiliation already

Susan is the poorest of her friends. She's gone through so much: giving up her house, working an internet porn job. Her husband, Mike, left for a job in Alaska, leaving Susan and M J in a scruffy apartment they'd never have rented if they could afford better.

Susan is poor and willing to work, two qualities Renee' sees as perfect for a nanny. Before consulting with Lynette, she tells Susan about their new design firm and offers her a position. Renee' doesn't do a very good job of explaining what they want Susan to do, but she's excited over the idea of a paying job and says yes. She has to suck up another dose of humiliation when she realizes Renee' hired her as Paige's nanny.

Do whatever you have to do

"Desperate Housewives" viewers have seen Bree, Susan, Lynette and Gabrielle struggle with humiliation a time or two. Beth is a new desperate housewife, but she's already learned to do whatever she has to do to get through it.

Beth plays the innocent, but she knows exactly how to work it. She knew enough to keep her virginity until she needed a bit more control over Paul. (Was she really a virgin?) She couldn't force him to tell her what she wanted to know, but she knew enough to rip her dress, fake an attack and blackmail Yeager into telling all.

Beth's got a thing or two up her sleeve, including a friend in prison who will probably put Paul in his place some day.