Nathaniel Ayers, the violin-playing subject of the 2009 film “The Soloist,” continues to fight against efforts to compel him to take antipsychotic medication. “. . . He is adamantly opposed to forced medication and believes he can function well without it. He disputed the doctor’s comments about his paranoia, telling Hymowitz that his neighbors in Hollywood are too lovely to be feared.”
No easy answer to the question of forcible medication (LA Times)
Sadly, the so called experts in this case seem to be unaware of recent scientific knowledge from valid studies showing that neuroleptics are not the great magic bullets for psychosis or so called schizophrenia or bipolar that the biopsychiatry/Big Pharma cartel has claimed:
Here, Robert Whitaker sums up the evidence based on the best studies that long term use of neuroleptics for all the above patients cannot be justified as a standard of care given the obvious harm from this paradigm. And Dr. Thomas Insel, Head of NIMH, acknowledged Bob’s conclusions by practically quoting him and Dr. Steingaard not too long after Bob wrote this post.
http://www.madinamerica.com/2014/03/fat-lady-sung/
Thus, despite psychiatry’s claim of being evidence based, they only push the drug company sponsored manipulated evidence helped by KOL’s of the field to “prove” their standard of care is justified based on many conflicts of interest including guild and Big Pharma ones per Bob Whitaker.
Unfortunately, we don’t have enough Jim Gottstein’s going around serving as real lawyers on behalf of those abused and conned by so called mental health courts, which are well known to be kangaroo courts with the victim’s fate decided long before he/she goes to court since judges, lawyers and psychiatrsists collude to rob their so called patients of all their human, civil, democratic rights in the guise of their best interests with forced treatment and commitment indefinitely. Jim made some major progress in some cases in Alaska he won when aided by Dr. Grace Jackson to show that a so called mental patient’s decision to reject toxic brain/body damaging drugs causing dementia and early death by 25 years on average can be a very wise choice indeed.
I just checked out the link and read Ayer’s story. It makes me sad that he didn’t find or have a way to connect with the Hearing Voices Movement that has even impressed Dr. Sandy Steingard at MIA with their amazing results and mutual support for each other. I certainly can see why Ayers would want to avoid the so called mental health system like the plague it is given that he will be forced on deadly neuroleptics that will make him far worse off in the long run. It appears he could use some anger management skills too. Lopez did provide some good support by getting him in a housing first program, but it appears to come with the usual AOT strings that cause those like Ayers to rightly want to avoid them when it comes to forced drugging. It seems to me he could be helped with nondrug supports. I’m disappointed in the judge here boasting about her change from being against forced drugging in the past while being for it now; most people don’t go on such a downward spiral in knowledge and evidence without being brainwashed and conned by those with less than noble motives. People like this judge need to be educated about the information Bob Whitaker provides to make adequate, impartial decisions.
Finally, there is always short term stabilization even in a jail if necessary if somebody is breaking the law or needs protection while hopefully coming to one’s senses.
Donna,
Being connected with the hearing voices network was my first thought also. Unfortunately, I didn’t see a USA branch near Mr. Ayers.
The other sickening thought that occurred to me is if Mr. Ayers is forced to take antipsychotics, he will lose his ability to play the flute just because he doesn’t meet society’s norms.
Over the years reading Steve Looez’s column in the Times, I quickly identified the continuing story about Mr. Ayers. I was saddened to read his situation about the courts obtaining conservatorship to force medication, exactly what Mr. Ayers has rejected for many yrs. I, too, wondered if only Mr. Ayers had been exposed to alternative therapies, such as Hearing Voices network…
I sadly made the association once I read who the treating p-doc is for Mr. Ayers and who, as well, is testifying with his Ivy League credentials as why his patient should have IOT. Although the hospital remains anonymous in Lopez’s column, absolutely the treating p-doc is the same pompous, arrogant jerk who was my son’s admitting p-doc. I felt nauseous reading how Dr Askins gives his pts ” dignity” – anything but…My son told me each morning this Ivy League educ p-doc made hosp rounds he spent all of a minute talking to my son, and his other pts in the locked unit. And I have my son’s medical records, this supposedly caring p-doc just parrots the comments written by the staff daily. My son never received the drug rehab he only entered this hosp for, while Dr Askins lied repeatedly to me that my son would be moved to the drug rehab program we paid thousands for him to receive but he never did. This hosp and p-doc only know how to massively drug, warehouse, label, provide worthless services, and defraud the thousands we were charged beside my son’s PPO ins, until he was ” dumped” by this hosp. IF Dr Askins believes he helps his pts why was my son massively drugged with multiple neuroleptics for almost two weeks, until he no longer could speak other than with ” garbled, slurred speech” (I have my son’s medical records)? Yet, a week after being released, told to stop all neuroleptics ” doesn’t need any” ??? Each out-pt visit, wait 1-1 1/2 hrs to be seen in Dr Askins’ out-pt office, then given 5 mins or less time at each appt. The last out-pt appt my son says Dr Askins never engaged him, never looked up from his computer only hurled questions about medications. My son drove home and exclaimed ” Dr Askins has no concern for me. He never lifted his head away from his computer-only cared about medication side effects. He couldn’t care less about what happened to me”. So, really Dr Askins is this the respect and dignity you think you provide your patient’s ????????
No wonder Mr. Ayers knows why he’s fighting to not get trapped in the psychiatric wasteland he once knew… Perhaps, Steve Lopez will investigate the alternative programs mentioned so Mr. Ayers might have a chance to keep playing his beloved violin, and find hope for his future.
