Posted by LostBoyinNC45 on August 12, 2014, at 21:38:32
In reply to meds as punishment, posted by Christ_empowered on August 7, 2014, at 11:11:25
It happened to me with my first psychiatrist back in early 1998, when I had just turned 29. Right after I had my nervous breakdown. I was put on half a mg of Risperdal for "behavioral control" reasons. The specific reason why that happened was because I told my psychiatrist's female social worker I had "homicidal thoughts as well as suicidal thoughts." Very next day I was back in my psychiatrist's office being put on half a mg of Risperdal.
I specifically asked him if I was schizophrenic and was told no. He was vague after that about why he was putting me on the stuff.
Low dose Risperdal caused all sorts of physical side effects, the entire time I was on it, I had a numb tongue, muscle twitches, tight muscles, involuntary symptoms...at that time I had no idea whatsoever that it I was experiencing EPS symptoms. I was not given any sort of informed consent of the potential dangers of taking atypical anti-psychotics, either...absolutely nothing.
I did not get better on that drug at all and after several months of spinning my gears and asking questions, figured out what had happened to me as far as the Risperdal goes. I went to a second opinion in spring 1998 at Duke and was promptly taken off the low dose Risperdal, advised to find a new psychiatrist immediately and did so.
I consider what happened to me a physical battery with prescription drugs, neuroleptics and if a physician ever attempts it again, I will be seeking criminal charges to be brought against them for battery with a drug with a rough side effect profile.
If you are not hallucinating, hearing voices, smelling odors that are not there, grossly disorganized to the point you have broke touch with reality...you should not be on such drugs. Period.
In my state of NC, it is legal to chemically restrain psychiatric patients who are not floridly psychotic or manic with neuroleptics. I would like to see that NC law get changed. In some states, it is illegal to chemically restrain a patient with neuroleptics. Others, its still completely legal to do so.
I completely agree this tends to occur with patients who a psychiatrist might not like personally. Or with poor patients or patients who it is obvious to the psychiatrist who have been abandoned or semi-abandoned by their family and friends after that first mental breakdown. My family abandoned me to a large degree after my first breakdown, they refused to talk to my psychiatrist, I had nobody advocating for me, etc.
Again, I want to emphasize that after experiencing this personally, I consider it a criminal law issue that has not been addressed in most states in the USA. I dont consider it psychiatric malpractice, I consider it "battery with a drug done intentionally and knowingly" by the prescribing psychiatrist. I believe psychiatric patients should have a 100% right to physical self defense against psychiatrists and psychiatric workers who are attempting to chemically restrain a patient who is not diagnosed with schizophrenia or a hard drug induced psychosis (crack cocaine induced psychotic state).
I assure you, it will NEVER happen to me, again.
Eric AKA "LostBoyinNC"
> Especially neuroleptics. Ever happened to you? I think it happens more often to "trouble makers," the poor, those with a criminal history, and minorities. Just a guess...
poster:LostBoyinNC45
thread:1069360
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20140717/msgs/1069659.html