Major national newspaper looking for patient stories of drug withdrawal

A major national newspaper is looking for people living in the UK willing to share recent stories of negative effects while trying to withdraw from benzodiazepines, antidepressants and / or opioid painkillers.

The newspaper is particularly looking for recent stories from those who experienced one or more of the following:

  • You were prescribed the drugs for longer than you should have been
  • You tried repeatedly to withdraw without support
  • Your doctor was unable or unwilling to help with withdrawal
  • You were told to go cold turkey by your doctor
  • You eventually managed to withdraw but only with support from a charity or online forum or Facebook
  • You were sent to traditional drug and alcohol services but discovered these were inappropriate
  • You were told that your symptoms were due to a disorder and not the drug withdrawal

The newspaper is also looking for stories from family members / partners who provided support during withdrawal, as well as from bereaved families where patients were driven to suicide because of intolerable symptoms.

Ideally, you would be willing to be named and photographed for the paper.  Interviews will be handled sensitively and will be conducted by journalists who have experience in this area.

If you are interested, please send a short version of your story as well as contact details to admin@cepuk.org and we will forward to the newspaper.

CEP is keen to support this initiative as part of our effort to lobby for appropriate withdrawal services, including a national helpline.  Your help is appreciated!

8 Responses to Major national newspaper looking for patient stories of drug withdrawal

  1. Paula Kovacs 03/03/2017 at 9:36 am #

    Are you going to reveal which newspaper it it?

    • Jace 25/07/2017 at 2:11 am #

      The lack of a name for the newspaper is suspicious. If it’s not a reputable publication, submitting content to it is risky, as some publications (for example, The Daily Mail is referenced here multiple times) would harm the credibility of any content, not help it. Some media outlets will publish anything, so long as it seems sensational. Stories that can get headlines using fear, uncertainty, and doubt will earn advertising impressions but not attract a quality audience or a sense of credibility.

      The criticism of psychiatric drug usage already has credibility problems thanks to scientologists and woo-oriented “alternative medicine” supporters. I highly recommend seeking quality publishers for any mass media article publication.

  2. Melanie Davis 03/03/2017 at 10:07 am #

    I will let members of REST at Mind in Camden know as some of them may be interested.

  3. Laura Stevenson 03/03/2017 at 7:38 pm #

    I remember when my life was torn apart and me and my children were separated by lcc
    They failed me as a child and now they’re doing the same but I’m not going to give up on my children
    You have me as a 16 year old prescribed diazepam.and back then I had no one same as now I feel abandoned by the system like a lost cause, I asked for help in October 2014 and still do not have much of a recollection of what happened on the day I had a meeting
    I wasn’t under the influence of drugs
    I was actually shaking and withdrawing still from diazepam methadone and alcohol so you can only imagine how much I would have been in withdrawal,since then I have learned so much about the drug and I am willing to participate in anything for me and my kids

  4. Jeremiah X.Montague 09/03/2017 at 6:02 pm #

    Thursday, February 23, 2017

    Dr. Peter R. Breggin
    Center for Empathic Therapy
    101 East State Street, #112
    Ithasca, New York 14850
    Office 607-272-5328
    Fax 607-272-5329

    Steven Compton
    Attorney at Law
    835 Geneva Parkway North
    Lake Geneva, Wisconsin 53147
    Cell 262 279 6517
    Fax 262 348 1401
    Smclawyer10@gmail.com

    RE:
    Jeremiah X. Montague
    Client

    Dear Dr.Breggin,

    I am writing you on behalf of my client Jeremiah X. Montague, 52, a white Caucasian male. He was diagnosed with Bi-Polar 1 at the age of 33 and has been under the care of his psychiatrist, Dr.Steven Ortell, Medical Director, at the Department of Health and Human Services for the last 12 years here in Walworth County, Wisconsin. He is prescribed 900mg of Lithium, 30mg of Paxil and 300mg of Seroquel daily. He has been on Lithium and Paxil for 20 years and has always taken his medication religiously. He has been very stable and responsible for many years with no criminal record for the past 20 years.
    He is a dedicated father of four successful children and has owned and run his own taxi business in the area for the last seven years.

    In April 16, 2015 Dr.Ortell started prescribing my client 2 mg of Clonazepam for sleep and stress. This was the beginning of very dark descent with terrible side effects and legal repercussions for Jeremiah. Within a couple of months of taking this benzodiazepine Jeremiah started shoplifting and stealing compulsively. He also began having significant slurred speech, memory loss, hallucinations, and significant cognitive difficulty. Jeremiah was not aware of a lot of these side effects till October of 2016 when he came off the Clonazepam cold turkey (which his psychiatrist signed off on!!) His family complained of him about sleeping for days, waking up in the middle of the night gorging himself with food and drink, spilling all over himself and zombie like sleepwalking. His eyes glazed over as if he was asleep while still being conscious.

    In June 22, 2015 he was arrested for FELONY IDENTIFY Theft for stealing a credit card and buying $2900.00 of hunting equipment even though he does not hunt.

    In August 20, 2015 he was arrested for FELONY BURGLARY after breaking into a Crystal Quartz shop and stealing a bag of quartz crystals.

    In August 31, 2016 he was arrested for a FELONY BURGLARY REPATER after he was found inside a Veterinary Clinic in the early morning.

    Jeremiah is now facing 3 years in prison for his 3rd Felony.

    Both Burglaries happened at 730am when he would normally be asleep since he typically has always been a late riser. I believe that the nightly prescription of 2mg of Clonazepam with its 18 to 40 hour half-life actually made him intoxicated on 3 to 4 mg. Clonazepam in the mornings!

    Jeremiah complained about all of this to Dr.Ortell (see Clinical Progress Notes) yet Dr.Ortell never connected or believed that his law breaking was due to the Clonazepam and continued to prescribe it.

    I have attached a timeline of these events coinciding with him taking his prescription of Clonazepam and his Dr.Ortell’s “Clinical Progress Notes”

    I feel very strongly that none of this law-breaking behavior was typical for Jeremiah and that it would of never of happened had it not been on the high doses of Clonazepam and the psychotropic cocktail; of Lithium, Paxil and Seroquel.

    I have read a lot of your medical material concerning “medication toxicity” and psychotropic medications and their “spell-binding”, and “induced confusional states which acutely disrupt impulses no longer under conscious control.”

    I believe this is exactly what happened to my client.

    I am inquiring if you would evaluate my client’s case, meet with him in person and write an opinion and letter to the Judge on his behalf.

    We are also considering filing a lawsuit against his Dr.Ortell and
    The Department of Health and Human Services for damages sustained by my client. Your ideas and or referrals would also be greatly appreciated.

    We would sincerely ask for your direction and support in this case.

    • Jace 25/07/2017 at 2:15 am #

      One would hope a practicing lawyer could have an assistant do some proofreading or do the proofreading themselves…

  5. Jessica 24/03/2017 at 12:17 pm #

    Hi…My partner has a very relevant story that should be of interest. I will ask him to draft a short version of his story which relates to Benzodiazepines and the legacy of protracted withdrawal syndrome he endures now.

  6. Jessica 24/03/2017 at 12:17 pm #

    Hi…My partner has a very relevant story that should be of interest. I will ask him to draft a short version of his story which relates to Benzodiazepines and the legacy of protracted withdrawal syndrome he endures now.

Leave a Reply to Jace Click here to cancel reply.

Powered by WordPress. Designed by WooThemes