[Velvet Elvis]

The New York Times has published an article which makes repeated reference to CrazyBoards.

When approached by the New York Times about this article we were told  it was to be about patients taking a more active role in their hearth care.  Instead, the article depicts individuals illegally self-medicating and abusing prescription pharmaceuticals.  By association, Crazyboards is depicted as endorsing these activities.  This is far from the truth. The management of crazyboards.org does not and has never endorsed self-medication of any kind for for any reason.  We believe that being a fully informed patient and taking an active role in one's treatment is a vital part of coping with mental illness.  Doctors and patients should work together as a team with a common goal.  We reject the paternalism prevalent in the mental health care industry and believe that physicians should not be treated as all knowing holy receptacles of  medical knowledge. We also reject the view of physicians as know-nothing pill pushers.  A functional doctor patient relationship requires trust and and fully informed two-way communication.  We are here to ensure that people have the background knowledge to effectively communicate with their physicians. 

We're also here to talk about nipple clamps.

[CrazySoprano]

Quote

When a new psychiatrist suggested Seraquil, Laurie, who works in film production and who did not want her last name used, refused it because it can lead to weight gain.

Seroquel.  Learn to spell, asshats!

1. There's nothing the admins can do about things that are discussed over PMs or e-mails.

2. The writer(s) chose to interview people who are acting with reckless disregard for their own health and the health of their friends.  There's a big difference between us suggesting that someone ask his/her pdoc about a med and someone giving a pill to a friend when that pill has not been prescribed to the friend.  (Bad sentence, sorry.)

My roommate and I were both on Lex, and she ran out of pills before she had a chance to get a refill.  So I gave her a couple of mine, and she "paid me back" when she got her Rx.  As far as I know, that's totally legal.  Neither of us would *ever* give a pill to a friend just because we thought it would help them.  I might think someone could use a mood stabalizer, but I'm not going to hand out drugs like candy.  These are serious drugs.  Do not fuck with serious drugs unless you want to be fucked up the ass by dangerous drug interactions.

OK, that's it.

~CS

[Panz]

OOOO000000OOOOOO!!! do you favor the tried and true pincher style or the asian clamps??? I like those cute bright mini clothepins, they make me giggle.

For Shame upon NY times for its shallow reading of our worthy board. No where has self medicating been encouraged, though many of us have done so (hopefully) in our past
The board and its members try to maintain an open and caring place for each other with peer support and a strong emphasis on knowledegable management and treatment of the various MI that we have to deal with.

The only self medicating that I indulge in is a dose of dark chocolate when things get particularly rough

[december_brigette]

Hi,

One would think someone from a big newspaper like the NY Times would do some research - at least how to spell Seroquel. Or write a fluid article that makes sense. I think the writer just liked to get as many drugs in the article as possible with no meaning behind it.

You originally got my attn with the nimple clamps....but thats just my lack of sex talking. You know, cuz im crazy waving my arms wildly as i take my beloved seroquel. and all the other meds I got legally from my pdoc.

thank you very much & good night,
december

[Steve@3AM]

It's too bad we can't somehow close the boards to "non-members". Granted we are "anonymous" but the thought of people just coming through and "snooping" at the posts - when people have taken a lot to be open with their feelings - makes me kinda' ill!

This is the kind of thing that may make people more concerned about what they say and want to go back and delete their posts. It really messes with the sense of community.

IS there any way the boards can be closed?

[Velvet Elvis]

Steve, we want them open.  That's how we get new users and how we get money from ads.

Sometimes we get thousands of hits a day from people looking for info.  It's what we are here for.

Most of those are people doing google searches for MI flavors or med names though.  I doubt they care about they stuff ya'll post in springer.

[skaz]

I think the whole thing stinks, big time.  It does mess with the sense of community.

This post has been edited by skaz: 16 November 2005 - 01:12 AM

[AirMarshall]

Yes the boards could be closed.  And then no one would find it through the search engines.  And when they did they wouldn't have any idea what was inside.  Catch-22.    And it takes many people quite a while to get over being scared about being MI to get to the point of registering (5 months for me).


a.m.

[Steve@3AM]

Yeah, I know! (The rational side of me!) But it feels like some reporter sitting in on a group therapy session and then reporting that they sat in and we were all saying these "bad" things to each other and giving "bad" advice to each other etc - when we thought our conversations/confessions were just within the group!
It feels like a violation of trust! - And I don't mean by anyone here. Just so unnecessary and irresponsible to report that way.

OK, OK. Nothing new! Just venting because I have so much emotion tied up in some of my posts! I know it doesn't really make a difference if someone else sees them and thinks whatever they want.

But I feel violated! Dumb, huh!

[Steve@3AM]

Yeah - and OK, I read the article and I can see I overreacted!!
Sorry!
Knee jerk thoughtless action on my part.

[AbbyNormal]

Steve@3AM, on Nov 15 2005, 11:24 PM, said:

Just venting because I have so much emotion tied up in some of my posts! I know it doesn't really make a difference if someone else sees them and thinks whatever they want.

But I feel violated! Dumb, huh!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Steve,� It is a creepy feeling to know that we have been observed with the intent to judge what we do here. But hey,� it is the internet, afterall.�


-- Abby (not her real name)

This post has been edited by AbbyNormal: 16 November 2005 - 02:05 AM

[Stranger]

This is outrageous.
A letter should be written to the editor of the NY Times.

Encouraging patients to disagree with their doctors and to fake symptoms to get pills!!!!! Where did they read that? I've had people chastise me on chat for not doing what the doctor said!

If it weren't for Crazyboards I would have dropped out of grad school by now: I wouldn't have known that not giving a shit about work was a side effect of medication, I wouldn't have known that people worse off than me are able to handle graduate school, I wouldn't have known that things get better, and I would have never got the encouragement to stay in the program when my teachers were thinking I was a lost case.

Actually, there is a contradiction in the article. A lot of the people interviewed comment on the bad effects they had from taking medications that were not prescribed them. Had those people bothered looking up those medications on the internet (and on sites like this one) before accepting to take them, they would have known that you don't take Ritalin just to stay up all night and clean the house, that you don't take Xanax because your gynecologist appointment makes you a little nervous, and that tranquilzers are addictive and not relaxation pills. Right?

This post has been edited by Stranger: 06 May 2006 - 06:16 AM

[nomadic]

Hi, just thought I'd let you all know that I found your boards through the NY Times article and from what I've seen in the past hour of browsing, I like this place.  I didn't come here to find drugs without a prescription, I'm just looking for good discussions on the bewildering world of brain chemistry.  Although the article does talk quite a bit about illegal drug-swapping, I didn't suspect that this place was dedicated to that.  I think I'll stick around.

[pacanuck]

I'm very glad that you found us.  This place has save my ass more than once.  We work together with our docs - ah...you'll find out what we're all about soon.


WELCOME!!!

[insideOut]

can someone copy and paste the article in here? Please?�

Or am I just being dumb and there's a way to get round the 'you must be registered to read the NYtimes' page that showed up when I clicked your link?

[Please don't anyone copy the whole article here.  We don't need copyright infringement issues with them.  I haven't had any problems being registered with them, and I normally don't do that. A.M. ]

This post has been edited by AirMarshall: 16 November 2005 - 10:25 AM

[celestia]

Stranger, on Nov 16 2005, 05:57 AM, said:

This is outrageous.
A letter should be written to the editor of the NY Times.

Encouraging patients to disagree with their doctors and to fake symptoms to get pills!!!!! Where did they read that? I've had people chastise at me on chat for not doing what the doctor said!

I haven't read the article cuz I'm late for a field trip to the Utz potato chip factory, I'll read it when I get back. I can well imagine the content, from what you all have said so far.

I think we should send a letter(s) to the editor. Elvis you and the other powers that be should, especially. Like you're not already overwhelmed putting out fires and rebuilding our haven, but it might pack more punch than individual letters from the nutrolls.

What right arseholes! I mean if you even dare mention doing something that strays from your treatment plan around here, the peer pressure to "not be a dick and listen to your doctor" is swift and severe! At least on the boards I hang out on. That's why I like it here. Because we can talk about and ADMIT to receiving proper treatment for our illnesses and the challenges that remain in spite of said treatments or because of said treatments or whatever. That in the same post with nipple clamps! I mean, fuck! It don't get no betta this side of heaven! (which I don't believe in by the way...but that's a topic for another board.)

Keep rockin ya bunch of nutters, and fuck the New York Times and the horse they road in on.

HB

This post has been edited by honkingbird: 16 November 2005 - 08:20 AM

[olga]

Well, shoot.  The article makes it sound like we have all these cool drugs to wake up and go to sleep and for partying.....when all I have is boring eyedrops for glaucoma and blood pressure meds and stuff.  Anybody wanna trade some Xanax for my cholesterol meds??? 

I guess not.

And where do I sign up for nipple clamps?

olga

[wifezilla]

They were obviously looking to follow a specific angle. But overall, it wasn't bad. Just not a true depiction of what this site is all about.

[The_Kenosha_Kid]

The New York Times, huh? The same fish-wrap employing propagandist Judith Miller? They can't be bothered to check their facts for piddly things like leading our nation into war.

They should have put Jayson Blair on this story.

[Echo]

Fucking assholes. These types of articles have been a trend lately - I remember reading one a month or two ago about parties called "Pharming" or "Pharm-parties" where young kids (12, 13, 14 and so on) go to their friends house and then trade all sorts of anti-depressants, benzo's, add meds, pain killers, etc. and all crack themselves out for a while. It said most of the kids stole the meds from their parents. If that is true, what the fuck is wrong with those parents? I mean, leaving oxycotin sitting around in a freakin' medicine cabinet? That's their own stupidity.

Anyways, I staryed from my original intentions for this post. I am very pissed off about how crazyboards has been portrayed and want to punch the writer, and editor, and whomever else was involved in writing and allowing that article to be published as such right in the face. They picked so many cute quotes - ones that were likely lashed in reply for being so stupid - and to use Todd as an example after the hurricaine made me want to throw up! The pharmacy was closed, no one was around, and he needed his fucking meds. What the hell do you expect us to do? Let him go crazy and possibly die? Fuckers. IT WAS AFTER THE HURRICAINE AND NO ONE HAD FOOD OR WATER OR MEDS OR ANYTHING FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!

Anyways, I would write a letter to the editor but it wouldn't sound as good as something from VE et al. Maybe they should write one letter and we could ALL sign it, sort of as a petition againt that bullshit?

So miffed -

Starr