Skip to main content

Author: Able Child

Is Increased Drugging of the Nation’s Children Really the Answer?

Written by Able Child on . Posted in Lawmaking.

The Connecticut Mirror ran an op-ed yesterday by Marcy Hoyland titled Detect mental health problems early to prevent violence, that reads like an infomercial for the American Psychiatric Association (APA).

While no one could fault Hoyland for caring about the emotional and behavioral problems of the nation’s youth, the solution recommended by Hoyland is to identify mental illness early in order to get treatment before things get worse.

Sounds good. But the problem is that identifying mental illness is completely subjective. There is not one psychiatric mental disorder that is based in science/medicine. There is no objective, confirmable abnormality that is a psychiatric disorder.

Hoyland suggests that “by identifying individuals with risk factors to chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease, we can treat these people in a way to keep them healthy for as long as possible. The same is true of mental health care.”  Actually, given that psychiatric diagnosing is subjective, it isn’t at all the same.

The fact is diabetes and heart disease are not diagnosed by the patient answering questions about their behavior. Unlike psychiatric diagnosing, medical tests are utilized to determine these actual medical conditions.  There are no medical tests – urine or blood tests, MRI or CAT scans – used to diagnose mental disorders.

And, of course, the decades long theory of the alleged chemical imbalance remains just that…a theory.  There is no test to determine the chemical levels in the brain, making it impossible to know whether the chemicals are in, or out, of balance or, for that matter, what “normal” levels may be.

Hoyland throws in a few interesting statistics to make her case for early detection, including the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) estimate that one in five children in the U.S. has a mental health “issue” and 70 percent of those individuals do not receive care. Sounds dire. But the reality is that the U.S. is diagnosing and drugging its youth at record speed.

Consider for moment a recent study by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)  that more than 11 percent of American school children now are diagnosed with ADHD, 7.5 percent of children ages 6-17 are being prescribed psychiatric mind-altering drugs for emotional and behavioral problems and “over the last two decades, the use of medication to treat mental health problems has increased substantially among all school-aged children.”

The fact is that mental health “treatment” in America primarily consists of the use of powerful mind-altering drugs. According to a study by IMS Health nearly 79 million Americans are taking at least one psychiatric drug, including nearly seven-and-a-half million children between the ages of 6 and 17.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has placed “Black box” warnings on many of these psychiatric mind-altering drugs because the federal agency has concluded that the drugs may actually cause suicidality and the drug makers warn of violent behavior, mania, psychosis and a host of other serious behavioral adverse reactions.

One can only assume that Hoyland was not aware of these data and, perhaps, is why she advocates that schools should have people who are trained to subjectively diagnose mental illness so they can identify your child and get them the “treatment” they need.

This is a frightening thought.  One cannot help but envision these suggested “trained” mental health “people” stalking the halls of the nation’s schools eagerly looking for “abnormal” behaviors that can be “treated.”

Even more frightening is Hoyland’s support of Congressional legislation that would “provide access to school-based comprehensive mental health programs.”  In other words, more mental health diagnosing and more drugs for the nation’s youth.

Of course the bigger question is what rights do parents have once these school mental health guesters “identify” the child’s mental health problem? Hoyland appears to assume that parents will be thrilled to get the psychiatric “help” they’re told their child needs. That isn’t necessarily so and the case of Justina Pelletier, being held hostage by Boston Children’s Hospital, is a perfect example of how parents can lose their rights once psychiatry makes a subjective diagnosis.

U.S. Representative Steve Stockman (R-TX) introduced legislation, H.R. 4518, The Parental Protection Act, that will address these issues, cutting off funds to medical institutions that conduct greater than minimal risk research on wards of the state, deny First Amendment rights to parents and wards of the state, and take children away from parents over disagreements on subjective diagnoses.  As Ablechild’s mission is about informed consent, we wholeheartedly support this legislation.

Furthermore, while Hoyland is advocating for increased mental health in the nation’s schools, one cannot help but ask why isn’t anyone getting better?  Will the mental health community not be satisfied until every American is diagnosed with a mental disorder and drugged?

The recent stabbing in Milford, Ct., may be a good example of mental health’s “treatment” success.  News reports state that the alleged suspect “had ADHD and other mental issues…he took strong medicine for it and other things, too.”

Having specific information about the psychiatric drugs this teenager had been prescribed would be helpful in trying to understand the violent behavior, especially given the FDA’s “Black box” warnings on most of the psychiatric drugs.

Hoyland  begins the op-ed with a reference to the ever-increasing number of school shootings in America, then suggests the reason for the problem is the lack of mental health treatment among the nation’s school-age children, yet fails to even address the connection between the prescribed psychiatric drugs and violence.

If Hoyland is really concerned about finding an answer to the increased number of violent acts, isn’t it time to consider that there may actually be a problem with the mental health “treatment” being provided?

 

 

 

 

Ablechild April 2014 Update

Written by Able Child on . Posted in Sandy Hook.

“Never underestimate the power of a few committed people to change the world, it is the only thing that ever has.”

 Dear Ablechild Members:

We’ve been busy and April proved to be a very rewarding month for Ablechild. We’re so pleased to have the opportunity to bring you up to speed on our efforts on your behalf.

We began the month with Ablechild, Co-founder, Sheila Matthews, attending the April 2nd Autism Awareness Day in Stamford, Ct., where Matthews was able to meet other like-minded people and gather support for Ablechild’s MedWatch System legislative language.

Matthews and New York Ablechild, Co-founder, Patricia Weathers, also attended the April 5th Connecticut Citizens Defense League (CCDL) “Rally at the Capitol,” in Hartford.  Matthews and Weathers manned a table to distribute information about Ablechild’s efforts to elicit support for the MedWatch System legislative language.

Continuing our push to gain support for the MedWatch System, Ablechild was invited to be a guest on two radio shows in April.  First, on April 10th, in response to the horrific stabbing incident in Pennsylvania, Ablechild’s Matthews was interviewed by national radio host, Jonathan Emord of “Truth Trials” radio, where Matthews discussed the possibility of psychiatric drugs being involved in the violent act and the need for MedWatch education via the non-profit’s legislative efforts.

Matthews also was a guest on the Mike DeRosa radio show in Connecticut, WWUH 91.3 FM on April 14th.  DeRosa and Matthews discussed the recent spate of school violence and again Matthews brought the issue full-circle by discussing the need for MedWatch education within the state and discussed in depth Ablechild’s legislative efforts to make this happen.

Throughout the month Ablechild published several articles related to mental health/drugging issues, including an op-ed requested by the distinguished mental health website madinamerica.com, titled Legislator’s Rush to Implement Increased Mental Health Services Based on No Data from Shooting at Sandy Hook. Ablechild also published New York’s “unsafe” Act, State Child Advocate Still Investigating Sandy Hook Shooter, and Ablechild Warns of Clinical Trial “offers” to Low-Income Families.  We hope all our members will click on each of these links and read this important information.

In our continuing efforts to get MedWatch education language inserted into legislation, on April 25th, Ablechild met with State Senator Markley and Representative Steinberg.  Both lawmakers were very supportive of Ablechild’s efforts and have offered their assistance with the legislative language when the new legislative session begins. Ablechild will work with both lawmakers over the Summer months to insure that we hit the ground running for the next legislative session.

Finally, Ablechild is so pleased to report that our annual fundraising event, the Spring Fling Raffle, was a huge success. We were pleased that so many of our friends and members attended the event at Venture Photography in Greenwich on April 24th.  And, we were even more gratified when the winner of the gift basket, George Papadopoulous, graciously “paid it forward,” donating the $300.00 Salon KIKLO beauty services gift to an Ablechild member.

While April was very busy and rewarding, we anticipate that May will be equally challenging. As always, we appreciate our Members continued support, which allows us to do the work on your behalf for you and your families. We always welcome your feedback and look forward to knowing your thoughts on issues of importance.

The Ablechild Team

 

 

 

State Child Advocate Still Investigating Sandy Hook Shooter

Written by Able Child on . Posted in Sandy Hook.

State Child Advocate Still Investigating Sandy Hook Shooter

 Although the State Police Report of the shooting incident at Sandy Hook Elementary provided zero information about the motive for the murderous actions of Adam Lanza, there still is an on-going investigation by the State’s child advocate’s office that may provide additional clues.

In March of 2013, the child advocate’s office requested Lanza’s school records, including report cards, attendance records, any individualized education plans, minutes of any meetings with specialized teams, psychological reports or evaluations, suspension and expulsion records, nursing and social work reports, and any correspondence with his family.

That’s a lot of information and much of it may provide a glimpse into not only the kind of mental health treatment Lanza received while attending school, but whether or not he even received state mental health care benefits. Hopefully, unlike the State Police Report, the public may learn something about the last five years of Lanza’s life.

As everyone now is fully aware, the State Police Report provides no information about Lanza’s mental health treatment for the five years leading up to the shooting incident. This complete lack of mental health information did not, however, stop state legislators from implementing costly increases in mental health services throughout the state.

Worse still, even if there had been information about Lanza’s mental health treatment in the investigative report, it would not have made a difference to lawmakers, as they passed the legislation, with no public input, seven months prior to the release of the investigative report on Sandy Hook.

Faith Vos Winkel, the Assistant Child Advocate, advised Ablechild that they received the records in February of this year and it would be at least two months before the report would be completed.

The state Office of the Child Advocate investigates child deaths and, in this instance, to collect information “to say, what are the lessons potentially to be learned here,” Vos Winkel has been quoted as saying.

Yes, what are the lessons of Sandy Hook? It’s hard to know given the complete shutdown of specific information about Lanza’s mental health treatment, including what drugs Lanza had been prescribed over the course of the last five years of his life.

The state Police Report provides information that in 2007 Lanza was prescribed Celexa. But in a recent New Yorker Magazine article by Andrew Solomon, the public was made aware that Lanza also had been prescribed a second antidepressant, Lexapro.

Nancy Lanza reported that Adam experienced severe adverse reactions to both drugs and was essentially blown off by mental health care providers and labeled as being “non-compliant” because she refused to continue to subject her son to the drugs.

According to an interview conducted by the Newtown Bee with Assistant Child Advocate, Faith Vos Winkel, the child advocate’s office “subpoenaed many records, not just school documents.”

That’s great. The question, though, is will the public be allowed to review these documents? Will the child advocate’s report be a carbon copy of the previous investigations of the shooting incident, where the public is entitled only to the opinion of those who write the report, rather than having access to the actual documents in order to make an informed decision?

Only time will tell.  But Ablechild will alert its members of any updates and, of course, provide the report for review when it becomes publically available.

 

 

New York’s “Unsafe” Act

Written by Able Child on . Posted in Interviews, Lawmaking.

NEW YORK’S “UNSAFE” ACT

Mental Health Professionals Given Unprecedented Control

The blind leading the blind. That’s how one could sum up New York’s SAFE Act, also known as the New York Secure Ammunition and Firearms Enforcement Act. Fully aware of the fraud of the sweeping mental health/gun control legislation, at least a million gun owners, directly affected, won’t be participating in the punishing legislation.

New York was the first state in the Nation to enact legislation, instituting the SAFE Act, based on the tragic events at Sandy Hook Elementary.  This legislation was passed in the middle of the night without any public hearings.    New York acted without even having the benefit of an investigative report of the incident, classic legislative crisis management.

Ablechild long has been a vocal opponent of the mental health provisions of the SAFE Act for the simple reason that there is no data to support the new mental health requirements that include “mental health professionals to report to their director of community services (DCS) or his/her designees when, in their reasonable professional judgment, one of their patients is “likely to engage in conduct that would result in serious harm to self and others.”

There are numerous problems with this section, beginning with the mental health professionals “reasonable professional judgment.”  This phrase is a nice way of saying the mental health professionals opinion of a patient’s current and possible future behavior.

There is no argument that all psychiatric diagnoses are subjective…they are not based in science/medicine.  There is no objective, confirmable abnormality that is any psychiatric disorder.

The mental health professional diagnoses an alleged disorder based on a subjective opinion of information gleaned from having a conversation with the patient. No blood test, CAT scan, MRI, or any medical test, is utilized to identify an “abnormality” in the patient’s brain.

Once the alleged brain disorder is diagnosed, more often than not, psychiatric mind-altering drugs are prescribed as “treatment.” The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued “Black-box” warnings on many of the psychiatric drugs, including antidepressants which may cause mania, psychosis, hallucinations, aggressiveness, abnormal behavior, suicidality and even homicidality.

Nearly 80 million Americans are taking at least one psychiatric mind-altering drug, with forty-million taking at least one antidepressant. There are 22 international drug-regulatory warnings issued on psychiatric drugs causing violent behavior and researchers have identified 25 psychotropic drugs disproportionately associated with violence, including physical assault and homicide.

As a matter of fact, in New York a bill was proposed in 2000, S1784, which would require the police to report to the Division of Ciminal Justice Services (DCJS), certain crimes and suicides committed by persons using psychotropic drugs.  This bill was initiated based on a large body of scientific research establishing a connection between violence and suicide and the use of psychotropic drugs in some cases.

So, the initial mental health diagnosis is not based in science or medicine, but, rather, is the mental health professional’s opinion of the patient’s behavior. The psychiatric drugs prescribed by the mental health professional as “treatment” may actually cause violent behavior, and the mental health provisions of the SAFE Act then allows the same mental health professional to further opine that the patient may be “a harm to self or others?” This is idiotic.

Based on the fact that the FDA has placed “Black-box” warnings on many of the psychiatric drugs – because the drugs may cause violent behavior – there seems little doubt that any, or all, of the patients taking the prescribed psychiatric drugs may be susceptible to the adverse reactions.

The fact is the mental health professional may be responsible for the “conduct that would result in serious harm to self or others” due to the prescribing of the mind-altering drugs. Because mental health professionals admit they cannot predict future violent behavior, it literally is a psychiatric drug crapshoot as to who will experience these drug adverse reactions.

All mental health professionals are aware of the known adverse reactions associated with the prescribed psychiatric drugs.  However, despite having this important information, the mental health provisions of New York’s SAFE Act provides unprecedented control over the rights of patients, without their consent, based solely on the mental health professional’s opinion.

Co-founder of Ablechild and New York Chapter President, Patricia Weathers, provided testimony in opposition to certain mental health provisions of New York’s SAFE Act, advising the Public Safety Commission that “…we believe that the issue of gun control is diverting this country away from the very real underlying cause of these violent shootings occurring in our nation’s schools.”

Weathers further testified that “mental health legislation and gun legislation that was enacted into law rashly, without public hearings on the matter, and without all the facts is reprehensible and criminalizes the many law abiding, responsible citizens across New York State without just cause.”

Informed consent and the right to refuse psychiatric drugs and services is the mission of Ablechild. The SAFE Act does not provide informed consent but, rather, provides unprecedented power to mental health professionals that surely will have long-term harmful effects on overall public safety, bypassing individual rights.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ablechild Warns of Clinical Trial “offers” to Low-Income Families

Written by Able Child on . Posted in Articles, Lawmaking.

PsychiatricDirectMarketClinicalTrails

Ablechild often is contacted by parents concerning a number of issues surrounding psychiatric diagnosing and psychiatric drugging of children, but the recent information forwarded to us is troubling.

A Connecticut mother, who receives state health benefits, was concerned about a recent letter she received from Acurian Health, a company that “specializes in matching people to clinical research studies,” and forwarded the correspondence to Ablechild.

The mother was concerned about the implications of offering money to low-income mothers willing to enroll their child in a pharmaceutical clinical trial. More than that, she had no idea how Acurian Health obtained her personal information in order to make the “offer.”

Ablechild was equally curious how Acurian obtained this mother’s information and contacted the Behavioral Health Partnership Oversight Council, inquiring whether the state was providing this information to third parties. Ablechild did not receive a reply.

The question is, of course, does Acurian Health have access to the state’s health data? Is it possible this mother unwittingly signed a waiver allowing her personal information to be shared?  The mother in question has no memory of providing authorization to release the data, but admitted that the waiver could have been in the “fine print.”

Nevertheless, Ablechild is providing this information to its members in an effort to make families aware of “offers” such as this from Acurian Health.  The “offer” is targeting children 7-17 years old who “have Depression or may be experiencing symptoms of Depression,” and the “offer” further explains qualified participants “may receive Depression medication approved for use in adults.”

The only antidepressant approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for adolescents is Fluoxetine or Prozac.  All other antidepressants have not been approved for children and adolescents ages 8 and older.  The FDA conducted a study including 2,200 children treated with Serotonin Selective Reuptake Inhibitors, (SSRI) medications and 4 percent of those taking SSRI’s experienced suicidal thinking or behavior, including actual suicide attempts – twice the rate of those taking placebo, or sugar pills.

In response to this study, the FDA adopted “black box” warnings – the FDA’s most serious warnings – indicating that antidepressants may increase the risk of suicidal thinking and behavior.  However, there are many other known adverse reactions associated with antidepressants, including mania, psychosis and hallucinations to name a few.

Ablechild cannot help but wonder if these low-income families are being targeted and lured by the pathetic “$50 per visit” offer. We are alerting families to be aware of unknowingly providing authorization for release of personal information to third parties.  When applying for state health services, it is important to ask if personal information is shared with third parties and how you may opt out.

Ablechild, and the mother who provided this “offer,” is concerned that families going through tough financial times may be tempted to participate in clinical trials that admittedly will be using dangerous psychiatric drugs that are not approved for children and without informed consent.

When applying for state benefits, it’s important to know your rights and, specifically, to know if personal data will be provided to third parties.

 

 

Sandy Hook Commission Whines About Lack of Funds and Information

Written by Able Child on . Posted in Lawmaking, Sandy Hook.

This week The Hartford Courant reported that the Sandy Hook Commission is “hampered by secrecy and lack of funds” and, as a result, there are “serious doubts” of producing a definitive exploration of what occurred at Sandy Hook Elementary.

Oh, puh-leeze!  Say it isn’t so, Governor Malloy.  Isn’t the Governor the man who said “we don’t yet know the underlying cause behind this tragedy, and we probably never will.  But that can’t be an excuse for inaction. I want the commission to have the ability to study every detail, so they can help craft meaningful legislative and policy changes?”  “Every” detail?  That’s just sad. The Governor’s commission can’t get any details.

The Commission doesn’t have access to Adam Lanza’s records? The Commission has no budget?  Really? Is this just now, three months from its deadline, occurring to the Commission?

Psychiatrist and Commission member, Dr. Harold I Schwartz, reports that the Commission has been fortunate to have the law firm of McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter catalog the State Police Report of the shooting incident, but it’s “laborious” to use.

Can’t argue with the good doctor on that point. Not only was going through that report “laborious,” it was downright irritating.  Ablechild spent three full days going through each and every document (if you can call the redacted pages “documents”), and could have saved the Commission a lot of time and frustration.

The fact is, for the last five years of Adam Lanza’s life, there are no medical/mental health records provided in the State Police Report and Ablechild gladly would have shared that information with the Commission months ago, saving it a great deal of time.

Without those mental health records, Dr. Schwartz is absolutely correct when he reported last year that “to write a report now, with what we have, would almost be embarrassing.”  Unbelievably, today, despite still having no records about the last five years of Lanza’s mental  health treatment, Schwartz says,  “I still think that we can issue a report with important recommendations about mental health services, gun safety and school safety. We have spent a lot of time assessing the current state of all three – hearing extensive testimony from officials and experts who have dealt with mass killings.”

Schwartz is admitting that the Commission is clueless about Adam Lanza’s mental health history but, because the Commission has heard from officials and experts about other mass killings, important recommendations still can be made.

This is utter nonsense.  The Commission has spoken with  Peter Lanza.  Did Lanza refuse to share information about Adam’s mental health?   This seems odd given the fact that Lanza obviously shared information with The New Yorker reporter, Andrew Solomon.  Solomon reported that in 2007 Adam had been prescribed the antidepressant, Lexapro. This information was NOT part of the State Police Report.

Additionally, the Commission might consider an interview with the honchos at The Courant, as it reported, based on information it had obtained, that Adam had been treated at the Danbury Hospital, which also was NOT part of the State Police Report.

Schwartz also may be enlightened if he were to understand the State’s absolute refusal to make public Lanza’s toxicology and medical/mental health records.  Ablechild sued the state for these records last year and the reason for the lock-down on the records was made clear by the State’s Assistant Attorney General, Patrick B. Kwanashie, explaining “it would cause a lot of people to stop taking their medications.”

Based on the information provided in the State Police Report, Adam had been prescribed the antidepressant, Celexa in 2007.  Add to that reporter Solomon’s new information that he was also prescribed Lexapro, and suddenly it becomes clear that Adam had been on multiple mind-altering drugs.

But that drug information ends five years before the shooting incident.  What is the big secret?  Was Adam prescribed so many psychiatric drugs that the information would be an embarrassment to his psychiatrist(s) and the pharmaceutical industry?

Obviously, it’s impossible to know without the mental health records. But the Commission’s final report is supposed to focus on recommendations into the mental health area.  Really? Based on what information?  If the Commission has no records on Adam Lanza’s mental health for the last five years of his life, what’s the point?

If the Commission intends to provide mental health recommendations, which are not the result of having reviewed the mental health records of the shooter, then don’t bother.  Stop now.   Accept that the Commission’s efforts were a complete waste of time and stick to the original opinion that “to write a report now, with what we have, would almost be embarrassing.”

Since Schwartz’s first admission nothing has changed. The fact that Lanza’s mental health records are shrouded in secrecy, and the state is instituting costly mental health changes merely based on the assumption that Lanza’s mental health played a role, isn’t “almost embarrassing.” It is embarrassing.

 

 

The New Yorker’s Andrew Solomon Fails to Disclose Family Connection to Drugs Prescribed to Adam Lanza.

Written by Able Child on . Posted in Sandy Hook.

BREAKING:

The New Yorker’s Andrew Solomon Fails to Disclose Family Connection to Drugs Prescribed to Adam Lanza.

It seems that the facts of the Sandy Hook shooting continue to be cloaked in secrecy, even by the journalists that cover the tragedy.

Earlier this week, The New Yorker magazine published “The Reckoning: The Father of the Sandy Hook killer searches for answers,” by Andrew Solomon.

The lengthy article was useful from the standpoint of revealing that Adam Lanza actually had been prescribed two – not one -psychiatric mind-altering drugs and had experienced serious adverse reactions to both drugs.

The fact that Adam Lanza had been prescribed the antidepressant CELEXA was made public in the State Police Report earlier this year, but it was Solomon who made pubic Adam’s use of a second antidepressant, LEXAPRO.

Despite revealing the use of Lexapro, nowhere in Solomon’s article does the writer disclose that his father, Howard Solomon, is the Chairman of pharmaceutical giant, Forest Laboratories, the makers of both antidepressants CELEXA and LEXAPRO.  This is bizarre.

Given that, to date, these are the only drugs known to have been prescribed to Adam Lanza, wouldn’t Solomon think it appropriate to disclose his family relationship to the pharmaceutical maker of both drugs?  From a journalistic standpoint it seems unconscionable that Solomon failed to disclose this information.  Did Solomon fail to disclose his relationship with the family’s pharmaceutical company because of the serious adverse reactions Adam experienced while taking both drugs?

Recall that Ablechild sued the State of Connecticut to obtain Adam Lanza’s toxicology report and mental health records. The result of Ablechild’s exhaustive efforts was the State’s Assistant Attorney General, Patrick B. Kwanashie, explaining that the reason for withholding Lanza’s medical records was because it “would cause a lot of people to stop taking their medications.”

What medications would people stop taking? One can only wonder, now, how many psychiatric drugs Adam Lanza had been prescribed and is there some pharmaceutical arm-twisting taking place prohibiting the release of this important information?

Due to a lack of transparency and disclosure in this case, one can only speculate. (see Ablechild Press Release of March 11, 2014)

 

 

 

 

New Information About Adam Lanza’s Mental Health Treatment Reveals Multiple Drugs

Written by Able Child on . Posted in Sandy Hook.

New information regarding Sandy Hook shooter, Adam Lanza, has recently been made public, adding to the already growing list of questions surrounding the Newtown shooting incident and Connecticut’s subsequent rush to increase mental health services.

With the March 10th release of The New Yorker article, “The Reckoning: The Father of the Sandy Hook killer searches for answers,” by Andrew Solomon, serious questions have been raised about the State Police investigation and the statements provided by personnel of the Yale Child Study Center, where reportedly Lanza was last treated.

The Reckoning author, Andrew Solomon, reports the following:

“Kathleen Koenig, a nurse specialist in psychiatry at Yale, gave some follow-up treatment. While seeing her, Adam tried Lexapro, which Fox had prescribed. Nancy reported, “on the third morning he complained of dizziness. By that afternoon he was disoriented, his speech was disjointed, he couldn’t even figure out how to open his cereal box. He was sweating profusely…it was actually dripping off his hands. He said he couldn’t think…He was practically vegetative.” Later the same day, she wrote, “He did nothing but sit in his dark room staring at nothing.”  Adam stopped taking Lexapro and never took psychotropics again, which worried Koenig. She wrote, “While Adam likes to believe that he’s completely logical, in fact, he’s not at all, and I’ve called him on it.” She said he had a biological disorder and needed medication. “I told him he’s living in a box right now, and the box will only get smaller over time if he doesn’t get some treatment.”

Remember that, until 2007, Lanza’s primary psychiatrist was Dr. Paul Fox who, in 2012, accused of having sexual relations with his patients, surrendered his license to practice medicine in New York and Connecticut, destroyed his records and moved to New Zealand.

Now Solomon is reporting that Dr. Fox had prescribed the antidepressant, Lexapro, and reportedly was working with the Yale Child Study Center’s Kathleen Koenig on Adam’s case.  Nancy Lanza apparently was very concerned about what appeared to be an adverse reaction to the mind-altering Lexapro and wrote copious notes about Adam’s behavior while on Lexapro.  More importantly, Solomon is reporting, apparently based on information gleaned from his extensive interviews with Peter Lanza, that Adam never took psychotropics again.

This important information does not jibe with the information Yale’s Kathleen Koenig provided to investigators and made public in the State’s Police Report of the shooting incident. Most importantly, the public only now, 15-months after the fact, is being made aware of a second psychiatric drug prescribed to Lanza and a second adverse reaction.

Five days after the shooting incident, investigators interviewed Kathleen Koenig. According to the police summary of Koenig’s interview the following was revealed.

“Koenig prescribed medication: Celexa – antidepressant/anti-anxiety.”

“Koenig recommended Adam Lanza participate in follow-up visits.”

“Koenig described Nancy Lanza’s response to her recommendations as “non-compliant.”

“Specifically, immediately after prescribing a small dose of Celexa to Adam Lanza, Koenig received a phone call from Nancy Lanza which reported her son was “unable to raise his arm.” Nancy Lanza was reporting her son was attributing this symptom to the medication. Nancy Lanza stated due to her son’s symptoms, he would be discontinuing use of the medication. Koenig attempted to convince Nancy Lanza that the medication was not causing any purported symptoms which Adam Lanza might be experiencing. However, Nancy Lanza was not receptive to Koenig’s reasoning. Nancy Lanza missed at least one scheduled appointment (unknown date) and failed to schedule subsequent appointments for Adam Lanza. Koenig did contact Dr. Paul Fox and agreed that his behavioral-based therapy would remain the primary course of treatment for Adam Lanza. She stated that Adam Lanza never returned for follow-up visits.”

According to the State Police Report, Koenig acknowledges that she had prescribed Adam Lanza the mind-altering drug, Celexa, and that Nancy Lanza had “immediately” reported what she believed to be serious adverse reactions to the drug. This is where it gets interesting.

If Lanza never returned to the Yale Child Study Center for follow-up visits and Koenig believed Nancy Lanza was “non-compliant,” when was the Lexapro prescribed?  Based on Solomon’s reporting it certainly appears that the Lexapro had been prescribed while Adam was being treated at Yale, yet the Lexapro incident apparently was not reported to investigators by Koenig.

Additionally, Koenig was advised on two occasions that Lanza had adverse reactions to psychiatric drugs prescribed to him – the Celexa and Lexapro. Why was information about the adverse reaction to Celexa provided to State investigators and not the adverse reaction to Lexapro?

On both occasions, when confronted with Nancy Lanza’s report of an adverse reaction to a drug, Koenig apparently pooh-poohed these concerns stating, “he had a biological disorder and needed medication,” and she “attempted to convince Nancy Lanza that the medication was not causing any purported symptoms which Adam Lanza might be experiencing.” Ultimately, it seems that Koenig labeled Nancy Lanza “non-compliant,” when in reality it appears this mother was acting responsibly.

One has to wonder how informed Koenig is when it comes to psychiatric drugs.  First, there is no medical/scientific evidence to support Koenig’s claim that any psychiatric disorder is “biological.”  Secondly, the information provided by Nancy Lanza about the adverse reaction to the Celexa actually is one of the serious side effects of the drug – “stiff, rigid muscles.” Adam had complained that he could not lift his arm. And Nancy Lanza also told Koenig that Adam was “sweating profusely.” This also is an adverse side effect of Lexapro.

Unfortunately, Solomon did not provide information in his article about the date the Lexapro was prescribed.  However, because Solomon wrote that “Adam stopped taking Lexapro and never took psychotropics again, which worried Koenig,” we can assume that it was during the time that Adam was receiving treatment at the Yale Child Study Center.

Based on the fact that Adam did not “participate in follow-up visits” to the Yale Child Study Center after the Celexa incident, then the above information seems inaccurate. According to Koenig’s statement to police, Celexa was the only drug that Adam received and that was the end of the relationship with the Yale Child Study Center.

Beyond the fact that the data provided by Solomon about Koenig’s statements appears to be contradicting the State Police Report, what also becomes abundantly clear is that Koenig appears to be completely unwilling to accept, as real, Nancy Lanza’s reports about the medication.  Koenig does not recommend discontinuation, nor does she recommend that the adverse reactions be reported to the FDA’s MedWatch drug reporting system.

More bizarre, though, given that the Yale Child Study Center appears to be pivotal in Lanza’s mental health care, is that Dr. Ezra Griffith (a psychiatrist) of Yale University was chosen by Connecticut Governor Dannel P. Malloy to sit on the Sandy Hook Advisory Commission, which is tasked with making recommendations about mental health care in the state. Furthermore, the Yale Child Study Center testified before the Advisory Commission.  Is this not a serious conflict of interest?

Nevertheless, the point is, of course, that there is a problem with the information about Adam Lanza’s mental health care.  Specifically, when did Adam Lanza stop taking psychiatric medication? In fact, what medications had Lanza been prescribed throughout his life?  Why has no information about Lanza’s mental health for the last five years of his life been made public? Did Nancy Lanza uncharacteristically decide to stop providing mental health treatment for Adam after his negative experience at the Yale Child Study Center?

No one knows. And that is why all of Lanza’s mental health records need to be made public. Until that time, more information about Lanza’s mental health treatment and prescribed drugs will surely leak out. In the meantime, though, important mental health decisions, affecting the entire country, will be made by lawmakers.

As often is the case when it comes to these tragic school shootings, lawmakers irresponsibly act first then, maybe, consider the facts later.  What Ablechild is learning, though, is that the “facts” of this incident keep changing, making it all the more important for the public to demand absolute transparency of all information regarding Lanza’s mental health records.

It is no secret that almost immediately Lanza’s mental health treatment was questioned.  Specifically what mental health disorder(s) did he suffer from and what “treatment” and medications had been prescribed over the course of his life.

Given that most of the psychiatric drugs available at that time had not been approved for children and that they also carried serious FDA “black box” warnings for serious behavioral adverse reactions, these questions are not unimportant.

In fact, without this information no governing body can responsibly claim the need for “increased mental health services” based on the shooting incident at Newtown.  Without knowing Lanza’s mental health history, lawmakers are subjecting the public to unnecessary and costly mental health services with zero information to support the action.

 

 

 

 

 

“ON THE AIR” Ablechild kicks off in CT then goes National for MEDWATCH AWARENESS

Written by Able Child on . Posted in Interviews, Lawmaking.

On February 14, 2014, Ablechild was interviewed on WGCH 1490 AM, Greenwich, Connecticut. Ablechild left immediately after that interview to the Capitol in Hartford, Connecticut to educate lawmakers on the MEDWATCH “adverse drug” reporting system.  Ablechild distributed to every State Representative and Senator a copy of the “MEDWATCH” form  along with suggested language to incorporate into law “the ensured access” for the consumer on their right to report “adverse drug events” to the FDA.  Take a listen, below:

Tony Savino
News Director
WGCH 1490-AM
71 Lewis St.
Greenwich, CT. 06830


After our effort in Connecticut, Ablechild reached out Nationally.  We did our first exclusive interview on the National radio show, Republic Broadcasting System with Deanna Spingola, where Ablechild discusses the Sandy Hook, Newtown Investigation, our legislative efforts, and fielded questions from callers throughout the United States, as well as a call from Canada!  Take a listen:

Ablechild Guest on Republic Broadcasting Network with Deanna Spingola