Furious Seasons

November 20, 2008

Electroboy Author To Write New Book, Film About Being Spokesman For Abilify?

Some of you may know of Andy Behrman, who wrote Electroboy, which was published in 2002. It's a good memoir of mania, bipolar disorder and craziness and his rough experiences undergoing ECT. A few years later, Behrman began taking Abilify and even became a paid spokesman for Bristol-Myers Squibb, the drug's maker. Then Behrman, in 2006, ran into serious problems with the drug and, somewhere in there, severed his relationship with BMS.

Since then, he's been working in Los Angeles to get Electroboy made into a movie. Yesterday, I learned that there's some interest in Behrman writing a book about his experiences as an Abilify spokesman. According to the New York Daily News, actors Brad Pitt and Matt Damon are interested in movie possibilities.

I talked to Behrman briefly yesterday, but he couldn't tell me much about his plans for the Abilify thing, as he's still under a non-disclosure agreement with BMS.

"I traveled around the country" for BMS, he said, to states like Florida and Texas. He did talks for doctors and nurses, focusing on his experiences with bipolar disorder and then-experiences with Abilify. He says he even made videos for the company. All very interesting, especially since he no longer takes the drug. The details of all of this will have to wait for the expiration of his agreement with BMS on Dec. 31.

Behrman did remind me of his experience writing for About.com about bipolar disorder. He had a few articles under his belt when, in May 2006, he wrote an article that was critical of Abilify. About.com posted the article, but then quickly took it down. I found out about this through the grapevine and asked Behrman to let me post it on my site, as a bit of a protest against his handling by About.com. Here are a couple of excerpts:

"The first disastrous side effect I noticed on Abilify was a serious bout with akathisia, a frequent and common adverse effect of treatment with antipsychotic drugs. The clarity that I first felt on Abilify had progressed to an edgy agitation which could not be quieted. I felt a terrible feeling of inner restlessness and an urge to constantly stay moving, as well as "kicking my legs around" (whether it be underneath my desk or while I was trying to fall asleep in bed). All of this eerily reminded me of the darkness of my old mania."

It got worse:

"Another horrible side effect for me were the problems that I experienced with my cognitive skills, which actually reminded me so much of my experience after electroshock therapy. One day while at lunch, I gazed blankly at a friend and could not for the life of me remember her name although I had known her for more than a couple of years. I was often confused and agitated over simple things: a misplaced piece of paper, whether I had taken my dogs out for a walk or not, and even focusing on a simple conversation. Abilify, my new "wonder drug" was failing me and I was embarrassed to tell anyone, even my wife (because we had an infant) and frighteningly, my own psychopharmacologist. What would he say? Because Abilify was relatively new, I figured it just had to work for me. But soon, after doing my own research, hearing from other people whose experiences were similar to mine as well as other mental health care professionals, and conferring with my own psychopharmacologist, it was clearly time to get off Abilify."

While Behrman may not be able to say much for his writing plans next year, I'm guessing that whatever book and, maybe, movie comes out of his experiences with Abilify and speaking on behalf of BMS won't make the pharma company very happy. But I bet it'll be a good read.

Posted by Philip Dawdy at November 20, 2008 12:03 AM

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Comments

Looking forward to the book, I hope it's a real whistle-blower!

Posted by: Stephany at November 19, 2008 11:48 PM

Andy is one of the few people I know who advocates and has a big heart. He would do anything for his friends in a New York Minute.

Electroboy is a great read, but not for the faint of heart. it's a memoir of mania, and deals with adult subjects like drug abuse and hypersexuality. Not for the faint of heart. But it's a great read, and I couldn't put it down, reading it in one setting. There are a lot of books out there on Bipolar but this one has the distinction of being one of the very few to deal with mania- not hypomania, but the real mania from BP 1.

I strongly recommend Electroboy. I am glad he had a good experience with ECT, he is one of the few people I met who have. And he really is genuinely nice.

Posted by: susan at November 20, 2008 02:39 AM

There some patients whores here in Brazil who wrote books claiming that drug X saved his/her life.
I despise them all.

Posted by: Ana at November 20, 2008 05:20 AM

Can Behrman share with us how long ago he had his last ECT treatment? Is he saying it worked for him? I think so. I'd like to hear more. I admit to being a bit mystified at the distance between Breggin and Healy on the topic of ECT (there are a lot of things they disagree on actually). I do find it really hard to believe frankly that ECT can be "good" for someone beyond some short term effect that's artificially beneficial if you know what I mean and don't like that memory loss aspect. Still I try sort of halfheartedly to be open-minded. I'd never agree to it for myself though.

Posted by: Sara at November 20, 2008 10:59 AM

Ana:

What if those people really did believe a given drug saved their life?

Now, if they said that just to satisfy a contract with Big Pharma, yes, that would be a form of prostitution.

But otherwise, everyone is entitled to their opinion -- and to express a desire to help people, even if you and others think it is misguided.

Posted by: Larry at November 20, 2008 03:45 PM

Sara, I hope you will more than sort of halfheartedly try to be open minded about ECT.

I believe Andy had it in the early nineties. We met about a year ago and discussed our respective experiences. Both of us experienced a huge improvement in our moods but suffered memory loss along with it.

Many people I've compared notes with credit it with saving their lives, just as I do. Do I like the memory loss aspect of it? Of course I don't, no more than chemo patients like the nausea and hair loss they endure.

Why would you call it "artificially beneficial?" If Tylenol successfully treated a headache, would you call that an artificial benefit? The same could be said for an antibiotic or any other medical treatment.

I don't know how long the benefits lasted as there were several variables in place during the subsequent years. I do know that in the twenty years since, my depression hasn't sunk so low again.

A friend had ECT on a Wednesday in September, drove four hours to a conference the next day and performed a comedy routine on the Saturday evening of the conference.

I've heard equally remarkable stories from others who've had it in recent years.

I probably didn't return to driving for weeks but that was a small price to pay for having a life again.

Maybe you wouldn't ever agree to it and I respect your view. If you ever become depressed as I was, and for so long, you might reconsider.

No one should pressure you into it but keep in mind that afterwards you might say it was the best decision you ever made. I still feel that way two decades later.

Ana,
Why do you call people whose lives were saved by meds "whores?"

I don't know if any pscyh med has saved my life as I've never received the remarkable benefits some experience. I do know that when I began taking Effexor at age fifty I became much less preoccupied with suicide, a chronic state of mind that began in childhood.

Posted by: gardener at November 21, 2008 08:48 PM