THE STORY...

There’s a revolution going on in mental health and it’s being led by "the patients." Thousands of people diagnosed with mental illnesses are rejecting standard concepts of illness, treatment and recovery. THAT’S CRAZY is a documentary feature about Eric and 3 others who are on the front lines of this revolt.

Eric, a genetics major, and his father, a doctor living in Madison, Wisconsin never imagined they would challenge the mental health system. But when Eric, diagnosed as schizophrenic, decided to refuse his medications because they made him feel worse, the county issued a set of court orders that allowed police to pick him up and take him to a local hospital to be force medicated. Eric’s decision to refuse involuntary treatment with the help of his family triggers a series of personal, medical and legal battles that are captured by everybody involved as the events take place in real time. Eric's goal - to try a talking based treatment that has the highest success rate for psychosis in the world. Leading mental health activists and allies such as David Oaks and Robert Whitaker explore the science and the ideas behind the movement that believes people like Eric have a right to a voice and a choice in their treatment. Stylized verite reveals the story - animation by Em Cooper illustrates the inner experience.

"When I talk to family members of people with psych diagnoses who support coercion, I know it's a well meaning love. They see this upset family member perhaps disrupting their home environment, frequently ending up locked up, in the street so I have total compassion; what do you do at that point.The thing I don't get is why not have a dialogue with people who have reached full recovery. Where’s the curiosity about full recovery? We have people in our movement who have been institutionalized repeatedly, homeless, revolving door for decades, multiple suicide attempts and yet they've somehow found this way for the human spirit to come back in a lot of diverse ways. So where’s the curiosity about how folks got better?" David Oaks, Psych Survivor Human Rights Activist, Executive Director, MindFreedom International

PROJECT STATUS

We're in production and have shot about 35 hours of footage. We’re looking to raise 15,000 to pay for our next two shoots – one to Madison, so we can continue to cover Eric’s story and one to Philadelphia to cover a Boycott Normal protest at the American Psychiatric Association. Both shoots are scheduled in May, so it’s critical we raise the money now. Funds raised pay for crew, gear and travel expenses. If you think this film is important, please contribute!

WHY WE’RE DOING IT

Madness is a profound, deeply human and common experience. One in five Americans or 60 million of us will “experience a diagnosable mental illness” in any given year. Yet despite the prevalence of sadness, anxiety, and fire in the brain, there’s an important part of the discussion that’s occurring off the radar and that’s what the people who are diagnosed have to say. THAT’S CRAZY presents the experience of the people who have been through the fire and back again. We are committed to this film because we think what they're saying is eventually going to effect everybody.

How do we know when someone is too shy? Grieves too much? Needs medication for anxiety? Many people with a mental health history challenge the idea that their experiences are pathological – or the result of a chemical imbalance in their brains. They claim the right to choose the treatment that works best for them – above all they insist that when they are in charge, full recovery is possible. They say that the key to recovery is not compliance with meds, but living with purpose and autonomy. They point to scientific evidence that shows that antipsychotics, the primary treatment for mental illness, work for some but not all and that for most, recovery rates are higher without psych drugs. They believe that forced commitments and forced treatments, which are standard for millions of Americans violate their constitutional and human rights. In their view, they're not crazy – the system is. Welcome to the revolution that wants to redefine normal.

pcaplan has commented on: "Patients Harmed by Diagnosis Find Their Voices"

Subject: anyone interested in filing an ethics complaint
If you have been directly harmed because of psych diagnosis (not JUST by drugs -- there is a huge array of kinds of harm, we know) OR if a loved one has OR if you are a professional who has seen the harm first had and/or hates being caught in a system that requires use of psych diagnosis, you may file a
complaint. Since this has not been done before, as far as we know, there is no way of knowing the likely outcome.

There is no "complaints procedure" yet. I have to be very careful about what I post publicly, but anyone interested in filing a complaint should email me through the contact form on this page for me, and I will reply privately if
you send your email address.