Med Head: My Knock-Down, Drag-Out, Drugged-Up Battle with My Brain

by James Patterson and Hal Friedman

Book Overview

Discover the story of one teenager's struggles with OCD and Tourette's Syndrome-and how he was able to overcome extraordinary setbacks. Cory Friedman knows how it feels to have a body that won't stop moving, to be really different from everyone else, to be made fun of every day, to be totally reckless, to never relax, to be shut out of everything, to break free and take control. James Patterson's Against Medical Advice riveted adults with the page-turning...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0316076171
• ISBN13: 9780316076173
• Release Date: April 2010
• Publisher: Jimmy Patterson
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 0.74 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.5" x 8.1"
• Age Range: 13 to 18 years
• Grade Range: Grade 8 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Med Head

A great book to read to develop an understanding of the life of a person suffering from Tourette Syndrome. A very worthwhile, very fast read.

Med Head

This book is a soft cover copy of "Against Medical Advise"...but if you haven't read it....DO IT!

One young man's struggle: I'm glad it turned out well for him

The true story of Cory Friedman's efforts to control his Tourette's and OCD, along with his violent temper and addiction issues (drinking and smoking). The book contains many brutal, pull-no-punches descriptions of his tics, his meltdowns, his anger and his frustration. His family stands valianty by him; his sister is seldom mentioned. After a wrenching 13-year battle (approx. ages 5-18) Cory's symptoms, which he previously was unable to control, start to fade almost naturally, through an "Outward Bound" type wilderness experience and time spent at a neurological clinic where the treatment encourages him to focus on his tics and anxieties, rather than try to suppress them. It also helps when he weans himself off most of the doctor-prescribed drugs he was taking. Though I wish this young man all the best, and the story is interesting as a peek into a world of pain and suffering, I don't feel there are any greater lessons to be drawn, or that Cory's experiences can be generalized in any way for the greater good of readers. Maybe they don't need to be and the point is that Cory told his story and I can now read it. Note: This book was released a year or so ago, titled Against Medical Advice. Med Head, with its eye-catching cover and an introduction by Ellen Hopkins, is the same book, aimed at young adults. If you are an older teen reader and you liked Med Head, you might have a look at both Beautiful Boy (by father David Sheff) and Tweak (by son Nic Sheff.)

MED HEAD is an inspirational story, and I agree with Patterson when he calls Cory a hero

MED HEAD, James Patterson and Hal Friedman's young adult version of the #1 New York Times bestseller AGAINST MEDICAL ADVICE, is about a boy's experiences growing up with the rare neurological disorder of Tourette's Syndrome with OCD. It's a private view of Cory Friedman's home and school life as told by Cory himself, from age five through his post-high school years. Cory is five years old when his troubles begin. While playing a video game, he feels his first compulsion to jerk his neck. It is involuntary, caused by "miswiring of his brain," and is one of the many tics and physical and verbal compulsions his mind would present through the years. He calls these years "the battle against my mind," and his symptoms are embarrassing and physically debilitating at a young age. With his first trip to the doctor, Cory and his family start down a long road of suffering and worry that doesn't end until after his teenage years are over. Through many years of treatment, Cory is put on handfuls of medications. The Friedmans meet numerous doctors, some of whom are helpful and others of whom are just insulting and harmful. His parents and sister, Jessie, try their best to support him through the physical and emotional stress, knowing there's only more of it to come. Love and family support are often not enough for Cory to feel happy, and he has to do without close friendships or outside understanding for years. All he wants is for the people around him to "get him," and one of the most difficult aspects of the situation is the Friedmans' realization of Cory's daily embarrassment and social isolation from having a disease that no one understands or empathizes with. Because Cory's disorder is exacerbated by stress and anxiety, reactions he gets make things worse. Kids at school and teachers often treat him as if his disorder is contrived or controllable. He's frequently made fun of, and this makes his tics and compulsions more exaggerated. None of his treatments help much, and at some point, he begins thinking of himself as a "med head." He is on high-dose meds and often can't deal with the side effects, which range from intense agitation to more pronounced tics, to keeping him up at night and leaving him physically and emotionally exhausted. He gains weight and becomes clinically depressed on certain drugs. Yet somehow, with the support of his family, Cory gets through this. After years of hoping and wishing and wondering about a cure (or at least relief from symptoms), he discovers he's ready to call it quits with all drugs and experimental treatments. Unfortunately, somewhere along the way, Cory finds that there's one thing he does feel better on: alcohol. He uses it to escape his unhappiness. At age 17, he has absolutely no idea what he's doing and no plans for the future, but his alcohol use is no joke. It goes way past common teenage partying to where he is passing out drunk at home --- a lot. Once his parents recognize the need to intervene, their n