Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    Against Medical Advice: One Family's Struggle with an Agonizing Medical Mystery
    Unavailable
    Against Medical Advice: One Family's Struggle with an Agonizing Medical Mystery
    Unavailable
    Against Medical Advice: One Family's Struggle with an Agonizing Medical Mystery
    Audiobook5 hours

    Against Medical Advice: One Family's Struggle with an Agonizing Medical Mystery

    Written by Hal Friedman and James Patterson

    Narrated by Kevin T. Collins

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Cory Friedman woke up one morning when he was five years old with the uncontrollable urge to shake his head and his life was never the same again. From that day forward his life became a hell of uncontrollable tics, urges, and involuntary utterances. Eventually he is diagnosed with Tourette's Syndrome and Obsessive Compulsive disorder, and Cory embarks on an excruciating journey from specialist to specialist, enduring countless combinations of medications in wildly varying doses. Soon it becomes unclear what tics are symptoms of his disease and what are side effects of the drugs. The only certainty is that it kept getting worse. Despite his lack of control, Cory is aware of every embarrassing movement, and sensitive to every person's reaction to his often aggravating presence. Simply put: Cory Friedman's life is a living hell.


    AGAINST MEDICAL ADVICE is the true story of Cory and his family's decades-long battle for survival in the face of extraordinary difficulties and a maddening medical establishment. It is a heart-rending story of struggle and triumph with a climax as dramatic as any James Patterson thriller.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHachette Audio
    Release dateOct 20, 2008
    ISBN9781600243660
    Unavailable
    Against Medical Advice: One Family's Struggle with an Agonizing Medical Mystery

    Related to Against Medical Advice

    Related audiobooks

    Medical Biographies For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Editor's Pics

      Nov 24, 2022

      An intelligent, poised woman, deni Haynes sat in court and listened as the man who had abused her from birth, a man who should have been her protector, a man who tortured and terrified her, was jailed fora non-pa role period of 33 years. The man was

      2 min read

    • Article

      Robin Abcarian: A Memoir Unlike Any You've Read: A Young Woman's Inspiring Struggle With Her Invisible Killer

      Mar 11, 2019

      Mallory Smith was a toddler in 1995 when doctors finally diagnosed her persistent cough and runny nose: cystic fibrosis. Life expectancy for the disease at the time was between 25 and 30 years. Upon hearing the news, her mother collapsed. "Our new no

      5 min read

    • Article

      Would You Get A DEMENTIA DIVORCE?

      Apr 11, 2023

      The vows and commitments we make when we marry are intended to last a lifetime. In sickness and in health. For better or for worse. But should there be exceptions to these promises? Billionaire Porsche executive Wolfgang Porsche, 79, came under fir

      4 min read

    • Article

      Q&A

      Nov 15, 2022

      Q&A
      2 min read

    • Article

      For Readers …

      Nov 24, 2022

      Zarifa Ghafari was three years old when the Taliban banned girls from schools, and she began her education in secret. She was seven when American airstrikes began. She was twenty-four when she became mayor (the only female mayor in the country) of Ma

      3 min read

    • Article

      Cry For Help

      Mar 15, 2024

      Cry For Help
      2 min read

    • Article

      The Last Health Taboo: Why Are So Many Women Still Suffering With Endometriosis?

      Jun 20, 2023

      What health condition affects some 200 million people around the world, yet remains woefully misunderstood, underfunded, and barely addressed in medical-school curricula? The answer to that riddle is no less of a riddle: endometriosis is a disease th

      4 min read

    • Article

      All In The Mind

      Jul 1, 2022

      All In The Mind
      4 min read

    • Article

      Book Reviews

      May 31, 2021

      Intermittent fasting has emerged as an evidence-based revolution in health and wellness. Even if you usually eat meat and fish, why not do a vegan intermittent fasting reset? You can start at any time and lose weight while still eating the foods you

      3 min read

    • Article

      Being R.A.D

      Nov 24, 2017

      Being R.A.D
      4 min read

    • Article

      Ageing Well

      Mar 22, 2020

      Most of us have a vision of how we’d like to end up in old age. In an ideal world, I see myself still heading to yoga, splashing around at aqua-aerobics sessions, going for walks with my husband, reading shedloads of books, catching up with friends a

      1 min read

    • Article

      I Can Just Be Her Mum

      Oct 18, 2022

      I Can Just Be Her Mum
      5 min read

    • Article

      Mental Health Is No Joke!

      Oct 16, 2019

      Mental Health Is No Joke!
      7 min read

    • Article

      Good Medicine

      Oct 22, 2020

      SEASON PREMIERE Monday, Nov. 2, 10/9c, ABC Dr. Shaun Murphy (Freddie Highmore, right) treats patients with coronavirus and navigates a romance with Lea (Paige Spara) in Season 4. His next challenge, says exec producer David Shore: “Supervising other

      2 min read

    Reviews for Against Medical Advice

    3.5/5

    185 ratings27 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      Completely different than any of the other Patterson books I have read.
    • 2/5
      Not my cup of tea.
    • 3/5
      I enjoyed reading this account of Tourette's Syndrome, as suffered by Cory from age five. The authors did a good job of portraying Cory's perspective on his condition. However, I struggled with the amount of honesty/objectivity there was in the writing. The preface says it was written by Cory's father, based largely on diaries kept by the mother. The father then shared the text with James Patterson who turned it into a book. But, it is written in Cory's voice! There is no information on the struggles or reactions of Cory's parents, so they come across as very loving, but two-dimensional. And the style is vintage Patterson -- lots of cliff hangers. I thought the book ending abruptly, with no information on Cory's ongoing struggles and successes. It is written as if, one day, bam! he was better. Still, an interesting and educational read, including for young people.
    • 5/5
      i liked tyis book because it was very interesting and is a true sotry. it is about a boy with terets and ocd and his battle with it
    • 5/5
      Fascinating tale of a young man who suffered horrendously with Tourette's syndrome during his growing up years. Much of that suffering was due to the medical treatments that were tried on him. His family never gives up on him and their support enables him to make it through his ordeal and discover his own way of overcoming his condition. An excellent read that helps the reader understand the emotions of someone experiencing a disease that takes over their bodily movements.
    • 5/5
      in the begginning of the book cory struggles with having a drug addiction. In the middle of the book he tells why he started to drink.in the end of the book he solves all of his problems.346/s46 pages read
    • 5/5
      Must read for anyone who works with kids with special needs. Insight in the mind of a young man as he deals with all the medication Dr. tell him will make him survive in the day to day of life and school.
    • 4/5
      In the novel med head cory struggles with a disorder and going with so much medicine in one day in the beginning he says hes a alcholic, 40/301
    • 2/5
      This is the true story of a boy who suffered from Tourette's syndrome, OCD and anxiety. Cory began experiencing the tics of Tourette's before he was five years old, had a horrible time through his school years, and then suddenly got better in his junior year of high school. The story is told from his voice, but is written by his father, so I felt a lack of credibility. Mom and Dad were like stick-figure characters: Mom always loved, Dad was always there. Where were their feelings, their reactions, their struggles? I think there could have been more about the family. Cory had a horrible time with his diseases. But, enough already. The book went on too long describing his problems, without giving us a sense of developing story. And then, all of a sudden, he goes to a Wilderness Camp and gets cognitive therapy, and all is solved? Dad, the author, in the epilogue, credit's Cory's strength and determination after he hits rock-bottom. Maybe so, but I didn't get that from the narrative.I was disappointed.
    • 4/5
      This is the story of one young man's horrific experience with Tourette's Syndrome and OCD. It tells how it made his childhood and adolescence into a nightmare. He tried countless treatments, but nothing worked and many made him worse. It really opened my eyes to the realities of Tourette's. It ended on a positive note however.
    • 1/5
      The brain is a marvelous, incredible joy to behold -- when it is functioning properly. When the signals are crossed, chaos results, leaving frustration, fear, anger, pain, sorrow and helplessness.At the age of five, Hal Friedman's son Cory began to twitch frantically. Over the years, Tourette's Syndrome, obsessive compulsive disorder, alcohol, and an exceedingly high level of anxiety took over Cory's life and made it and those around him a living hell.An entire spectrum of anti psychotic, anti depressant, anti seizure, blood pressure, mood enhancer, mood depressor drugs were prescribed. Some created a larger problem.In the end, a cognitive behavior modification program and a wilderness survival camp were the only things that helped.The story was interesting and I learned a great deal about Tourette's. However, I remained skeptical throughout. Cory's parents appeared to be too unreal, too perfect, too understanding.Because the story was told in the voice of Cory, but written by his father, the level of honesty was compromised and thus it detracted from the realness of this very complicated and difficult situation faced by Cory, his family, his teachers, his therapists and all with whom he came in contact.This book will NOT be on the list of top reads for 2010.
    • 4/5
      Synopsis: A fast-paced, non-fiction account of a boy's struggle with Tourette's, OCD, anxiety, and alcoholism Hal Friedman's son Cory began shaking his head around age 5. This tic became one of many brought on by Tourette's syndrome, and fueled by OCD and anxiety. The book is told through Cory's eyes. It demonstrates his struggle to look and act "normal," and his difficulty making friends. The family saw numerous doctors and tried a vast amount of pharmaceutical combinations, with no relief for Cory. As a teenager, he did find relief in smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol. After almost burning the house down, his parents began an intervention. They sent him to winter wilderness camp followed by a stay at the Wellington Clinic. Cory's ticcing begins to get under control as he learns to manage the OCD and anxiety. Pros & Cons: I first saw this book on Loosha's thread. It is a fast paced, and interesting first person account of what it is like to live with a severe case of Tourettes. I understand the literary merit of writing it in first person, but I question the validity of how "authentic" it is since it is written by Cory's father and James Patterson. Cory did give his approval and copies of his mother's medical journal are included - but still, I feel cheated some how.
    • 4/5
      A non-fiction story told in the page turning manner of a Patterson novel. Using the son's voice of the co-author, this memoir relates a teenager's point of view of living with Tourette's and OCD for several years.So it seems like Friedman provided the material and Patterson wrote it....a good combination for making this material more readable and less clinical. I am sure it will reach more people because of the easy readability.
    • 5/5
      This is a fascinating (true) account of one family's experience with a son who has Tourettes, OCD, and the worst possible cases of all. Anyone who has ever had a medical condition that made doctors scratch their heads, or has known anyone who experienced that or if you are looking for a moving true story, this is oddly fabulous.
    • 2/5
      Story is interesting, but the writing is typical Patterson. Yuck.
    • 4/5
      This is the story of a boy named Corey who has Tourette's Syndrome combined with a severe case of OCD. We have all seen fictional movies about individuals who are afflicted with various disabilities and/or psychopathic tendencies, but these images (at least for me) seem so detached and unrealistic. After reading Against Medical Advice, I now understand how realistic these conditions truely are. The book was written in Corey's own words, which made this nonfictional story read like a page turning suspence thriller. Before reading the book I saw an interview with James Patterson where he said he wanted the book to be a page turner, where he felt most nonfiction titles were not. I can tell you that Patterson and Friedman nailed it. I am saddened when I come to the realization that so many people are afflicted with debilitating conditions. Although it is always nice to read of those who can persevere under the most dire set of circumstances.
    • 5/5
      This "memoir of an illness" is an excellent narrative of one particular family's journey through the medical maze which often results when doctors have to treat multiple disorders and may not have a correct picture of the actual diagnosis or of the appropriate treatments.The title seems to indicate a critical breaking point in the narrative between trusting the doctors and moving on without them. Although there is that moment in the book, it is very brief and mostly glossed over. I would have liked to see more emphasis on how the characters felt at the time of that transition.
    • 4/5
      This was a heart-breaking and also inspiring look at one young man's struggle with Tourette's Syndrome. I have to say that it reinforced my feelings of caution towards medication. Not that I don't think medication can be helpful, but as Cory's family found - it's hard to know exactly what is having certain effects when there are so many medications involved. I felt like I had a better understanding of Tourette's and OCD, as well as more empathy for those suffering from various mental disorders. Still, I can imagine it was extremely challenging for all those who cared for and coped with Cory during his growing up years. I am so impressed and inspired by his parents. As the parent of a child who has his own mild difficulties, I feel a renewed desire to be a more patient and understanding mother.
    • 5/5
      Against Medical Advice, gripping, honest, and absolute truth......As the mother of a child who underwent a similar life, I applaud the FriedmanFamily and Mr. Patterson for bringing his story to the world....and a special hats off to Cory......Thank you for presenting this in Cory's words, as he spoke directly to this mother's heart. With the exception of only 3 medications, my son also endured the same pharmacy roulette used by Cory's doctors when they didn't know how to treat the problems. He spentfrom age seven to twenty-one, medicated and housed, in residential treatment because they didn't know what to do. Cory beat the odds, and I embraced every word of his story. Educators, mental health professionals and every parent should read this book!!!
    • 5/5
      Absolutely fascinating! An extremely well written story of such unknown disease. The book left me with such a huge appreciation of what suffers and their families go through, and looking to learn more about this scary disease.
    • 5/5
      A heart wrenching account of a family's struggle to find peace for their son who has OCD and Tourette's Syndrome. An amazing story of love.
    • 4/5
      James Patterson's first non-fiction novel reads like a thriller. The short chapters, continuous action, and cliff-hangers start at the beginning and end at the conclusion. I was totally engrossed and fascinated by Cory's entire story.Living with this medical condition gave Cory personal insight into the depths of despair that this debilitating condition can produce. He shared, firsthand, the trials and tribulations that he encountered on a daily basis. His goal was to give comfort and hope to those that are in similar situations. Those of us that do not suffer from this medical condition can gather valuable knowledge, develop understanding, and show compassion towards those that do. (4.25/5)Originally posted on: "Thoughts of Joy..."
    • 4/5
      This is the powerful, heart breaking story of Cory Freidman who, at 5 years of age, was diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome. Told by Cory, the reader follows the next thirteen years of his life as he battles with depression and debilitating compulsions, visits endless doctors and takes a volatile mixture of medications which often do more harm than good. However, despite the horrors Cory lives with daily, his family remains strong. I really admire Cory's parents who continually support, fight for and encourage him through all the lows and setbacks he faces. Yet it is Cory himself who deserves the greatest admiration. After hitting rock bottom at sixteen, he manages to turn his life around after spending time in a wilderness camp where he has to fend for himself without the aid of cigarettes and alcohol. "Torn Apart" is truly a compelling and inspiring read.
    • 4/5
      A dismaying and harrowing, but ultimately, inspiring story of Cory's life with OCD and Tourette's Syndrome. It is hard to imagine this family's despair as Cory was put on various drug cocktails to no avail, or was misdiagnosed. It is painful, too, to read about his loneliness and outcast status among his peers. But this family hung on and supported Cory through thick and thin until he alone was able to more or less free himself of his disabilities. The chapters are short and read quickly; you can't help but hang on to Cory's story, which makes this especially ideal for reluctant readers. Readers will also learn much about what OCD and Tourette's are.
    • 3/5
      While the book gave an interesting view of what Tourette's is like, I disliked the main premise of the book. I hate the anti-medical view. I disliked that the family did not take more responsibility for the kids bad behavior. And there was a superiority feeling of the family that bothered me. Also the book was written by the parents but the book was in the voice of the child.
    • 5/5
      4.5 stars Cory Friedman was only 5 years old when he began having ticks and was diagnosed with Tourette's syndrome. He had a tough life as a kid with all his weird gestures and no friends. He went from doctor to doctor and tried medication after medication. School was tough, but with the unwavering support of his parents, he persevered. Cory was later also diagnosed with OCD and anxiety disorder. The book is in his own “voice” and follows him until he is 17 or 18. His father wrote a preface and epilogue for the book. Wow, how difficult would that all have been to go through!? Amazing story! I listened to the audio and was drawn in to the story right away – my mind rarely wandered. The narrator did a very good job, I thought. Cory's father read his own portions of the book.
    • 5/5
      This was heart wrenching read.