Against Medical Advice

First, of course, this is an important book and one that will make an emotional impact on any reader, whether or not you are personally familiar with Tourette's syndrome or Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. It is the story of one family's 12-year struggle against these ailments, which have overtaken their son, aged 5 at the beginning of the saga, and 17 at the end.

Regardless of anything else, the authors are achieving an important goal by bringing these disorders to public attention, and James Patterson certainly aids this effort by lending his famous name and suspenseful style to the book.

That said, I had several issues with the book:

- The book is written in first person from Cory's point of view, but was in fact written by his father and/or James Patterson. This is stated at the outset with the clarification that Cory has read and given his seal of approval to the final text. However, since the book's biggest impact comes from it being someone's real first-hand experience, the fact that most of Cory's thoughts and feelings are imagined by someone else (even someone as close as his father) makes it much less effective. One cannot help but wonder at various points whether Cory truly felt things as described, or whether this is a typical person's attempt to internalize what it would be like to be Cory. As another reviewer mentioned, it also affects the portrayal of Cory's parents. In the book, Cory often comments on the unfailing support of his parents, his pain at making their life difficult, etc. Knowing that this was written by his father and given to Cory to read and OK dampens the effect, since it is not clear whether he would have written things quite the same way himself.

- In fact, since the few sections of the book truly written by Cory (e.g. his letter to his parents) were articulate and compelling, and since his writing is complimented at various points by his English teacher, etc., I wonder why he did not write the book himself. Perhaps it was simply not among his priorities at the time. In a sense, Hal Friedman and James Patterson did Cory a disservice by giving him a more simple, choppy voice than he might have chosen himself. His intelligence, often commented on by others throughout the book, does not shine through because the narrator is given a very brisk, basic style, telling brief anecdotes in short sentences, without much reflection. Apparently, this is James Patterson's signature style, but it may not be well-suited for a deeper character study.

* SPOILERS BELOW *
- The story begins with Cory experiencing some disturbing symptoms at age 5, after which he is prescribed Ritalin. It is stated quite clearly that this was an enormous medical mistake, the worst thing that could have been done, which quickly led to full-blown Tourette's symptoms. Perhaps this is a case of hindsight being 20-20, but I think many readers will wonder why what followed was a 10-year roller coaster of 60-odd medications, 4 or 5 at a time. The authors clearly suggest that before the Ritalin, things weren't so bad at all, yet it seems that Cory's parents never considered trying to take him off all medication for a while to see how his condition really was. Eventually, when he is a teenager, this does occur, but by then his brain and body have been receiving a crazy mixture of chemical supplements for a decade. The final solution to the ailments does in fact come when Cory has been off all pharmaceutical treatments for a while. There is no particular explanation why Cory is suddenly "cured", other than that he has been medication-free and allowed to lead a semi-normal life with, finally, some optimism about his future. It makes one wonder how much of Cory's condition was truly an unavoidable disorder, and how much was induced and/or exacerbated by the medication. To me, this was the most troubling part of the book. Reading about Cory's often painful experiences and his sense of being cursed with this hellish condition, I couldn't help but question whether it was, in fact, largely avoidable.

That said, as others reviewers have noted, the book may be an excellent illustration of why patients and their families need to become knowledgeable about medical conditions and participate actively in the treatment. I have no doubt that Cory's parents did their best, but perhaps armed with their experience, others can do even better to help their loved ones cope with Tourette's and OCD.

I read this book a few years ago and it is a riveting read. Having three grandchildren diagnosed on the Autistic Spectrum, I could identify in many ways with the Friedman family. Anyone who has a child or loved one struggling with the various diagnoses which all have some common issues such as behavior, social, academic, temperament struggles will identify with this story.

I found it very interesting that only after the experience with the group on the hiking/camping trip where Cory's hands and feet turn black, that he was able to begin to get his true self back - so to speak. Obviously, there was a cleansing of drugs and other "poisons" if you will, leaving his body. In our experience, diet and environmental changes have contributed to seeing our grandchildren be retrieved from the horrible place of darkness and isolation to which they had retreated.

Difficult to read but so important. We have a child who struggles with a chronic conditio, non life threatening, that is mostly a mystery to the medical community. The medication options are TERRIBLE and largely unsuccessful. This book, which was recommended to us by a physician, confirmed that we did the right thing by using alternative treatments to help our child learn to live with this. He is 18, very strong and successful. He is eager to head off into the world chasing his dreams and knows that God will use it for good.

I couldn't beet the price & It came faster then expected

After my son was diagnosed with TS/OCD/ADHD, I've looked for anything I could find on the subject to help me better understand what he is going through. This family's journey is sometimes hard to read as they did endure some oh so difficult times, but they came through it and their son is now doing awesome thanks to their willingness to never give up!! That give's me courage and hope that we too can make it through our difficult times and still come out on top. I wish I could personally tell Cory and his family how much I appreciate their courage in putting so much of themselves in this book in order to help others who are also struggling. If you want to read a story of survivable, a story of courage, and something that will in the end lift you up, then read this book! If you have a child, a spouse, a sibling that struggles with neurological issues, you will be blessed by reading this book! I would encourage anyone that deals with children on a daily basis to read this book because chances are you will come in contact with a child like Cory (there are many more then you know) that will greatly benefit from you taking time to better understand them. My own son has often been misunderstood by good people, that just can't understand children that don't fit the standard mold. Awesome story and awesome book!