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I use my years of experience as a mental health advocate
and as a professional patient to guide and help people coping with mental illness,
as well as those who love and care for them. I help people devise strategic plans
for recovery including advice with:
choosing qualified mental health care professionals and programs
discussing the pros and cons of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
navigating
the mental health care, insurance, and disability systems
making
referrals to financial advisors and legal counsel (sometimes appearing in court)
dealing
with the pressure that mental illness creates within the family unit
offering
non-professional therapeutic care, comfort, and advice working
For an hourly fee of $225, I am available by phone, by e-mail
or in person in the Los Angeles area. Please e-mail
me to find out more or schedule an appointment.
*Andy Behrman is not a psychotherapist, psychiatrist, social
worker, or lawyer, and his guidance as a consultant is not a substitute for professional
advice. Patients should always consult a qualified mental health professional
before making any decisions regarding treatment choice or changes in their treatment.
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"The latest most hyperkinetic book in a robust genre." — The New York Times
"He's very insightful and very funny. It's really a beautiful book."
— Rosie O'Donnell
"Compulsively readable." — W Magazine
More
Reviews
Soon to be a major
motion picture! | |
| WHO IS ANDY BEHRMAN
(A.K.A. ELECTROBOY)?
He slept only three hours a night. Sometimes he didn't go to bed for days.
He was a public relations agent, an art dealer, a hustler
and a forger who made millions. He would fly from Zurich to the Bahamas
then back again to balance out the hot and cold. He learned new languages in a
week. He spent his money on wild shopping sprees all around the globe,
buying up clothing, paintings and extravagant gifts for friends. He gave complete
strangers spontaneous gifts of thousands of dollars from the cash he
kept in his freezer. He was moving at breakneck speed - - fueling his behavior
with drugs and alcohol. After seeing more than eight doctors, he
was finally diagnosed with bipolar disorder.
Then he was arrested for art forgery and was convicted of fraud.
He was sent off to prison. When he was released, he returned home, forced
to live in his apartment under house arrest. After two unsuccessful years
of experimenting with all different combinations of medication to stabilize his
wild mood swings, he opted for intensive bouts of electroshock
therapy as a last resort. He was temporarily cured. No longer Superman,
he was now Electroboy.
This is his story. It's all true...
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EXCERPT FROM ELECTROBOY
Bipolar disorder is about buying a dozen bottles of Heinz
ketchup and all eight bottles of Windex in stock at the Food Emporium on Broadway
at 4:00 a.m., flying from Zurich to the Bahamas and back to Zurich in three days
to balance the hot and cold weather (my sweet and sour theory of bipolar disorder),
carrying $20,000 in $100 bills in your shoes into the country on your way back
from Tokyo, and picking out the person sitting six seats away at the bar to have
sex with only because he or she happens to be sitting there. It's about blips
and burps of madness, moments of absolute delusion, bliss, and irrational and
dangerous choices made in order to heighten pleasure and excitement and to ensure
a sense of control. The symptoms of bipolar disorder come in different strengths
and sizes. Most days I need to be as manic as possible to come as close as I can
to destruction, to get a real good high -- a $25,000 shopping spree, a four-day
drug binge, or a trip around the world.
— Electroboy:
A Memoir of Mania |
If you liked this paragraph, you'll love the book!
Buy Electroboy
today!
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After having traveled across the country and back too many times to count and having spoken to more than 275 audiences, I'm pleased to announce that I'm going to devote more time to helping people who suffer from both depression and bipolar disorder as a private consultant.
During these trips, I've met literally thousands of people (and their families) who suffer with mental illness on a daily basis and often feel hopeless about getting well. They've been misdiagnosed, are unsuccessful with finding the right doctor, can't find the right regimen of medication, have left their jobs, have difficulty supporting themselves, and have very little help from their friends and families.
My goal is to spend quality time with people who have been unable to take the
first steps to recovery or who have had difficulty in learning to cope with their
mental illness.
You can see details here on the homepage.
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Fighting Depression and Bipolar Disorder
Buy The Book | 
