"As Prescribed" Filmmaker Holly Hardman's Blog

For those who have not yet come across it, "As Prescribed" is a documentary film-in-the-making about the over-prescription of benzodiazepines and the harm they cause.

Filmmaker Holly Hardman has been writing a blog, and below, I'll insert both the link to the film trailer and the link to the blog:

http://www.asprescribedfilm.com/

http://www.asprescribedfilm.com/blog--notes

A quote from her most recent blog post-

No more are we prey for saber tooth tigers. And long ago we stopped listening to alchemists who had us inhaling mercury vapors. And, safe to say, our humours now remain intact; the bloodletters no longer drain us of our life force. But, being of our times, this Pharma Epoch, we are the unlucky victims of our age’s current form of medical malfeasance at the hands of the marketing gods and the healthcare providers who serve them. Once we catch on, we find our tribe, our fellow benzo sufferers. We gather together, we support each other, and we survive. In this misguided pharma age, we represent an extreme. We have been forced against our will to a take a painful and tortuous life path. Though together we are learning our way back to ourselves. We are surviving. We are meant to be. And we are meant to tell the tale.

I can't wait to see the documentary and I will gladly fork over my heard earned cash for a copy as soon as it's available.

Great one Lapis. And isn't it about bloody time that this is being done? I agree with FG~~I'd hand over some cash as well to see that this is made.

Betsy

Thank you for this Lapis.  I also made a small donation awhile back.  She's an excellent writer and the trailer's great, so I'm really looking forward to this film.  It is important.  I loved the part you quoted FG and also identify with this:

"But oh, it was not easy. My most basic sense of self and reality was shaken, distorted, cruelly undermined. I became a teenage existentialist again. What is this craziness, this sad life? What is this consciousness when all feels so distant and unfamiliar and strange and frightening? And as I drove, performing the essentials that felt so foreign, desperately grasping the steering wheel, an unreal lifeline to all that I had lost, all that I could not do, light years away from that simple reality that I used to take for granted, that I might never retrieve. Trying to make sense of the road before me. Were humans designed for this? What is this crazy constellation of roadways, these monstrous patterns that I must somehow navigate when nothing seems real and nothing seems to work? This is unnatural. This is too much! No! No! No! I can’t take it!"

She's quite well now I think.

Good stuff. Can you imagine how scary it would be for people in the throws of withdrawal to tell their story. I cringe

at the thought

Yes, hopeandfaith.  I think it especially hard when you are deeply in it.  It gets a little easier to talk about it when some time has passed and there is more perspective.

I just wrote Holly and thanked her for what she is doing.  I'm sure a little encouragement can't hurt.  I let her know we are waiting in great anticipation.

There is the word "thoughts?" under her blog in green that you can click on and it opens to an email that can be written to her.

Thank you for this Lapis.  I also made a small donation awhile back.  She's an excellent writer and the trailer's great, so I'm really looking forward to this film.  It is important.  I loved the part you quoted FG and also identify with this:

 

"But oh, it was not easy. My most basic sense of self and reality was shaken, distorted, cruelly undermined. I became a teenage existentialist again. What is this craziness, this sad life? What is this consciousness when all feels so distant and unfamiliar and strange and frightening? And as I drove, performing the essentials that felt so foreign, desperately grasping the steering wheel, an unreal lifeline to all that I had lost, all that I could not do, light years away from that simple reality that I used to take for granted, that I might never retrieve. Trying to make sense of the road before me. Were humans designed for this? What is this crazy constellation of roadways, these monstrous patterns that I must somehow navigate when nothing seems real and nothing seems to work? This is unnatural. This is too much! No! No! No! I can’t take it!"

She's quite well now I think.

This resonates so deeply with me too, benzohno. These are very powerful words for those of us feeling these same things.

We need to hear such stories, and I'm over the moon that she has taken the initiative to tell them. I just hope we'll see the finished film sometime soon. At this point, it feels like it can't be soon enough, but I know it has to be done properly.

I'm so glad that she's well now. I wonder if she'll tell her own story in "As Prescribed", along with the others. Does anyone know?

I just wrote to Holly...

Ah, thanks. Please let us know if you hear back from Holly, hopeandfaith.

I really, REALLY hope she submits the film to the Hot Docs Film Festival in Toronto. It's a big one, and there's usually lots of great media attention.

I definitely will. I also wrote to my Senator and asked him to sponsor a Bill similar to the one in Mass. It was well recieved but no Bill has been intrduced thus far. I  can be an activist in my State and keep on fighting. At least it's productive and maybe, just maybe someone will do more than just listen.

I

Yes, thanks for the update.

I wonder how it will be distributed for viewing. I really hope there will be a way for the film to be seen widely while ensuring that the filmmaker gets properly paid for all of her hard work.

Lapis,

Thank you for always posting good info. They are still filming and it takes awhile to make a film. Like benzohno said she was just in Utah. They don't have the exact date or where and how it will be distributed etc. It will be over a year before it's finished. Holly is making a great film and is very committed to the benzo cause. It is wonderful that a benzo survivor is making this movie. I know this documentary will do great things!

XO Maya

I can hardly wait to see the documentary. We need this as soon as possible.

Thanks, Lapis, for posting the links!

A quote from her most recent blog post-

 

No more are we prey for saber tooth tigers. And long ago we stopped listening to alchemists who had us inhaling mercury vapors. And, safe to say, our humours now remain intact; the bloodletters no longer drain us of our life force. But, being of our times, this Pharma Epoch, we are the unlucky victims of our age’s current form of medical malfeasance at the hands of the marketing gods and the healthcare providers who serve them. Once we catch on, we find our tribe, our fellow benzo sufferers. We gather together, we support each other, and we survive. In this misguided pharma age, we represent an extreme. We have been forced against our will to a take a painful and tortuous life path. Though together we are learning our way back to ourselves. We are surviving. We are meant to be. And we are meant to tell the tale.

 

I can't wait to see the documentary and I will gladly fork over my heard earned cash for a copy as soon as it's available.

<"But, being of our times, this Pharma Epoch, we are the unlucky victims of our age’s current form of medical malfeasance at the hands of the marketing gods and the healthcare providers who serve them. Once we catch on, we find our tribe, our fellow benzo sufferers.">

Soooo well said.  I've dragged the website link for "As Prescribed" onto my desktop.  Sign me up!