Carter, Chantix... Crazy
The memorial concert for my friend Carter Albrecht, arguably Dallas' most talented musician, begins tonight at the Granada Theater in Dallas.
Carter was tragically shot and killed in September when, under the influence of the stop-smoking drug Chantix and alcohol, he went into a psychotic rage, reportedly assaulting his girlfriend and beating on the neighbor's door. The neighbor reportedly believed that his home was being broken into and shot once into the door, killing Carter with a single shot to the head.
The story from Dallas Morning News left many questions unanswered. According to my informed hearsay, the neighbor, Will "Smoky" Logg, knew Carter (as did most Dallas musicians), and the argument through the door went on for some time, which would mean that the neighbor lied when he told police that he thought Carter was a burglar. Rumors also include the fact that Carter would have been quite visible through the glass in the door. There have also been suggested motives for the killing which I will not restate.
But I have no facts. These are questions that will have to go before the grand jury, and we can only hope that justice is served in whatever the outcome may be.
Instead, I want to focus on the drug, Chantix.
Carter and his girlfriend had stopped smoking about a week prior using the drug Chantix. According to ABC News, they had severe side effects from the drug, including nightmarish hallucinations.
It is well known that Carter had had several drinks the night of the incident, and that alcohol should not be consumed while taking Chantix. Possibly he suffered from a severe drug interaction between the alcohol and Chantix.
As it turns out, however, I have firsthand experience with Chantix, and my story is chilling.
My father started Chantix under the advice of his doctor in July. He was not drinking alcohol, as he is infirm and has no access to alcohol even if he wanted to drink. He was on several medications for blood pressure as well as a very low-dosage SSRI.
Within five days of starting the Chantix, I believed my father had suffered a stroke. He has had strokes in the past, so this was not a strange conclusion for me to reach. He was strangely lethargic - in and out of consciousness. He was very weak and could not stand or manipulate objects. And his mind would snap in and out of focus - sometimes reasonably alert, other times nonsensical.
Then, on day seven of this ordeal, I witnessed him having profound hallucinations. Lying in his hospital bed, he was convinced that he was upside down (on the ceiling) of a shower. He clearly saw water swirling above him on the ceiling and kept asking me if I could see it. Reopening his eyes, he began to see people floating in the air right before his face. He pointed at the chest of drawers and asked why there was a shower curtain on the floor. He was completely tripping.
I (who have consumed enough inadvisable chemicals to know these symptoms) immediately realized that my father had not had a stroke but was instead suffering from a powerful drug effect. I called the doctor and immediately demanded that he be removed from all non-essential medications. The Chantix was stopped and within two days my father had completely recovered and was ready to go home.
Of course I'm just a guy. I can prove nothing. But I saw it with my own two eyes. Chantix caused my father to completely lose his mind. It was as if someone had slipped him three hits of strong acid. He was absolutely as blitheringly insane as a person can possibly be. It is impossible to overstate how profound his psychosis was.
Which brings us back to Carter. Having seen the profoundly disturbing effects of Chantix on my father, I am not very inclined to write off Carter's episode as a drunken rage. Clearly he should not have been drinking while taking Chantix. But from all reports he was experiencing many of the symptoms of impending psychosis even stone-cold sober. And can you expect him to make good decisions about alcohol use when he is possibly seriously impaired from taking Chantix?
How dangerous is Chantix? All I can do is put it in perspective. I've known plenty of people who consumed plenty of seriously mind-altering chemicals with the express intent of blowing their minds. LSD, mescaline, psilocybin, you name it, I've seen it all. I've never come across anyone who went psychotic on these drugs (though I am sure it happens). The only person I've ever known who went psychotic from taking a drug is Carter Albrecht. The drug was Chantix.
I'm just a guy. But in my opinion, Chantix is the most dangerous chemical legally available in the world. I've seen what it can do. And now, in large part due to this irresponsible drug, the world has lost a kind soul and true talent.
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