Famed psychologist Dr. Jordan Peterson is stepping back from public life as he deals with what his family describes as a severe neurological injury linked to past psychiatric medication use.
“Dr. Peterson is at home with family and helpful companions… he is not talking about going back to work yet,” Tammy Peterson told the New York Post, adding that he “feels as if he’s in another realm of pain.”
“His mornings are brutally painful and discouraging for him. Later, much later in the day, he sometimes feels some relief,” she continued. “The damage done from psych medications from over six years ago takes patience, time and loving attention.”
Peterson has a well-documented history of medical complications tied to benzodiazepine use, and his family has previously spoken about the severe discomfort associated with withdrawal. Tammy Peterson said her husband “developed tardive akathisia — a chronic movement disorder characterized by intense restlessness and a compulsive need to move, a known side effect of stopping dopamine antagonist medications.”
“There are many testimonials written by people who have suffered from psych medication damage,” his wife told the Post. “The medical industry will have to face this evidence and take steps to protect the public from harm.”
She also noted that Peterson suffered from sepsis while recovering from pneumonia during a stay in Switzerland.
Last month, Peterson’s daughter, Mikhaila, said in a lengthy social media post that her father would be taking some “time off of everything” because he had “a psych med induced neurological injury, and has been suffering from akathisia.”
Peterson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A polarizing but widely followed public intellectual, Peterson has largely remained out of the spotlight over the past year.
“He misses the opportunity to weigh in on societal issues,” Tammy Peterson told the Post.
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