Between 2024 and 2025, I experienced serious harm at the Guidance Center in Flagstaff, AZ. In my view, what happened was not a series of mistakes — it was a pattern of ethical failures and legal violations that nearly cost me my life.

Violations of my rights as a service dog handler under ADA law

Two psychiatric holds issued without proper risk assessment — ideation alone is not sufficient legal or ethical grounds

Physical restraint without justification

Denial of medical care when I reported chest pain with dangerously high vitals

A diagnosis entered into my records that was never disclosed to me

Retaliatory termination of care after I filed complaints

Clinical documentation that was dehumanizing and dishonest

It is worth noting that from 2012 to 2024, I had zero hospitalizations for mental health issues, and while I had signs of PTSD and panic attacks, I usually recovered quickly and mostly functioned okay during this period (except for work environments where I frequently struggled). I also did not take, or need, psychiatric medications in this period except for sleep aids.

Late summer of 2023, I was evaluated and subsequently declared SMI (seriously mentally ill) according to Arizona rules. In theory, this designation is supposed to give access to further mental health services — I say “in theory” because I have not seen any signs of that.

In the fall of 2023, I applied for disability and stopped working entirely; this was done with a high degree of encouragement from my former therapist at the Guidance Center (TGC). In the first couple of months of 2024, I asked to be evaluated for ADHD, and TGC did the testing. At the end I was told I was in the top 10% of people with inattentive ADHD; only to have several providers then turn around and claim that “it wasn’t really ADHD, but rather PTSD,” despite my assertion that the ADHD symptoms were present before PTSD made itself known.

Throughout early 2024, multiple medications were attempted to help me specifically with my symptoms related to ADHD, and not surprisingly, the focus was on non-stimulants; an approach that I agreed with. Why should I go on stimulants if other medications worked as well? I tried several medications, and not only did they not help me, they made everything so much worse. It came to a point where I was done with this approach. The medications that were not cleared for ADHD did more harm than anything else. Strattera, which is the only non-stimulant on the market, showed some promise but didn’t quite do “enough” to help with the executive dysfunction which for me is severe. Not surprisingly, the providers switched to blaming me for “not doing enough on my own,” as if they had any clue about the distress and ongoing struggles I’d dealt with for a lifetime.

In the spring of 2024, I was financially in a very difficult place. I was severely food insecure, frequently hungry, and overwhelmed with the legal aspects of applying for disability, and the struggles with medical providers at the Guidance Center became the last push for me to become suicidal for the first time in 12 years. I disclosed the suicidal ideation to my former therapist.

With absolutely zero assessment for risk, i.e. plan/intent, my former therapist decided to issue a 72-hour hold and send police to pick me up.

I was taken to the Guidance Center PAC (psychiatric acute care) unit for evaluation, and I brought my service dog with me out of necessity. It was late in the evening, I was alone in my van in a dark forest when the cops found me, and frankly, I was terrified. Law enforcement is dangerous for someone like me — someone who lives nomadically, in the forests; and someone with my political stance. For people with more privilege, that might be difficult to comprehend, but someone like me is as likely to get a “blanket party” as we are likely to be taken somewhere safely. To me, my former therapist had chosen to put my life at risk by sending law enforcement. To be clear, service dogs have legal rights in hospitals, including psychiatric units.

The next morning, it was decided to remove my service dog in a way that violated ADA laws, and I decided to make all efforts to advocate for myself and my dog. At the very least, I wanted access to my phone so I could ask friends for help to care for my dog while I was inpatient; this was denied, in full violation of my rights.

What happened after this was a full ethical and legal breakdown — and to me it was assault. I am …