You’ve probably heard by now that Mischa Barton had some sort of episode at her home and had to be taken to the hospital under an involuntary psychiatric hold.
People Magazine has a whole story chronicling all of Barton’s “troubles” and saying she’s a “party girl.” She drank a lot and was often photographed drunk, and she does have one DUI. She took responsibility for that, though, and seems like she handled it well in light of everything. She did have some normal personal issues like breakups with guys, but she’s young, and she’s always struck me as much more level headed than her peers.
I’m going to wildly speculate what happened, and a lot of people are going to assume it was “illegal” drugs, but I would bet it was some sort of prescription drug issue, either abuse of prescription drugs and alcohol or some kind of accident or side effect. I have no information whatsoever to make that assumption except for the story that she had dental surgery three weeks ago along with the fact so many people are having this problem lately.
I’ve seen friends become addicted to painkillers they really needed, their personalities totally changing in the process. Add a couple of cocktails in there and it can cause a person to really lose it. A drug interaction or new prescription can also lead to psychiatric problems that are completely uncharacteristic for a person.
All we know is that a young actress went to the psych ward and we have no idea what she was taking, if anything. When the same thing happened to Britney, though, people were quick to say she was crazy. They ignored the fact that Sam Lutfi was slipping drugs in potentially harmful combinations into her food. She did flip out, but she was also drugged against her will most of the time and people forget that. You mix some of that stuff together and it can really mess a person up. Sure there is free will and personal responsibility, but that doesn’t mean we can’t show compassion and give someone the benefit of the doubt.
Ten to one Mischa had a bad reaction to something, illegal or not, and she didn’t just wig out on her own. We’ll have to wait and see if we learn what happened though, and for now this is pure conjecture. The important thing is that she’s ok, is under supervision, and will hopefully get proper treatment. Take care, Mischa.
Mischa Barton is shown out on 7/3/09. You can see that the swelling was gone from her face at that point. Her wisdom teeth were removed around 6/27/09.
Very nice post, Celebitchy. Everything you say is reasonable. I hope Mischa gets the help she needs.
I could definitely agree with percription drugs, they make you puffy and swollen when abused (my grandma was addicted to them for 20 years) and irratical.. I saw pictures somewhere where they were talking about weight gain because she’s depressed and eating-it could be the drugs.
I hope she gets things worked out….whatever it is.
I was going to say that a more accurate title to this post would be “What happened with Mischa Barton and more importantly, does anyone care?” but if it’s prescription drug abuse I hope she gets help.
i dont think it was prescription drugs. I would be willing to bet she was tweaking from her meth habit and hallucinating and dealing with all the rest of the effects of coming off a meth binge. plus, there were blind items a while back about someone dating a hipster who was abusive to girls that didnt put out for him, and it was speculated that it was her boyfriend who is in that band, which I forget the name of, so maybe she was hitting the drugs a little harder to cope with his abuses.
I don’t think Britney is a good comparsion to Mischa. Remember, Britney is under a conservertorship for a reason and she does not have custody of her children for a reason. I honestly believe Britney suffers from a mental illness (rumored to be bipolar disorder) that she wasn’t in control, of, and Sam Lufti took advantage of her in that state for his own personal gain. I truly believe Britney’s 5150s were a result of her mental illness, and her bizarre behavior was a either a reaction to that or a way to self-medicate. Britney is not crazy, but I think she is just now learning how to live her life with a very serious life-altering disorder.
I’m not going to speculate on Mischa, but to be involuntarily held for 72 hours under psychiatric care means that her situation is quite serious (whether it’s mental illness and/or drug related), and she needs to take her recovery very, very seriously.
At least she doesn’t have kids.
I’m packing up some clothes for Misha – she needs all new clothes.
Very nice piece, CB.
I’ve always felt compassion for Mischa, in part because she looks so much older than she is and is expected to have more presence than would be typical. She also appears to be sensitive, and Hollywood eats those people up.
I’m voting for her to pull it together, maybe do some stage work and re-enter film/tv with some maturity and understanding of her vulnerabilities.
another celeb drug problem ugh.
Her weight flunctuates constantly. It’s disturbing.
hmmm…i doubt she’s a meth addict – meth addicts get thinning hair, scabby skin, etc. look at amy winehouse. more likely it was a combo of prescription drugs that caused her to flip out. if you mix & match drugs you can get a psychotic reaction. in any case i hope she gets it together. i have no snark – i can’t make fun of someone when they’re down & out.
I’m pulling for this girl who seemed more tabloid fodder than actress. I would read about her and wonder why she was being covered she hadnt worked on anything that really stood out, then I realized she was being covered because something was amiss in her personal life and the vultures were watching to see if there was a story. What she needs is what ALOT of these so called celeb/starlets need. Some sleep, a decent diet and ACTING LESSONS. Really some of them would do to spend less time in Kitsons, Ed Hardy or Fred Segal and more time taking acting class. To be given a chance at the “ring” like those who have acheived some kind of fame and have access to better work who dont take the opportunity is a bitter to swallow for those of us who’d have LEAPT at the chance to create on screen.
Alot of the people the bloggers cover online now wont be anyone who’s name you’ll remember in a few years(Rachel Bilson, Mena Suvari, Sienna Miller)
TALENT will out and that’s the secret to longevity.
TALENT. Not how gaunt you can become, aimless ENDLESS shopping, and banal empty headed lives are NOT what fans are looking for, CAN YOU ACT? CAN YOU ACTUALLY EXCELL AT THE CAREER YOU’VE CHOSEN or are you just about nothing?
Because if the place you’re at in your career doesnt mean anything to you, there are a LEGION of young men and women who gladly trade their polyester uniforms and crew meetings at the McDonalds for the chance you have.
She looks like reconstituted shit in those pictures.
I believe the police presence was related to the terms of her probation for the DUI offense. If she broke probation terms it would be cause for the court to have her apprehended and then put in the proper facility. She used to have a huge problem with cocaine and if that resurfaced it would be a violation of her probation. Just because Jackson and Anna Nicole abused prescription drugs to the point of excessive excess and O.D.’d does not mean EVERYONE else has the same problem.
It is obvious. She is a failed anorexic and is now bulimic. Bulimia causes a face to do this.
I know someone who had a full-blown psychotic episode after a mild dose of a type of really commonly prescribed SSRI antidepressants. So nothing is impossible!
‘adamantia claus’ – i 100% agree with you. Obviously no one knows why Mischa was placed involuntarily in the hospital. But my guess is a combination of drug issues and mental health problems.
I hope she gets better. So sad because many years ago she was the new It girl. But in the last year or so, it’s been obvious that she has had problems.
What a beautiful girl with a promising future. she can definitely bounce back if she wants to. Breaking free from drug addiction is the hardest , but the sooner you do that the easier it is. get your act together Mischa. You deserve it.
Good luck to her, people always bitch about celebrities but the pressure must be pretty intense sometimes.
I freak out if I have to get up infront of 200 people. If I knew the whole world was watching me and saw something I didn’t want them to see (like cellulite on my legs) I’d go crazy too.
Hope she pulls through it.