Tom Dwan - the missing man

you have issues buddy

You are saying that the microstakes player who thinks literally every site is rigged against him otherwise he would be a millionaire has some issues? I doubt it.

I don't think you're making a good point, sorry

In 500 years, there's gonna be a psychiatrist that looks at today's modern mental health hospital shenanigans and call them ******ed and ineffective.

In the same vein that -you- would look at medieval bloodletting and judge bloodletting ******ed and ineffective.

However, that's not an excuse because the information is out there, so the modern mental health hospital is actually -more- ******ed than medieval practices. At least they didn't knew any better. There is some sort of veil of denial, power struggles, job insecurity, and harmful politics to upgrade the mental health institution, and they even go as far as punishing and suing the few people that pops up and talks about better ways to help mental health patients. Talk about unfairness. Talk about the old generation ****ing you up for the sake of their own selfish purposes.

Your human body took I don't know how many millions of years to evolve, the guy that created the pill, he's not even close to the ankle of having spent millions of years of the specific pill.

Every single medicine book, the DSM-V, it's all outdated and wrong. The system creates -bad- psychiatrists and psychologists, and I dont know who the **** who goes against the new better ideas, but they really do. If you go to school to help people in the mental health field, you're gonna be fed bullshit, you're gonna have exams that test you on something that is fundamentally flawed. So if you get 100% on the mental health final exam to become a psychiatrist, you're just good at saying back what they taught you, you're not really better at helping people.

The mental health hospital is mostly about pills. Pills that are harmful and addictive. They do not address the root cause ever. Patch Adams is a good movie title, that's what they do, patching.

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DumbosTrunk, I believe he has a very good comment and that his experience is true, because what he says would actually work to diffuse the situation.

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Dwan reacted how we would all react if we lived Dwan's life and were put in his shoes. However, that is no excuse to be trauma dumping, most especially when you made millions of dollars and can afford better help than what the public sector ''offers''.

Ultimately, we cannot help Dwan, only Dwan can help Dwan; and that's where Dumbo's comment becomes three times stronger, as far as we are concerned, of what -we- have control of, showing compassion is pretty much the only thing we can do to smooth out the waters and not go out of our own reach of responsibilities.

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The mental health hospital is a seriously scary place to be when you're intelligent enough to know that they are slapping a false diagnosis on your ass and proposing you unhelpful and harmful medication, yet not knowledgeable and willing enough to go through the tremendously painful and long winded road to heal what you were initially a victim of and that you -actually- have a problem, even thought the problem you have is not the problem they say you have. However, being an adult also means that you are ultimately responsible for yourself and that -you are not a victim anymore-, and when you're in denial about what to heal, or unwilling to do so, well perhaps the best thing to do is to just let him hit the wall of complex and confusing consequences.

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No, a psychiatrist is unlikely to propose him benzodiazepine. Reason being is that benzo is a class 1 drug, meaning it goes direct to the targeted receptors. Even thought the ''healing'' or ''anti-psychotics'' effects of benzo is seriously questionable, the side effects however are very real and very easy to notice. It's a bit too strong and too addictive for a psychiatrist to list up as the first suggestion. In short, benzo is more of a ''last resort'' pill, than a welcome to your first week at the mental health hospital here's some benzo. He is more likely to first propose something like quietiapine, abilify, whatever.

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As far as law is concerned, you are always free to go, and are in a mental health hospital by your own willingness.

However there is the ''you are a danger to yourself or to someone else clause'', which allows them to keep you against your will.

In actuality, they slap the clause on your ass waaaaaaaaaaaaaay before you're actually a danger to yourself or someone else.

Instead of proving to themselves, to you, or to someone else that you are a danger, they will flip the script and ask you to prove them that you are not a danger; which is not really anything you can do about to prove them that you're not in a danger... other than staying weeks at the mental health hospitals.

There is also a clause that protects you from them using the clause against you, but then it becomes the A38 problem. The A38 problem is the Asterix and Obelix cartoon movie at the crazy house. You go ask for the A38, but they tell you you need something else to get it, and then something else to get that, and then to wait to see the court.

And it just happens to be that fighting the system is juuuuuuuuuust long enough that complying to what they want gets you out of the mental health hospital faster.

Strange isn't, how the system is perfectly rigged to keep smartasses in, weren't you supposed to be crazy to be there in the first place?

Hey, I hear the frustration in the your post, and honestly, a lot of it is understandable. The mental health system definitely has flaws. It’s not perfect, and some people have had truly awful experiences. But I think it’s important to zoom out a bit and look at the full picture, too.

We’ve Come a Long Way:
It’s easy to compare today’s psychiatry to something like medieval bloodletting and call it just as bad—but the truth is, we’ve actually made a ton of progress. We understand the brain better than ever before. Is everything in the DSM-5 perfect? Of course not. But it’s based on current research, and it’s constantly being updated as we learn more. It’s a tool—not a Bible—and it reflects where the science is, not where we wish it was.

Medication Isn’t Evil:
There’s a lot of fear around meds, and some of it is justified. There are side effects, and not every prescription is the right one. But meds have also saved lives. For many people, they’re a stepping stone to feeling stable enough to actually do deeper healing work—therapy, lifestyle changes, etc. The idea that psychiatry is just about throwing pills at people isn’t really fair to the professionals who are trying to find the right balance for each patient.

Most People in the Field Really Do Care:
It might feel like the system is out to get people, but most therapists, nurses, and psychiatrists are doing this work because they genuinely want to help. They’re stuck in a system that’s overworked and underfunded, sure—but painting all of them as clueless or malicious doesn’t help. In fact, we need more smart, compassionate people in the field to help change it from the inside out.

Education Isn’t the Enemy:
Yeah, some parts of psych training need updating. That’s fair. But it’s not all garbage. If you study to be a psychiatrist or psychologist, you should learn the current models—even if they’re flawed—so you can understand the system you’re working in. Then, you can challenge it intelligently. Learning something doesn’t mean blindly accepting it.

On Involuntary Hospitalization:
That’s a super sensitive issue. Nobody wants to be in a psych ward against their will. But sometimes people are in a place where they might seriously hurt themselves or others. The law allows hospitals to step in during those moments. Sure, it can be abused or misapplied, and that definitely needs reform. But the idea itself isn’t about oppression—it’s about safety.

Healing Is Hard – But You’re Not Alone:
The idea that “only you can help yourself” has some truth to it. Personal responsibility matters. But that doesn’t mean help from others is useless. In fact, it’s the combination—your effort, support from professionals, and understanding from others—that often makes recovery possible. We shouldn’t pit self-responsibility against professional help. They can work together.

Final Thoughts:

There’s no question the mental health system needs improvement. But rejecting everything outright—meds, hospitals, education—can sometimes throw the baby out with the bathwater. The goal shouldn’t be to burn it all down. The goal should be to make it better. And that takes critique, yes—but also compassion, collaboration, and a willingness to work with what we’ve got while building something better.

"In the same vein that -you- would look at medieval bloodletting and judge bloodletting ******ed and ineffective."

My MIL goes routinely for bloodletting. She suffers from Polycythemia vera (PV) and it is called Therapeutic Phlebotomy. So it ain't a ****ed as you seem to think. And PV isn't the only disease TP is used for (most involve iron overload.)

Manastar, I'm guessing you've probably seen it already but in case you haven't, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest should be right up your alley. The book is even better than the movie.

Papi also makes some fair points. The mental health field is making progress. It's really only been a short time that we've had the technology to systematically study the physical functioning of the brain with scans and such.

Still I think a lot of Manastar's criticism is more about the system. There can be some perverse incentives when mental health care is applied in a capitalist system with a profit motive.

Like if there are "empty beds" there's suddenly more incentive to involuntarily commit someone.

Also psych drugs can certainly be necessary, but the "take two pills per day and come back in four to six weeks" is basically just a proven business model for ensuring returning customers.

Anyway, post COVID people are more skeptical of the medical establishment.

For what it's worth I hope Dwan is doing better and prepping for a WSOP grind.

I don't know where to start really, but you have very little idea of what you're talking about.

Id suggest seriously educating yourself, or better yet try working in the field before casting so much doubt and negativity upon it.

That goes for everybody, with this logic we cant trust anyone. Not the guy that creates the pill, nor the guy that questions its effectiveness.

"I don't need a ****ing psychology lesson, I just need a light"

And I didn't say that you did. I was asking a question (to wich you didn't answer). Who were you refering to in that post? The people who think that Tom isn't a victim of high ranked people?
You definitely wrote in this forum before that they were narrowminded.

I was talking about several people, not just with regard to this story about Tom, but as I wrote "the forum in general".
Regarding the news report:
My first posting refered to people like
Rmbxr9 who already wote on the 29th (one day before the News report came out):

"[...]Conspiracy guy + possible drugs + not sleeping = Poor tom[...]

Which is pure toxic bs. and hating.

At the time of my first post here I wasn't even aware of the poker news report. I first heard about Toms incident on the day of my first post and flew over the pages.

The report still doesn't explain if Tom was drugged by someone else. We still don't know.

No debunking there, sorry.

ChatGPT ahh post

It's getting good.

It's kinda funny because Negreanu has delusions of grandeur

no, the world is not like james bond

i can assure you this would never in a million years happen

What does that have to do with Tom Dwan seemingly not living in reality?

That's pretty scary though, when did Danny write that?

Just when it comes to Pot Limit Omaha but I don’t think he believes he can finally end the Korean War.

But he does have solid PLO results…

Well played Sir!

It‘s really scary. With some of restructuring it would be even harder to derect.

What happened to this? It was the first sane post you made since this incident happened…I realize a mod had to erase prob 95% of your frothy rant to try to help you, but still). Sorry I missed your ramblings…

This is what I remember. The paranoia of a man who clearly does his own research, but still doesn’t understand how Tom could’ve been legally held against his will in a psych ward. And in a foreign country! As if Americans are free to act however they want—in any country—simply by virtue of the fact that they hold an American passport.

Try smuggling drugs into China, and see if they’re allowed to hold you against your will. Or freak out on a plane to the point where you terrified passengers and prob had to be restrained (speculation, but reasonable imo).

And yet, you posted the nonsense above, insinuated the nefarious DEEP STATE was possibly involved, then lectured us about..cognitive resonance…(��😉, and how Tom COULD’VE been drugged, and that maybe the moon landing was fake, and that movement might not exist in a vacuum (hadn’t heard this one before, maybe it’s your new theorem)?,etc.

What report? Are you expecting the hospital to release a public report on Tom’s condition/stay? Do you think it’s still possible that Tom was drugged, and didn’t have a psychotic break, or not? Thought you were past that?

Do you think if Tom were drugged, that the hospital decided to bury that? A conspiracy among all the workers there? Or do you think Tim’s keeping his drugging a secret?

Maybe you should look up cognitive dissonance (not resonance), and have someone else do some research for you for a change.

So once they release ‘The Report’ to the public (do you see how stupid this sounds?), you’ll concede Tom wasn’t drugged on the plane, while stewardesses wiped his phone and deleted his classified intel?

I’m guessing, no.

But carry on making us look stupid, while you make vague allegations about random nonsense, then pretend like you’ve won an internet argument (no such victory exists).

And these people you dunk on…are they in the room now?

Dude you obviously can't read and process information properly, also you just make up stuff that has nothing to do with reality or what I posted, just to blow yourself up.
You are way too emotional and toxic.
I won't waste time to answer all your dubious comments. I can't take you seriously...
but I can hand you a tissue for your tears.

I'll preface this by saying I know about 0/10 about Dwan's personal life.
I just had some questions/comments.

First of all, too many are conflating "unpaid bets" to equal "busto." Also, there's too much assumption of A) how much is owed and how many ppl are owed, B) Dwan MUST be a shitbag for not paying.
We dont know anywhere near enough to say it's been that linear.

Fwiw, I have a doctorate/over a decade of experience in the mental health field. For me, the first things to rule out with a mental break of some sort are bipolar disorder/substances. I know many speculate that Dwan uses substances. Bipolar is also easily disguised/hidden to anyone outside of someone's smallest of circles.
Where is the personality disorder speculation coming from, is it from this or some other evidence?

Is there evidence of Dwan being a degen with table games, or speculation?

Edit: And no, I dont buy that he was drugged.