C210 PLT OFF A NEARBY ARPT ON AN IFR FLT PLAN IN SEVERE IFR CONDITIONS REPORTEDLY DISORIENTED AND RECEIVING POOR ATC SVC.

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THIS SAFETY ISSUE IS A DISORIENTED IFR PLT NOT RECEIVING HELP FROM A CTLR. RATHER; HE WAS PRESSURED AND FURTHER BURDENED. HE WAS IN TROUBLE WITH PITCH; DIRECTIONAL; AND COM CTL. I WAS NOT PERSONALLY INVOLVED; JUST WITNESSING. I WAS NOT ABLE TO TAKE NOTES; I WAS HAND FLYING IFR IN WX THAT CHANGED DIRECTION AND ALT DUE TO TURB IN 2 DIMENSIONAL MOTION; AND WAS PLENTY BUSY MYSELF. I WAS 5000 FT IFR E OF CLEVELAND; OH; IFR CONDITIONS. CESSNA 210 WAS DEPARTING A FIELD E OF CLEVELAND AND RPTED AIRBORNE TO CLE APCH. CLEVELAND INSTRUCTED CESSNA 210 TO TURN S. PLT RESPONSE WAS 'ROGER.' FOLLOWING EXCHANGES WERE: ACFT Y SAY ALT. PLT: NO RESPONSE; REPEATED A FEW TIMES. PLT: CLEVELAND; I SWITCHED RADIOS; HOW DO YOU HEAR? ACFT Y. CLEVELAND: I HAVEN'T ANY PROB HEARING YOU. ACFT Y; YOU HAVE MISSED SEVERAL CALLS; HOW DO YOU HEAR. TURN S. ACFT Y: THAT'S BETTER; ROGER; ACFT Y. CLEVELAND: ACFT Y I SHOW YOU HDG E SIR; PLEASE TURN S. ACFT Y: (GARBLED). CLEVELAND: (SAME). ACFT Y: ROGER. CLEVELAND: ACFT Y SAY YOUR HDG. I SHOW YOU E; I NEED YOU TO TURN S. ACFT Y: ROGER. THEN A SIMILAR EXCHANGE; ALL POOR COM WENT AROUND ALT; AT 4700 FT; 5200 FT; 5500 FT; AND FINALLY THE CORRECT ALT. ALSO; AS THE FLT MOVED SW. CLEVELAND: CESSNA ACFT Y; SAY HDG. ACFT Y: ROGER 210 DEGS. CLEVELAND: CESSNA ACFT Y; YOU WERE TOLD TO TURN S; WHO GAVE YOU 210 DEGS? ACFT Y: ROGER 210 DEGS. THIS WAS REPEATED A FEW TIMES; FOLLOWED BY; CLEVELAND: CESSNA ACFT Y CONTACT AKRON APCH. ACFT Y: ROGER; AKRON. MY CONCERN WAS; AND IS: THE PLT WAS IN VERY ROUGH WX. I KNOW; I WAS FLYING TOO. THE PLT WAS HAVING COM TROUBLE. THE PLT WAS DISORIENTED; MAY HAVE LOST CONFIDENCE IN HIS DIRECTIONAL GYRO; AND TRIED TO RESET TO COMPASS SETTING WHILE IN A CLBING TURN. (NOT GOING TO WORK.) THE PLT WAS 1 VOICE; PROBABLY SINGLE PLT IFR (HVY WORKLOAD; FEW 210'S CAN CLB WITH AUTOPILOT; REQUIRES A LOT OF HAND FLYING). THE PLT IS CONFUSED. HE HAS APPARENTLY CONFUSED CESSNA 210 AND HDG 210 DEGS TO BE HIS CORRECT ORIENTATION. IT WASN'T CORRECT. HE WAS CONFUSED AND OFF COURSE. HE WAS NOW BEING AGGRESSIVELY AND REPEATEDLY CHALLENGED BY CTLR. HE WAS CLEARLY INTIMIDATED AND NOW FEARFUL. THIS IS BASED ON CLASSIC FEAR RESPONSES. HE HAD NARROWED HIS PERSPECTIVE; THEN STOPPED TALKING (FIXATE AND FREEZE SCENARIO; VERY UNSAFE). HE NEEDED HELP; BAD; AND DIDN'T GET ANY. HE GOT INTIMIDATION AND INCREASED WORKLOAD. IT WAS UGLY TO LISTEN TO. THE PLT FLEW OUT OF IT; IN CTL; THANK GOD. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: RPTR STATED HE AND ANOTHER INST RATED PLT WERE ENRTE TO UP STATE NEW YORK IN A PA28 AND COULD UNDERSTAND THE C210 PLT'S DILEMMA. HE SAID THE WX WAS VERY ROUGH WITH TURB AND MODERATE TO HVY RAIN. HE SAID THE CTLR'S PHRASEOLOGY WAS LARGE PART OF THE PROB AND THOUGHT IT REALLY FLUSTERED THE C210 PLT. THE RPTR SAID AFTER THEY LANDED; HE AND THE OTHER PLT NOTED WHAT HAD HAPPENED AND SENT IN THE ASRS RPT.