Researchers: âAntidepressants Should Not be Used for Adults with Major Depressive Disorderâ
A new review, published in BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine, concludes that antidepressants should not be used as the risks outweigh evidence for benefits.
Zel Dolinsky: I Have a Right to âDeath With Dignityâ
Researcher Zel Dolinsky once taught at medical school and worked as a medical writer in the pharmaceutical industry. In his last emails, he told of how the adverse effects of psychiatric drugs led him to choose to end his life.
Smash the Blue Lights: Autism Speaks is a âDanger to Self and Othersâ
There are few around Mad in America territory who would argue against the dangers of the National Alliance for Mental Illness. But as a movement, we often fail to recognize the dangers of their much younger sibling named âAutism Speaksâ.
Long-term Usage of ADHD Drugs Linked to Growth Suppression
Findings suggest that treatment not only fails to reduce the severity of âADHDâ symptoms in adulthood but is associated with decreased height.
Against the Odds: âUnimproved Schizophrenicâ to Yale PhD
Forty years after I had first been admitted to the hospital, I was ready to confront my past. So, I sent for my hospital records, and I read them. As an experienced clinician, I recognized immediately what the doctors hadnât been able to see in 1960: my problem wasnât âschizophreniaâ but PTSD, connected with incest.
Antipsychotic Medications Are Causing Obsessive Compulsive Disorders
Common second-generation antipsychotic medications are causing symptoms of obsessive-compulsive disorder to emerge in many people who previously only had schizophrenia symptoms, according to a...
Researchers Set the Record Straight on Controversial Zoloft Study
An issue of Lancet Psychiatry is devoted to clarifying the lack of efficacy for Zoloft (sertraline).
The “Shotgun Method” â A Story of Mental Health Crisis in Iceland
"Let's try the shotgun method," my psychiatrist said â meaning that you load the gun with a bunch of pellets and hope that one of them hits the target. I went through 16 different psychiatric medications in five years, and they were not the right choice for me.
Fighting for the Meaning of Madness: An Interview with Dr. John Read
Akansha Vaswani interviews Dr. John Read about the influences on his work and his research on madness, psychosis, and the mental health industry.
Helping Children With Angry Outbursts
Finnish psychiatrist Ben Furman reviews various non-drug therapies for children with aggressive outbursts of anger, including the Kids' Skills approach that he and social psychologist Tapani Ahola developed. These approaches focus on helping children come up with their own ideas for overcoming their problems with the help of family and friends.
How âMental Health Awarenessâ Exploits Schoolchildren
Imagine being a parent at a meeting with educators to discuss Johnny's academics or behavior. Suddenly, your childâs teacher is telling you that he needs to see a doctor for an assessment of a suspected âmental disorder,â which usually leads to a prescription for medication. Warned of âthe risks against failing to intervene,â you will likely acquiesce.
I Want Change
Only two hours after we got home, Dan fearlessly told me of the suicide plan that he'd devised while in the hospital. He had all that time to think about it while nobody was listening. He'd lost his dignity, his identity and his place in society. He had lost the will to live.
The Media Scolds Marianne Williamson (And Gets It Wrong)
Journalists have called Marianne Williamsâ comments on depression dangerous and irresponsible. A closer look reveals that her âopinionsâ on mental health treatment are more in line with the science, and that the know-it-all assertions by Cooper and colleagues are belied by it.
Allen Frances and the “Overdiagnosing” of Children
What Dr. Frances calls "massive mislabeling" is not the assignment of psychiatry's spurious labels as such, but rather what he calls the overuse of these labels. This notion of conservative, careful and accurate diagnosis is a common theme in Dr. Frances's writing, but in fact, it's an empty exhortation, because the criteria are inherently vague and ill-defined.
Children with ‘ADHD’ Commonly Prescribed Antipsychotics
Despite little evidence for benefit, and substantial risk of harm, antipsychotics are commonly prescribed to children diagnosed with ADHD
FDA Approves Using Electricity All Night Long on Childrenâs Brains
The FDA just approved sales of an electrical device called the Monarch eTNS to be used on the brains of children diagnosed with so-called ADHD. The device âsends therapeutic signals to the parts of the brain thought to be involved in ADHD,â according to the FDA press release. âTherapeutic signalsâ? Really?
No Brain Connectivity Differences Between Autism, ADHD, and âTypical Developmentâ
Neuroscience researchers find no differences in brain connectivity between children with diagnoses of autism, ADHD, and those with no diagnoses.
William Jamesâs Letter to His Depressed Daughter
If you discover that your child has been experiencing a bout with depression, what wise words might you share? Brilliant psychologist William James was forced to address this issue himself when his 13-year-old daughter, Peg, began to struggle with melancholy. I present his long, thoughtful reply for your consideration.
Researchers Make the Case to Rename Schizophrenia
The authors outline reasons for renaming schizophrenia and the way a change can reform practice.
Brain Imaging Shows Trauma-Related Differences in DID
Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) has a complicated and controversial history. In this study, published in PLoS 1, researchers from London and the Netherlands explore...
Researchers Warn of âBrain Atrophyâ in Children Prescribed Antipsychotics
Researchers discuss the evidence that antipsychotic medications may cause brain atrophy in children, whose brains are still developing.
A Smashing Victory â And an Insidious New Threat
Afraid of facing me in court, the state gave up entirely and a young man was freed from involuntary ECT treatment. It was a total victory. Meanwhile, the Psychiatric Industrial Complex is finding more subtle ways to inflict electrical energy upon the brains of children labeled with ADHD.
A Faux Test for a Faux Disease Promoted by Real Psychiatrists
Influential psychiatrists recently called on the NHS to make a faux schizophrenia test available to patients and their families. What is most astounding about this is the complete lack of pretense. "We are so certain of our power and righteousness that we are going to tell you to your face that we are lying, and yet, we will still get our way."
Researchers Question Link Between Genetics and Depression
A new study, published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, found no link between genetics and the occurrence of depressive symptoms.
Hallucinations Reported as Side Effect of ADHD Medication
Hallucinations and other psychotic symptoms have been reported after methylphenidate (Ritalin) treatment for ADHD.