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A new study finds that clinicians’ disregard for mental health patients’ insight into their own condition may be detrimental to treatment.

A new study indicates that popular online resources do not accurately present the scientific evidence on the risks and benefits of antidepressants.

The Division of Clinical Psychology of the British Psychological Society published a paper titled Understanding Psychosis and Schizophrenia. The central theme of the paper is that the condition known as psychosis is better understood as a response to adverse life events rather than as a symptom of neurological pathology. The paper was wide-ranging and insightful and, predictably, drew support from most of us on this side of the issue and criticism from psychiatry.  Section 12 of the paper is headed "Medication" and under the subheading "Key Points" you'll find this quote: "[Antipsychotic] drugs appear to have a general rather than a specific effect: there is little evidence that they are correcting an underlying biochemical abnormality."

A new special issue brings together articles exploring the harmful effects of simultaneous multiple medication use.

A new study suggests that most people diagnosed with depressive, anxiety, and substance abuse disorders recover without treatment within a year of diagnosis. “This...

A new study, published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, found no link between genetics and the occurrence of depressive symptoms.

Veterans diagnosed with PTSD and taking SSRIs, novel antidepressants, or atypical antipsychotics are more likely to develop dementia.

Researchers discuss the evidence that antipsychotic medications may cause brain atrophy in children, whose brains are still developing.

According to the CDC, January is National Birth Defects Prevention Month. New research continues to link various SSRI antidepressants with birth defects and neurological abnormalities in newborns. The latest study to examine this topic, a meta-analysis led by Dr. Anick Bérard, found a 23% increased risk for birth defects, and a 28% increased risk for heart problems, in the infants of women who took the SSRI Paxil (paroxetine) during their first trimester.

Results of a large government-funded study call into question current drug heavy approaches to treating people diagnosed with schizophrenia. The study, which the New York Times called “by far the most rigorous trial to date conducted in the United States,” found that patients who received smaller doses of antipsychotic drugs with individual talk therapy, family training, and support for employment and education had a greater reduction in symptoms as well as increases in quality of life, and participation in work and school than those receiving the current standard of care.

Ethnographic research sheds light on extensive psychopharmaceutical use by soldiers in post 9/11 U.S. wars.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins test paroxetine on developing brain cells and discover numerous neurotoxic effects.

A recent RCT showed that vitamin B6 is as effective as propranolol for the treatment of akathisia.

A new study has found that antidepressants are ineffective for reducing suicide attempts. Researchers report that the risk of suicide is particularly high in the first month after starting an antidepressant.

The promotion of the chemical imbalance theory did occur, and continues to occur, and is a most shameful chapter in psychiatry's history.  It is arguably one of the most destructive, far-reaching, and profitable hoaxes in history. I could not begin to estimate the number of clients I've talked to over the years who told me that their psychiatrists had told them they had a chemical imbalance in their brains, and that they needed to take the pills for life to correct this imbalance. Even today, I regularly receive emails from readers contesting the assertions in my posts and telling me in no uncertain terms that they have chemical imbalances in their brains that cause their problems.

Meta-analysis of antidepressant tapering finds CBT and MBCT can aid in tapering, but limited studies met inclusion criteria.

Despite their finding, the researchers suggest that SSRIs be given to people who do not meet criteria for depression or anxiety.

Neuropsychological assessments reveal the cognitive, occupational, and social impact of polypharmacy in psychiatry.

In a study published yesterday, researchers from the Nippon Medical School in Tokyo bring attention to a condition known as neuroleptic-induced deficit syndrome (NIDS)...

Researchers find that support and self-care were helpful for users during discontinuation, but that mental health professionals were not very helpful.

A review article and meta-analysis of 18 articles published in the journal of Psychological Medicine reported effects of vitamin and/or mineral supplements on psychiatric symptoms in people diagnosed with schizophrenia. The study provides evidence of the beneficial effects of taking certain vitamins and minerals for improving symptoms associated with schizophrenia.

The paradox of relieving chronic pain with an antidepressant (and a new set of symptoms).

Dr. Yolande Lucire, a psychiatrist from Australia, recently published a paper about the iatrogenic effects of psychiatric drugs.

Correcting unnecessary long-term antidepressant use is difficult and met with apprehension by providers and service-users.

A new study has found that of 10 people who were fully recovered from their first episode of schizophrenia (FES), those not taking antipsychotics did better in terms of cognitive, social, and role functioning—and reached full recovery more quickly.