Researchers Document Protracted Withdrawal from Antidepressants
Protracted Withdrawal Syndrome characterized by long-term adverse experiences after coming off of antidepressants.
Finding One’s Way Through Withdrawal
Prescribers are taught to prescribe psychiatric medication, but they are often not well-educated about the effects on patients of discontinuing these medications.
Listening to the Patient Voice: The Antidepressant Withdrawal Experience
Patient advocates join with researchers and service users to present first-hand experiences of antidepressant withdrawal.
Literally Indescribable: Are Antidepressants Addictive?
āMy life was very, very good.ā Thatās how Michael sums up how things were for himāprior to his suffering from devastating withdrawal effects after discontinuing GlaxoSmithKlineās blockbuster drug Paxil.
The Reckoning in Psychiatry Over Protracted Antidepressant Withdrawal
Medically-induced harmāaffecting tens of millions of people worldwideāhas taken the field decades to take seriously.
How Academic Psychiatry Minimized SSRI Withdrawal
If academic psychiatry is evidence-based, why did it take two decades to recognize SSRI withdrawal as widespread and chronic among patients?
Tapering Strips Help People Stop Using Antidepressants, Study Finds
A new study by Peter Groot and Jim van Os investigated whether tapering strips can help people stop using antidepressants.
Strategies for Tapering and Discontinuing Antidepressants
A new review of strategies to support both patients and practitioners through the process of discontinuing antidepressants.
No Good Evidence That Antidepressants Prevent Relapse
Trials of antidepressants for relapse prevention are confounded by withdrawal effects caused by the drugs.
Neuropsychological Tests Reveal Consequences of Polypharmacy
Neuropsychological assessments reveal the cognitive, occupational, and social impact of polypharmacy in psychiatry.
The Review on Antidepressant Withdrawal That Cochrane Wonāt Publish
Peter GĆøtzsche and Anders SĆørensen on trying to get a review of methods for safe antidepressant withdrawal published in Cochrane: "They sent us on a mission that was impossible to accomplish" to "protect the psychiatric guild."
Researchers: Antidepressant Withdrawal, Not āDiscontinuation Syndromeā
Researchers suggest that the pharmaceutical industry had a vested interest in using the term ādiscontinuationā in order to hide the severity of physical dependence and withdrawal reactions many people experience from antidepressants.
Fear and Belief in “Chemical Imbalance” Prevent People from Coming Off Antidepressants
Researchers interviewed people who were given medical advice to discontinue antidepressants.
Holistic Approaches: A Proven Treatment for Psychotropic Drug Withdrawal
Published in the peer-reviewed journal Advances in Mind Body Medicine, this case series is the first of its kind to document the methodology employed in the successful discontinuation of a range of psychotropic medications, with holistic support interventions providing long-term mood support.
NICE Guideline Update Acknowledges Severe Antidepressant Withdrawal
A new update to the NICE guideline for depression suggests providers discuss long-term, severe antidepressant withdrawal symptoms.
Psychiatric Drug Withdrawal in Spain
My study, in which I slowly withdrew people from prescribed antipsychotics and antidepressants, found that it is possible to decrease both spending on psychiatric drugs and patients' chronic exposure to them. In general, the drug-reduction process was well-tolerated and well-accepted among those treated.
Helping People Come Off MedicationāBad for Business?
The message in journal editorials, comments and opinion articles, is that 'this new study shows great promise' and that 'we need further research'. My interpretation is: 'give us the money and we will be happy to carry this out'. With the implied promise that, once this new research has been done, we will get a better world. Sadly this is rarely ever the case.
Psychiatrists Argue For More Attention to Iatrogenic Harms
Psychiatrists argue that current practice fails to account for the interaction of biological, psychosocial and iatrogenic factors.
The New Yorker Peers into the Psychiatric Abyss… And Loses Its Nerve
The New Yorker's story on Laura Delano and psychiatric drug withdrawal is a glass-half-full story: It addresses a problem in psychiatry and yet hides the deeper story to be told. A story of how her recovery resulted from seeing herself within a counter-narrative that tells of the harm that psychiatry can do.
More Psychological Supports Needed to Manage Antidepressant Discontinuation
Study reviews psychological interventions for antidepressant discontinuation.
Withdrawal Symptoms Routinely Confound Findings of Psychiatric Drug Studies
Researchers examine how rapid discontinuation can mimic the relapse of mental health symptoms and confound psychiatric drug studies.
Peer-Support Groups Were Right, Guidelines Were Wrong: Dr. Mark Horowitz on Tapering Off Antidepressants
In an interview with MIA, Dr. Horowitz discusses his recent article on why tapering off antidepressants can take months or even years.
Very Slow Tapering Best For Antidepressant Withdrawal
A new article in Lancet Psychiatry finds that slower tapering of SSRIs is better for preventing antidepressant withdrawal effects.
Psychological Interventions Can Help When Tapering Off Antidepressants
Meta-analysis of antidepressant tapering finds CBT and MBCT can aid in tapering, but limited studies met inclusion criteria.
How Long Does Antidepressant Withdrawal Last?
The patient experiencing the pain of withdrawal believed that they would feel better when they stopped taking their antidepressants. After all, theyāre under the care of a board-certified medical professional who has vowed to do no harm. But despite those reassurances, they find themselves in a world of hurt.
