Tag: psychiatric drugs

Gabapentin: A New Target for Abuse

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From STAT: Gabapentin, a drug that acts as a sedative and is also used to treat conditions including nerve pain, epilepsy, restless leg syndrome, and...

Benzodiazepine Awareness: Raising Global Understanding

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Benzodiazepine Awareness seeks to raise global awareness of iatrogenic benzodiazepine dependence, the dangers of its adverse effects and the associated withdrawal syndrome, which can last for years.

Jim Gottstein: Patient Rights in Mental Healthcare

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Jim Gottstein, president and founder of the organisation Law Project for Psychiatric Rights, talks about his own experiences with the psychiatric system, patient rights in mental healthcare and the recent trial between Wendy Dolin and the UK Pharmaceutical manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline.

John Read: The Epidemic of Psychiatric Overprescribing

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Professor John Read of the University of East London talks about the overuse of psychiatric medications and the alarming growth in the prescribing of antidepressants, benzodiazepines and other psychoactive medications.

Joanna Moncrieff: Psychiatric Drug Mechanisms of Action

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We discuss Doctor Moncrieff’s work to address the realities of psychiatric drugs and the groundbreaking RADAR study which focuses on antipsychotic drugs.

Peter Gøtzsche: The Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Dominance of Mental Healthcare

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Professor Peter Gøtzsche is Director of the Nordic Cochrane Centre in Denmark and discusses his background in research, his views on antidepressant prescribing and how pharmaceutical manufacturers have influenced mental healthcare.

Robert Whitaker: The Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America

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We discuss Robert's 2010 book, Anatomy of an Epidemic, which is arguably the definitive account of the realities of psychiatric drugs and completely lays bare the astonishing rise in mental ill health despite the availability of psychiatric drugs.

Peter Groot: A Novel, Practical Solution For Those Withdrawing From Psychiatric...

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Doctor Peter Groot from the User Research Center of the Maastricht University talks about Tapering Strips, which help users who want to withdraw from their psychiatric drugs safely and in a controlled way.

David Healy: Making Medicine Safer for All

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Doctor David Healy from Bangor University in Wales talks about prescribing practice, medicine safety and pharmaceutical regulation.

Lucy Johnstone: Why Underlying Causes of Emotional Distress are Often...

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Doctor Lucy Johnstone talks about our reliance on the concept of diagnosis, how that doesn't fit well with psychological or emotional distress and how a predominantly biomedical view of tends to lead to a purely medication centred approach to mental healthcare.

Terry Lynch: Why Psychiatry Has Pursued a Purely Medical Approach to...

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Doctor Terry Lynch is a GP, psychotherapist, author and mental health educator. Ten years into his career as a GP, he became very concerned about the medical approach to emotional and mental suffering and was not prepared to remain silent.

Elaine: Feeling Judged By Psychiatry

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Elaine has taken antidepressant and stimulant drugs for anxiety, she describes feeling humiliated and judged by her psychiatrists rather than helped.

Judy Meyer: Holistic Mental Health Practitioner and Mental Health Advocate

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Judy Meyer is a holistic mental health practitioner, mental health advocate and founder of the Alternative Health Revolution.

Sinead: 16 Years Of Treatment With Antidepressants and Subsequent Withdrawal

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Sinead has taken antidepressant drugs for the last 16 years and attempted to withdraw on several occasions, she describes the challenges that she faced.

Dealing With Changes in Psychiatry Through the Years

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In this guest post for Shrink Rap, Dr. Maher critiques the ways psychiatry has changed over the years. While psychiatry used to be humanistically, psychodynamically oriented,...

Meghann: Prescribed Antidepressants For OCD Aged 9 and Stopping Them 17...

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Meghann describes starting antidepressant drugs for OCD at the age of 9, how she came to consider her withdrawal after 17 years and how she feels now, 2 years after finishing with the drugs.

Psychology vs. Psychiatry – What Can Happen if the System Fails

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From Vox Gibraltar: Many people confuse psychology with psychiatry. Too often, general practitioners recommend psychiatric treatment when psychological treatment or therapy could be just as effective without resulting...

Megan: Approaching Antidepressant Withdrawal After Prior Failed Attempts

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Megan talks about her experience with anxiety and insomnia, her attempts to withdraw from her medications and how she approached her tapering more carefully to minimise withdrawal effects.

Autism’s Drug Problem

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From Scientific American: Many autistic children are prescribed multiple psychiatric medications, which can lead to serious adverse effects and are often ineffective. "Multiple diagnoses lead to...

Tina: Medication Changes and Antidepressant Withdrawal

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Tina talks about her experience with depression, her use of antidepressant drugs and how a change in her medication led to her withdrawal problems.

Nora: Extreme and Sudden Adverse Antidepressant Reactions

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Nora tells us about the sudden and extreme adverse reactions that occurred immediately upon starting her antidepressant. She also tells us about the attitude of her doctors and how her life has changed since that short course of treatment.

Deadly Drugs Misused in U.S. Nursing Facilities

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From AARP: The family of Bobby Glenn Tweed recently settled a lawsuit with a nursing home over his wrongful death. Tweed was prescribed psychotropic drugs without...

Dede: How the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) Helped Antidepressant and Benzodiazepine...

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We interview Dede who turned her withdrawal experiences into a force for good and now uses the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) to assist those in withdrawal from antidepressants or benzodiazepines.

Daryl: Prescribed Antidepressant Drugs At 9 Years Old

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Daryl, who was only 9 years old when he was taken into mental health services and medicated, talks about being made to take both antidepressant and antipsychotic drugs and he describes the lies told to him to justify treatment.

Patients More Likely to Refuse Drug-Only Treatment, Study Finds

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The American Psychological Association (APA) recently published a study finding that patients assigned to drug-only treatments were more likely to refuse treatment, and more likely to drop out before treatment completion, than patients assigned to psychotherapy only.