As psychiatry and the giant pharmaceutical companies fight to create a PR spin that antidepressants are harmless non-addictive drugs – the truth is beginning to come out showing the dangers of these drugs. Along with horrific side effects these drugs produce while you take them, they are now proving for some people to be nearly impossible to stop taking. As this article by the Associated Press proves many patients experience terrible antidepressant withdrawal so severe that some appear to be hooked on antidepressants for life.

The Associated Press article provides an example of one of the victims side effects and withdrawal symptoms. In the article they state:

“When Gina O’Brien decided she no longer needed drugs to quell her anxiety and panic attacks, she followed doctor’s orders by slowly tapering her dose of the antidepressant Paxil. The gradual withdrawal was supposed to prevent unpleasant symptoms that can result from stopping antidepressants cold turkey. But it didn’t work

“I felt so sick that I couldn’t get off my couch,” O’Brien said. “I couldn’t stop crying.”
Overwhelmed by nausea and uncontrollable crying, she felt she had no choice but to start taking the pills again. More than a year later the Michigan woman still takes Paxil, and expects to be on it for the rest of her life.”

Taking Antidepressants is not an option for many patients because it means putting up with side-effects such as weight gain, sexual dysfunction, suicidal thoughts and even psychosis. For women who want to have children it’s a risky choice; scientists have provided proof of withdrawal in newborns whose mothers were taking antidepressants, and some of these drugs (like Paxil) have been linked to birth defects.

In Europe it is officially recognized that these drugs have addictive qualities and withdrawing from them can give side effects and withdrawal symptoms. In December 2004 Britain’s drug regulatory agency issued a report that warned that all antidepressants “may be associated with withdrawal” and noted that Paxil and Effexor “seem to be associated with a greater frequency of withdrawal reactions.”

In addition, the American Academy Of Family Physicians report of a recent study that showed 20% of all patients who try to quit their antidepressants experience withdrawal. Or as they call it “Antidepressant Discontinuation Syndrome”. 20% seems to be a very conservative number considering that others are reporting withdrawal figures from antidepressants to be as high as 78%.

In this news story on antidepressant withdrawal by NBC news in Grand Rapids, MI it is stated that:

“A number of patients have reported extreme reactions to discontinuing the drugs. Two of the best-selling antidepressants have led to so many complaints that some doctors avoid prescribing them altogether.”

Personally, that seems like the smartest choice for doctors to make – Just stop prescribing these drugs altogether.

The smartest choice for patients would similarly be to never start taking these drugs in the first place. After all: Psychiatry has publicly stated that they don’t really know what these drugs are doing to your brain. Studies show side effects from these drugs can be life threatening like suicide and psychosis. Then when you decide you can’t handle all the side effects you find you’re addicted and can’t stop taking them.

That’s just my common sense view of these drugs. After all, didn’t they teach us in school to: “Just Say No”.

Technorati Tags: suicide, psychiatry, antidepressants, prozac, depression, side effects, addiction, withdrawal, zoloft, paxil, psychiatrist, psychiatrists

Tags: Victims Of Psychiatry Speak Out, Antidepressants, Depression, Side Effects, FDA and Psychiatric Drugs

I came across this article about Kevin Hines who is lobbying to get a barrier placed on the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to stop suicidal people from jumping. I found it admirable that he’s trying to do something to prevent others from committing suicide. However, it seems that both the reporter from Time and Kevin have both missed a very important issue.

In the article it quotes Kevin as saying:

“I was on medication for two years, 1998 to 2000. In 2000, I graduated in June from high school. All C’s. I went to this doctor, and I had therapy every week, but I began to get worse again. I was on 14 pills a day at that time.”

Then twice he becomes suicidal enough to act on it and makes two suicide attempts. The second time he jumped off the Golden Gate Bridge and shattered 2 of his vertebrae, but luckily survived.

It is just me? Or do you find it strange that if psychiatric medication worked that after two years of taking “14 pills a day” to cure his mental problems - shouldn’t he get better… and not worse?

Not only does he get worse - he actually tries to kill himself twice!

After all the black box warnings and major media coverage about how antidepressants cause a big increase in suicidal thoughts - people still seem to miss the obvious point.

The past decades are marked by skyrocketing antidepressant use and an ever increasing availability of psychiatric treatment. Somehow this magically coincides with an increasing suicide rate. I don’t know about you, but when I try something and it makes the situation worse instead of better - I stop doing it.

Isn’t it time that our society wakes up and stops using harmful psychiatric practices like antidepressant drugging? Isn’t it time that insurance companies aren’t forced to pay for experimental treatments like antidepressant medication? After all, even psychiatrists will openly admit that they have no idea what causes depression and they have no real idea how antidepressants “work”.

For more information about psychiatry and antidepressant side effects visit www.Psychiatry.info

Tags on psychiatry.info: psychiatry, depression, side-effects, antidepressants

Technorati Tags: suicide, psychiatry, antidepressants, prozac, depression, side effects, zoloft, paxil, psychiatrist, psychiatrists

Tags: Deaths Caused By Psychiatry, Psychiatric Drugs, Antidepressants, Depression, Side Effects

After years of repeated warnings by groups like the Citizens Commission On Human Rights – the United States FDA & the drug company Glaxo Smith Kline (the maker of Paxil) have admitted that patients taking Paxil have a dramatic increase in suicidal thoughts and attempted suicide. This being such a horrible side effect you would think they should have told you this earlier when they first found out about it.

In fact, its an increase of over 600%!!! Would you like to take a drug that makes you six times more likely to kills yourself? How about it you are depressed and seeking help for suicidal thoughts already? Yet that’s exactly what Paxil is prescribed for!

In an article by the LA times it is mentioned that several antidepressants like Paxil were already required to carry a “black box” warning about the increase of suicidal thoughts in children taking these drugs, but these recent findings now indicate that adults are also at risk. In the article a representative for the maker of the antidepressant Paxil said: “At some point, the FDA is going to say what their analysis shows across the category “ Are they finally admitting that antidepressants all have this horrific side effect? We’ve been warning about this for a long time and I’m happy they are finally being forced to admit the truth.

It seems that Glaxo Smith Kline has been aware of this problem since before the drug even had FDA approval. This article by the Sierra Times reviews the fact on how the drug makers have been secretly settling out of court with anyone who complains of these types of strong side effects and death. The terms of these settlements make the victims to remain silent and not disclose what happened. Thus preventing the public and the FDA from finding out about all the people who kill themselves taking these types of drugs.

In the article it mentions: “Glaxo currently faces thousands of lawsuits over Paxil side effects related to addiction, dependence, and a severe withdrawal syndrome.

SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) like Paxil, are not addictive in the sense that “an individual would mortgage their livelihoods and all they hold dear for further supplies of the drug,” according to Dr David Healy MD, FRCPsych, North Wales Department of Psychological Medicine

SSRIs can hook patients in the sense of making you “physically dependent,” he explains. “

I did a little research and found the actual report on the FDA website. You can click here to find the report on Paxil’s risk of suicide as a side effect. In the report it says Results of this analysis showed a higher frequency of suicidal behavior in young adults “. On the FDA’s page is a link to a Glaxo Smith Kline document. Which you can find here: Glaxo’s letter to doctors about Paxils suicide side effect.

I encourage anyone who has ever experience any side effect like this to report it to the FDA:

FDA’s MedWatch Adverse EventReporting program online (at www.fda.gov/MedWatch/report.htm), by phone (1-800-FDA-1088),

or by returning the postage-paid FDA form 3500 (which may be downloaded from
www.fda.gov/MedWatch/getforms.htm) by mail to

MedWatch
5600 Fishers Lane,
Rockville, MD 20852-9787

or fax (1-800-FDA-0178).

Tags: Deaths Caused By Psychiatry, Psychiatry, Drugs & Children, Depression, Paxil, Side Effects, FDA and Psychiatric Drugs

You do not have to gain extra pounds on holidays. Just remember about balance and moderation. You will never gain weight if you burn more calories than you consume.