Comments: Prozac And Me
I would just like to say, that drugs don't cause people to (purposely) kill themself. They can do many thing that LEAD to suicide.They can make you feel horrible, they can make a different personality become dominant(my normal balance of optimism/pessimism went all negative to pessimism), and it can impare judgement(irrational thinking) like the drug alcohol.
When someone feels horrible, pessimism, and impared judgement, bad things can and do happen.
Posted by Mark at January 30, 2007 09:47 AM
I actually do not agree with Mark. I think antidepressants can so alter the mind and create such a chemical imperative that suicide (or homicide) may be inevitable. Furthermore they alter consciousness so that one may commit the act when one is not in a normal state of consciousness. SSRIs suppress the muscle paralysis that normally occurs in REM sleep for instance enabling a victim to act out a dream (or in this case a nightmare). One may be in such an intensely dissociative state that one imagines one is in a dream when in fact one is really killing oneself or others.
Posted by Sara at January 30, 2007 01:44 PM
So in dreams its ok to kill people? no one told me the rules.
Posted by Mark at January 30, 2007 07:19 PM
Mark, why don't you educate yourself about the case of Christopher Pittman who murdered his beloved grandparents at the age of 12 after being (brutally and ignorantly, I would say) prescribed Paxil, withdrawn abruptly, and then given Zoloft at unconscionable doses? Do you honestly think this poor child who had no idea what he was doing should spend 30 years in jail? If you do, then go for it. Of course meds doesn't make killing "all right" but if we don't expose what's really going on here it's going to keep happening. Take a look at ssristories.com for a lot more where this comes from.
Posted by Sara at January 31, 2007 01:37 PM
I wasn't talking of children. I think it should be illegal to give mind altering drugs to children.
Children don't have the legal ability to drink(alcohol), drive, vote, etc and have little life experiance, and no say in the "helpfull" psychiatric medicine they are told to take.
In Canada the child would not get 30 years, locked up until 18 years old (and ironically treated by psychiatry during those years)
Expose? who do you want to expose? I think you want to blame the drug(s)? I don't blame the drug, it's the people who have the power to "help" the mentally ill by prescribing/forcing drugs . Why not blame psychiatry? If psychiatry didn't have ssri drugs they would use some other kind of mind altering drug. The drug isn't the problem, its the fools who give it(as a cure) for emotional and cognitive problems.
Posted by Mark at February 1, 2007 11:55 PM
I do most definitely blame the drugs but it's not limited to that. I also of course blame psychiatry and the medical profession for buying into the pharmaceutical industry's marketing and junk science and for our society and culture for their addiction to the quick fix. Our healthcare system is focused on the allopathic model that is all about selling sickness and promoting treatment -- not about health and healing. But certainly the drugs themselves are a huge part of the problem as their neurotoxic effects are harming people and destroying lives every single day and few people recognize what's going on.
Posted by Sara at February 3, 2007 12:29 PM
I have had suicidal feelings and thoughts from a very young age but I never once acted on these suicidal thoughts/feelings until I was given an Antidepressant of the SSRI type. And I most certainly never acted violent or even felt rage until, after I was put on an SSRI, and while under the influence.
I am more than certain that these drugs can cause someone who is as shy and sweet as a mouse (but yes, a bit sad and depressed) to loose thier head and become a real danger to themselves and others. It happened to me.
I have had two (2) very very (suicide attempts)bad reactions with SSRIs, as well as having had four (4) very unpleasant reactions that only lead me to feel angry, paraniod and anxious. The drugs provided either no relief or relief for only a short window of a weeks, befor this would happen. I was told these things were my illness and not the medications and that is why I tried more than one. I have educated myself otherwise since, had I not done so I may well have been sweet talked into trying yet another one, by yet another miss-informed psyche doc.
There is no question in my mind that these drugs carry a huge risk, and in my case were more dangerous than the disease they are meant to treat.
I think the black box warnings should be extended to all people taking Antidepressants, not just children/teens.
these are half assed treatments at best and due to my experience I would never recommend anyone to use them befor trying ALL other options. Such as: exercise, diet, light boxes, suppliments (5HTP, St.Johns Wart, DL-Phenylalanine, Omega-3's etc).
I in fact have found dietary suppliments MORE beneficial in treating my depression than any psyche drug I have been on, with the exception of Lamictal. And I never would have thought that someone like me (big fan of science and medicine here) would be headed to the vitamin shop rather than the doctors office for reilief of what ails them.
Posted by katielou at February 6, 2007 05:55 PM
Thank you for this post.
I've talked about it on my blog, and being new to 'blog ettiquette' feel the need to give this a 'shout out', 'hat tip', 'yay'.
Thanks,
Stephany
Posted by Stephany at February 9, 2007 06:59 PM
I'm glad that I haven't taken prozac for a long period of time. But unfortunately, it's the only thing that helps offset the effects of Effexor XR. Hopefully, there are no long-term effects for others taking prozac for a short period of time.
Then there are Peter Breggin's rants...
Posted by Marissa Miller at February 26, 2007 11:12 AM