Psychology Today

JUNE 14, 2024

Men face unique obstacles to getting care for mental health, but there are ways to help.

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Mad in America

DECEMBER 10, 2024

A new study published in Psychiatry Research finds that alprazolam, commonly sold as Xanax, is linked to an increased risk of suicidal events. In fact, all of the benzodiazepines examined in the current research, including diazepam (often marketed as Valium) and lorazepam (Ativan), were also associated with increased suicide risk. Buspirone, the only non-benzodiazepine anxiety-reducing medication examined in the current work, showed a significantly weaker association with suicide risk.

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Anxiety disorders 145

Psychiatry News -- Science Daily

DECEMBER 4, 2024

Exposure to car exhaust from leaded gas during childhood altered the balance of mental health in the U.S. population, making generations of Americans more depressed, anxious and inattentive or hyperactive, according to researchers. They estimate that 151 million cases of psychiatric disorder over the past 75 years have resulted from American children's exposure to lead.

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The Online Therapist

DECEMBER 28, 2024

The years roll on quicker as you get older but with that comes more wisdom and security. I always tend to look back over a year and compare it to where I was the same time, the prior year. A useful exercise that can reveal progress made (or not).

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Critical Psychiatry

NOVEMBER 13, 2024

I responded (follow my Twitter thread ) to a tweet by Justin Garson (mentioned in previous post ). What he said was:- I cant fathom how a psychiatric diagnosis would ever be useful to anyone except as a tool to get accommodations or drugs. As far as understanding myself who I am, why I act and think as I do it contributes nothing. I do understand what he means (see eg. previous post ).

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Construction 130

Psychology Today

FEBRUARY 7, 2024

Loss is universal, but there are ways to manage it.

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Psychology Today

APRIL 1, 2024

How experts differentiate borderline personality disorder from bipolar disorder and why it is important to know the difference

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Bipolar disorder Personality disorders 260

Psychology Today

MAY 6, 2024

A look at if and when long-term therapy is worth it, an for whom.

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Mad in America

OCTOBER 31, 2024

“Yet many psychiatrists and psychologists refuse to entertain the idea that society as a whole may be lacking in sanity.” —Erich Fromm, The Sane Society (1955) W ith the mainstream media finally reporting that “ depression is not caused by low levels of serotonin ,” many people ask me: Why does psychiatry repeatedly get it wrong when it comes to not only to its theories of mental illness but in so many other areas?

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Genetics and mental health Self-awareness Education Construction 145

Mad in America

DECEMBER 4, 2024

L awsuits are a means to obtain much-needed changes in an inhumane psychiatry, which routinely violates basic human rights and national laws about forced treatment without facing any consequences. I am an expert witness in an ongoing lawsuit against the Norwegian State and testified on 20 November 2024 in Oslo district court on behalf of the plaintiff, Inger-Mari Eidsvik, and her lawyers from Føniks Advokater, Stine Moen, Gro Hermansen and Professor Mads Andenæs from the Law Faculty of the Unive

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Mad in America

OCTOBER 24, 2024

P eople who consider themselves suicide experts are usually just the opposite. They are biased towards drug use and cherry-pick the studies they quote even when they call their reviews systematic, [1] and suicide prevention strategies always seem to incorporate depression pills. [2] A 2015 “State of the Art review” in the BMJ claimed that “Evidence supports specific psychotropic drugs to reduce the risk of suicide.” [3] I explained why none of the references supported this. [4] There is no such

Aging and mental health 145

Aging and mental health Pharmaceuticals Sleep and mental health Insurance 145

Mad in America

DECEMBER 31, 2024

During 2024, we published 155 blogs , 244 reviews of scientific findings , 43 personal stories and 41 MIA reports , of which 22 were podcast interviews. This year’s webinars have included discussions on neuroplasticity and protracted withdrawal , supporting extreme states and private film screenings with Q&A including Saving Minds directed by Catherine Mullins.

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Genetics and mental health Poverty and mental health Resilience and coping Global mental health 141

Mad in America

DECEMBER 21, 2024

H uman behavior is shaped by a complex interplay of lifes events, conditions, and circumstances. To truly understand a persons actions and behaviors, one must ask: What was this person exposed to? What did they experience? These questions point to a profound truth: behavior cannot be separated from the environment in which it develops. From the safety of ones surroundings to access to proper nutrition, sleep, and social stability, the circumstances of life have a lasting biochemical effect on th

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Construction Trauma and the brain Sleep and mental health Legal 141

Mad in America

SEPTEMBER 28, 2024

I n recent months, a long-standing debate in the field of mental health has resurfaced, generating volatile discussions on social media and in the press. This debate revolves around the critique of over-medicalisation and whether this critique truly serves the public good. Traditionally, this critique has been used by left-wing activists and scholars to advocate for more de-pathologised, humane and psychosocially informed mental health care.

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Pharmaceuticals Healthcare 145

Mad in America

DECEMBER 1, 2024

The public perception is that drugs like antipsychotics and antidepressants save lives, particularly for those with the most severe diagnoses, like schizophrenia. However, new research tells a different story. In a new study , researchers found that these drugs did not improve mortality rates (rates of death). Instead, those who took benzodiazepines and high-dose antipsychotics were more likely to die, while those on antidepressants and lower doses of antipsychotics still did not benefit.

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Mad in America

SEPTEMBER 26, 2024

I n 2019, Dr James Davies (Roehampton University) and I published a review of the research into antidepressant withdrawal effects. We found that more than half (56%) of people experience withdrawal effects and that nearly half of those (46%) describe them as severe. Our review has been cited over 400 times (Google Scholar Sept 16, 2024), perhaps most importantly in the historic Public Health England (PHE) report on dependence and withdrawal associated with some prescribed medicines.

Pharmaceuticals 145

Pharmaceuticals 145

Mad in America

SEPTEMBER 23, 2024

In a new study , researchers compared people who were hospitalized for psychiatric reasons. They found that people taking prescription amphetamines (Adderall) were more than twice as likely to develop psychosis or mania; those on high doses were more than five times as likely. However, when the researchers included outpatients as well—essentially, those with less severe psychiatric problems—they found that those taking a high dose of amphetamines were more than 13 times as likely to develop psyc

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Mad in America

SEPTEMBER 16, 2024

In a new study , a psychiatric diagnosis was found to be incorrect for more than two-thirds of those who experienced antidepressant withdrawal. Their withdrawal symptoms were misdiagnosed as DSM-5 psychiatric disorders like panic disorder and major depressive disorder. The researchers write, “In 58 (78.4%) of the 74 cases, the DSM-5 diagnosis of current mental disorder was not confirmed when the DID-W1 was completed since patients’ symptoms corresponded to a diagnosis of current withdrawal syndr

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Hospitality 145

Mad in America

SEPTEMBER 18, 2024

In 1994, Dr. Giovanni Fava posed a controversial question: could antidepressants be worsening the very conditions they were designed to treat? Thirty years later, his clinical insights into withdrawal symptomatology suggest the answer may be yes—and the implications are unsettling. The pharmaceutical industry has downplayed the risks of withdrawal symptoms following the discontinuation of antidepressant medications.

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Pharmaceuticals 145

Mad in America

OCTOBER 16, 2024

Editor’s note: This is a copy of a letter that Ed Pigott and Jay Amsterdam sent to Ned Kalin, M.D., editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Psychiatry. Ned H. Kalin, M.D. Editor-in-Chief The American Journal of Psychiatry Dear Dr. Kalin, Dr. Jay Amsterdam and I are writing this Open Letter to call for the retraction of the five STAR*D articles published in the American Journal of Psychiatry (AJP) because the main findings of these articles are not accurate. 1-5 We are the primary invest

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Mad in America

OCTOBER 15, 2024

A ttention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a construct codified by the American Psychiatric Association. It conceptualizes a set of behavioral tendencies as a distinct condition marked by inattentiveness and impulsivity. The construct originally appeared as ADD in the 1980 edition of psychiatry’s diagnostic manual, and it was modified in the 1994 and 2013 editions.

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Construction 143

Mad in America

NOVEMBER 18, 2024

Editor’s Note: This article is being simultaneously published on Mad in America and on our affiliate site, Mad in the UK. F ollowing my recent experience of antidepressant withdrawal and having worked in psychiatry for nearly 20 years as a registered mental health nurse, I now have a very critical view on what good mental health treatment and recovery should look like.

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Trauma and the brain Sleep and mental health Personality disorders Self-awareness 141

Mad in America

NOVEMBER 27, 2024

I once worked in a psychiatric outpatient clinic in the city of Zürich, Switzerland. In a list of patients brimming with troubled young women, it became quite apparent how much the psychiatric field was influenced by modern cultural trends. One of the cases that had me questioning this was Emily’s. In her twenties, from an affluent, predominantly white neighbourhood, she was referred to me by her family doctor.

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Resilience and coping Self-awareness Nutrition and mood Sleep and mental health 141

Mad in America

SEPTEMBER 10, 2024

A recent study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders raises alarm about the widespread prescription of antidepressants for post-menopausal women between the ages of 45 and 64. The research, led by Dana Alsugeir, highlights that women in this age group are more likely than men to be diagnosed with depression and anxiety—and more likely to be prescribed selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs).

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Aging and mental health Healthcare 144

Mad in America

SEPTEMBER 12, 2024

W orld Elder Abuse Awareness Day was on June 15 th. Father’s Day was June 16 th. Many are not aware of WEAAD. I only know it exists because of a book I started co-writing with a friend. A legal guardian and conservator have hijacked her father’s life and estate and she cannot get him out. To date over half a million dollars have been billed to estate; he is drugged to incapacitation so that he cannot defend himself in court.

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Legal Healthcare 144

Mad in America

SEPTEMBER 13, 2024

I thought that if I consulted with another psychiatrist to alter my medication, I would eventually feel almost human. Perhaps if I took a different prescription or combination of prescriptions, my brain would magically adjust and rid me of my alleged ‘chemical imbalance’. I had been diagnosed with numerous ‘disorders’ because I had a traumatic childhood.

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Trauma and the brain Poverty and mental health Autism spectrum Anxiety disorders 144

Mad in America

NOVEMBER 21, 2024

A new study published in Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice finds that psychologists and psychiatrists are the most unhelpful factor for service users attempting to withdraw from antipsychotics. In the current work, authored by John Read of the University of East London, participants cited lack of knowledge around withdrawal, refusal to support withdrawal, and threats/use of coercion as the main reasons they considered psychologists and psychiatrists unhelpful in their a

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Mad in America

AUGUST 7, 2024

C arl Elliott is a distinguished professor at the University of Minnesota with joint appointments in the Department of Philosophy and the School of Journalism and Mass Communications. An influential voice in bioethics, Elliott is known for his critical examination of the medical and pharmaceutical industries. His latest book, The Occasional Human Sacrifice: Medical Experimentation and the Price of Saying No , describes the harrowing experiences of whistleblowers who expose corruption and malprac

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Neurotransmitters and mental health Pharmaceuticals Hospitality 144

Mad in America

OCTOBER 1, 2024

As the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants has become widespread, so too have the reports of a lingering and devastating side effect—Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction (PSSD). Unlike the well-known sexual side effects experienced during treatment, PSSD continues to affect patients long after they have stopped taking the medication, leaving many with a permanent loss of libido, genital numbness, and other forms of sexual dysfunction.

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Healthcare 143

Mad in America

JULY 13, 2024

N assir Ghaemi, professor of psychiatry at Tufts, recently responded to a systematic review we conducted on the evidence for the common claim that lithium prevents suicide. The content and style of Ghaemi’s article, which is more of a rant than a scientific commentary, suggest he was extremely upset that this cherished belief had been challenged (Ghaemi, 2022 ).

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Bipolar disorder Pharmaceuticals 145

Mad in America

JUNE 13, 2024

D octors are not trained to think critically. I went to medical school in 1977. I was still only 17 years old but it was a great relief after the horrendous years I had spent at an all-girls boarding school. My fellow students and I started our first year ‘pre-clinical’ training with 4 ½ days a week of lectures. We were expected to assimilate a massive amount of information and then to regurgitate it during the end of the year exams.

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Trauma and the brain Pharmaceuticals Hospitality Sleep and mental health 145

Mad in America

SEPTEMBER 7, 2024

M ichel Foucault begins his work on the history of modern medicine, The Birth of the Clinic , with this enigmatic statement: “This book is about space, about language, and about death; it is about the act of seeing, the gaze.” Here, he coined a term which has become commonplace in the sociological study of medicine: “the medical gaze” For Foucault, clinical observation—the way in which a doctor examines a patient—is not scientifically impartial.

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Mad in America

JULY 29, 2024

Mad in America and Mad in the UK are jointly publishing this four-part series on neurodiversity. This third part of this series on Neurodiversity consists of an essay by a therapist who has asked to remain anonymous for fear of the consequences for their job. The Mad in the UK editors of this series write that in the UK, there is the “likelihood of a backlash against any clinician who questions common ideas and assumptions in the field of neurodiversity.

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Trauma and the brain Construction Education Eating disorders 144

Mad in America

JUNE 1, 2024

Editor’s Note: This story is the first part of a two-part series on 988. This piece addresses the increase in unwanted or coercive police interventions after 988’s implementation. The second part, next weekend, will address issues around privacy and the sharing of the contents of conversations for AI development. T wo years and a billion dollars in, the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline continues evolving rapidly.

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Hospitality Sleep and mental health Technology Legal 145

Mad in America

OCTOBER 12, 2024

I n 2023, the BBC released “ The Antidepressant Story ,” a film that details known, dangerous and sometimes permanent side effects associated with commonly prescribed antidepressants. The documentary features harrowing stories of former patients living with harm from SSRIs , or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. They caused persistent sexual dysfunction for a college professor in Iowa who wasn’t warned of its side effects.

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Self-awareness Nonprofits Pharmaceuticals Education 140

Mad in America

NOVEMBER 7, 2024

W hen I first decided to seek help from a doctor, I had no idea what I was getting myself into or how difficult it would later be to break free from the cocktail of medications. At the back of my mind, I believed antidepressants would stabilize my disturbed nervous system. At that time (and unfortunately still in Poland), psychiatry held the belief that people with personality disorders had a dysregulated hormonal balance, which, as a budding neuroscientist, made a lot of sense to me.

Personality disorders 139

Personality disorders 139

Mad in America

APRIL 27, 2024

A fter Ed Pigott and colleagues published their patient-level reanalysis of the STAR-D results this past summer in BMJ Open, it seemed that this scandal—which is a tale of research fraud—might finally be reported on by the mainstream media, and thus burst into the American consciousness. But eight months have now passed, and while the Psychiatric Times, much to its credit, did publish a cover story of the reanalysis, American newspapers have remained mute, even though Pigott and colleagues have

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