By Peter R. Breggin, M.D. Ithaca, New York In 2004 the FDA issued a black box warning about the increased risk of suicidality in children taking the newer antidepressants, including the SSRIs (Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Luvox, Celexa, and Lexapro) and also Effexor and Wellbutrin (also marketed as Zyban). On […]
By Peter R. Breggin, M.D. Getting the FDA to move forward by presenting it with scientific data is like using a peacock feather to tickle a sleeping giant tortoise on its shell. Many people die before the agency opens its eyes and then it barely reacts at all. Bloated with […]
It’s now well known that the newer antidepressants like Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft and Celexa cause suicidal thoughts and behavior, and can worsen depression. Psychiatric drugs sustained another blow when the FDA recently declared that yet another group of these chemical agents causes the very problems that the drugs are supposed to treat. This time the culprits are antiepileptic drugs–medications used to control seizures. Because they cause sedation, these drugs are commonly used in psychiatry as “mood stabilizers.” As a result of an orchestrated psychiatric campaign to diagnose children with “bipolar disorder,” increasing numbers of children are being given these drugs.
Patient Dies in Clinical Drug Trial: Menninger Clinic Found Negligent by Jury In mid-December 2001, a jury found the Menninger Clinic (then of Topeka, KS, now relocated to Houston, TX) negligent in the treatment of an individual who was placed in a clinical trial in which he received an experimental […]
All psychiatric drugs have the potential to cause withdrawal reactions, including the antidepressants, stimulants, tranquilizers, antipsychotic drugs, and “mood stabilizers” such as lithium. When the individual’s condition grows markedly worse within days or weeks of stopping the psychiatric drug, this is almost always due to a withdrawal reaction. However, misinformed […]
The hazards of electroshock and psychosurgery Electroshock (ECT) and lobotomy (psychosurgery) exemplify the tendency of psychiatric practitioners to inflict brain damage on patients in the name of “treatment.” Many people are surprised to learn that shock treatment is still widely used in the United States. The subject is covered in […]
Growth inhibition and mental suppression caused by stimulants Few subjects have distressed Dr. Breggin as much as the psychiatric abuse of children with drugs, electroshock and even lobotomy. With so many children now taking psychiatric drugs, it is no exaggeration to say that we are damaging the brains […]
Currently among the most widely-prescribed psychiatric medications, benzodiazepines or tranquilizers can produce a wide variety of abnormal mental responses and hazardous behavioral abnormality, including rebound anxiety and insomnia, mania (especially Xanax) and other forms of psychosis, paranoia, violence, antisocial acts, depression, and suicide. These drugs can impair cognition, ranging from […]
On March 22, 2004 the FDA issued an extraordinary Public Health Advisory that cautioned about the risks associated with the new generation of antidepressants (Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Luvox, Celexa, Lexapro, Wellbutrin, Effexor, Serzone, and Remeron). The warning followed a public hearing at which dozens of family members of victims testified […]
Psychiatric drug side effects and adverse reactions The following brief summaries of adverse drug reactions are very abbreviated and merely hint at the widespread and potentially devastating side effects associated with all psychiatric medications. For a more thorough examination of neurological and psychological side effects, please consult Dr. Breggin’s books, […]
