In 2023 a new set of Canadian Guidelines for the Management of Alcohol Use Disorders put a serious problem on the radar for doctors that few of them likely expected. See Antidepressants, Alcohol and Anne-Marie. The antidepressants doctors commonly prescribed, often telling people these medicines would help them manage their alcohol issues, were likely causing the problem – … [Read more...] about Ostriches, Doctors, SSRIs and Tylenol
Sex
Over-Diagnosing or Under-Diagnosing
This post follows on from Repairing Ruptures in Clinical Care and the Future of Health App-Ointments. It also links to An Appleby a Day and Tangled up in Bureaucracy. Repairing Ruptures had a lot of comments from Lucy. One of them kicks things off here. Lucy’s Struggle Since waking up to the adverse effects of psychiatric drugs, I have written countless letters to … [Read more...] about Over-Diagnosing or Under-Diagnosing
Restoring the Magic to Healthcare
The Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SRI) story starts in 1969 with Arvid Carlsson (above) who created Zelmid, the first SRI, after listening to people on antidepressants. He linked an anxiolytic effect some older drugs have to the serotonin system. The SRIs aimed at exploring that effect - Normality and Antidepressant Dysregulation. Fluoxetine (Prozac). sertraline (Zoloft). … [Read more...] about Restoring the Magic to Healthcare
Deciphering the Web We Have Woven
Three people who got in touch recently, one with a problem, one with an idea, and one 'outraged' contributed to this post. The problem and idea illustrate what happens when doctors take Probity Blockers. The outrage tells you almost everything you need to know about the Web we are enmeshed in. Using the problem, idea and outrage, this post gives a punchier version of the … [Read more...] about Deciphering the Web We Have Woven
SNOMED, Your Doctor and You – Having an Impact
This post is about you who read it, and the ten of us or so who have helped write it, having an impact on the system. Modern healthcare is very disempowering. The arrangement that makes some medicines Prescription-Only began life as a police function and unfortunately many of us consulting a doctor can feel knee-high to a policeman especially if we even begin to hint that a … [Read more...] about SNOMED, Your Doctor and You – Having an Impact
MHRA Adopts Code for Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction
A longstanding problem for people with post-SSRI sexual dysfunction (PSSD) when trying to report their condition to drug regulators has been the absence of a code for PSSD. When regulators receive adverse event reports, they are coded against specific terms in their database which are usually taken from the Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities (MedDRA). Without a code … [Read more...] about MHRA Adopts Code for Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction
It is Hard for Thee to Kick Against the Pricks
The title of this post by Peter Selley comes from the Acts of the Apostles. It captures the moment where the Divine is advising Paul to stop persecuting Christians. Acts 9:5 (KJV). An if you can't beat them, why not join them moment. The words lend themselves to the situation of anyone attempting to grapple with the growth of a new RSV religion in more than one sense. Among … [Read more...] about It is Hard for Thee to Kick Against the Pricks
Antidotes for Akathisia and Dysregulation
A recent Mad in America Webinar on Antidepressant Dysregulation Syndromes introduced the idea that tapering might not be the only way to solve some of the problems SSRI antidepressants can cause. Tapering supporters give the impression tapering is the only legitimate way to go, leaving little or no room for the possibility that antidotes might help. Quite aside from … [Read more...] about Antidotes for Akathisia and Dysregulation
New Article about PSSD Epidemiology
We are pleased to announce the publication of “Post-SSRI sexual dysfunction: barriers to quantifying incidence and prevalence” in Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences. The journal was an ideal fit for the article, so we’re pleased that they not only accepted it for publication but also made it an editorial and freely available. RxISK first explored the idea of PSSD … [Read more...] about New Article about PSSD Epidemiology
Madness, Normality and Antidepressant Dysregulation
Some weeks ago, Bob Whitaker asked me to do a Mad in America Continuing Education Webinar on the problems stopping Antidepressants. The talk with discussion is here Stopping Antidepressants and responses to points raised will be followed up in forthcoming posts. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIlk1My4ZgQ I prerecorded the talk in case of disaster as Tapering … [Read more...] about Madness, Normality and Antidepressant Dysregulation