About 12 years ago I was diagnosed with mild depression and prescribed 75 mg effexor. I did achieve relief from my symptoms on this dose. Later, maybe a few years, my dose was increased to 150 mg when my job became more stressful. There was no discussion about duration of treatment. I used to be an excellent sleeper. Whilst I couldn't say my sleep pattern changed immediately … [Read more...] about Side Effexor Withdrawal
Withdrawal
Children of the Cure: Fear of Lying
Samizdat has just published Children of the Cure - the Preface of which is here This Book is not a Game. Quotes from the text are in Hand of History on davidhealy.org. Most of the first chapter is below. Flying to Philadelphia Shelley Jofre was 32 when she got on a plane to Philadelphia in May 2002. People teased her about looking even younger. She is short and slight. … [Read more...] about Children of the Cure: Fear of Lying
Montelukast: Beyond the Black Box
Dozens of these buttons flooded the United States Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) headquarters at a meeting for the widely prescribed asthma/allergy medication, montelukast (brand name, Singulair). The message was simple: “The benefits did not outweigh the risks.” As each button approached the podium, the panel of experts heard gut-wrenching testimonials about the … [Read more...] about Montelukast: Beyond the Black Box
Catch San Marino if you Can
There have been some major developments on the RxISK Prize front. First we are hovering around the $66,666 point – depending on how exchange rates go we may be wandering back and forth over this line as I write. More important however is that San Marino has raced out in front as the donor leading country. This is down to one important woman and a small population. Her … [Read more...] about Catch San Marino if you Can
Covid and the Market in Research
There are 3 bits to this post - an interview with Joan-Ramon Laporte. An article by Ariane Denoyel and a Q and A with Laporte and Healy. Laporte Interview As part of a series for ROAR Magazine, Frank Barat has run some striking interviews about aspects of the Covid pandemic not usually mentioned. Here is Joan-Ramon Laporte talking about the market in … [Read more...] about Covid and the Market in Research
Gateway to the Soul
Read the accompanying Sex, Withdrawal and Boundaries post first. We are looking for anyone interested in the material raised there to comment on or add to the set of questions below. We are so insensitive to the fact that our skin and gut principally, but also bladder and maybe the inner linings of our lungs, our boundary, likely sees, hears, tastes, smells and encounter … [Read more...] about Gateway to the Soul
Sex, Withdrawal and Boundaries
“Do you think studying monolayers of cells will tell you why you fall in love with a girl?" The quote comes from Rudolf Hess, who won the Nobel Prize for physiology in 1949. His students remembered him as telling them never to study a neurotransmitter or even a cell without thinking about where this bit of the body comes from and what it is supposed to do. This is one of … [Read more...] about Sex, Withdrawal and Boundaries
Healthcare or Health Service?
Up to 1800, no-one went near a doctor if they could avoid it. At best doctors might amuse the patient while nature cured the disease - the doctor's business was to take as much of the credit and the money as possible. The best was rare. In an effort to get the money, doctors liked to pump us as full of stuff as possible, commonly in the process, as most people recognised, … [Read more...] about Healthcare or Health Service?
Trust Withdrawal and Antidepressants
The images, which are a wonderful metaphor for the coming back to life, the restoration of emotions and senses that stopping an antidepressant can bring, comes from this news item - its worth clicking on the video link There have probably been more posts about withdrawal from antidepressants - especially if PSSD is included as a legacy effect of these drugs - and certainly … [Read more...] about Trust Withdrawal and Antidepressants
Sleep Problems After Stopping Antidepressants?
It is well known that antidepressants can interfere with a person's sleep, but it's less clear what happens after they stop taking the drug. One of our earliest blog posts from 2012 was written by someone experiencing terrifying nightmares while withdrawing from Cymbalta. The post received a number of comments from other people reporting the same problem. It would be … [Read more...] about Sleep Problems After Stopping Antidepressants?