1 hour ago, GammaGlobulin said:

The most insidious aspect of the psychiatric drug situation in the USA, and increasingly elsewhere, is that the drug companies refuse to enlighten potential users concerning the difficulty of stopping use, should they wish to do so.

Especially, SSRI and SNRI meds....!!!!

Can anyone even believe that approximately 25 PERCENT of women are now consuming prescription psychotropic drugs?

But, apparently, this is true.

Also, alarming, is that the drug companies do not show, in any clear way, the benefits, in percentages, that paitents MIGHT expect, together with the risks, in percentages, meaning total risk.

Once patients start using a prescription psychiatric drug, they can become easily locked in, and users for decades, which is the best money-making strategy for the drug companies.

Anyone who loves scams, should really invest in drug companies.

They are the scammers, for sure: They will slightly tweak a drug formula, and then patent it under a new name, after the original drug becomes generic, which has long been known.

Drug company execs rarely if ever go to prison, unfortunately, even when they lie.

Seems that drug companies are marketing to White Women, judging by this bit of Gemni reporting.

I’d be interested in examining the lifestyles of people on ssri meds (and others of course)

I’ll bet they are sedentary, consume too many fast carbs (primarily refined sugars) and are dopamine addicts in one way or another.

8 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

Some might say that “psychiatric drugs” have caused the general population to become crazier than what we might have expected if there were no psych pharmaceuticals being advertised and sold.

Had no idea that the general population was under the influence of psychotropics.

8 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

We also know that the relative benefit, even if one can assume that there might be a benefit, of most psychiatric drugs, long-term, is in the single digits of a percent.

Therefore, why do doctors prescribe them?

Because it’s simply easy and convenient for the lazy patients and doctors, and of course the influence of pharma.

8 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

Are they crazy?

Sorta in a way that is driven by convenience and monetary gain.

The solution requires a little discipline. Diet and meditation can resolve nearly all, if not all mental health issues from mild depression to chronic schizophrenia. Read up on Viktoras Kulvinskas, Dr. Carl Pfeiffer, F. Curtis Dohan and others.

During WWII epidemiological data indicates that hospital admissions for schizophrenia dropped significantly in countries that faced severe wheat shortages during the war.

Another thing to consider is folks come here from other countries and by all empirical accounts, many tend to go berserk, diet shock perhaps? Anyway, am an advocate for a diet of real fresh live food, the more the better for the brain.

3 hours ago, Tourist2 said:

Same reason you took coldvid jabs with no LT safety record and always leave the pharmacy with a big bag of antibiotics eevry time you visit -

Sold by an ex spurt (on commission) and blinded by the soyence.

Vaccines and also inoculations are not, in any way, comparable to long-term psychotropic drug use.

The risks are completely different.

And, by now, the world is getting up to speed concerning antibiotic drug resistence.

However, antibiotics are also not comparable to psychotropic drugs.

As for antibiotic drug resistance, we all know why this occurs, simply because we also understand Evolution Theory.

With psychotropic drug habituation, the mechanisms are different, as I already mentioned, including changes to sensetivity of receptors in the brain, etc...

These mechansims are now known, in all three classes of drugs.

YET, people are still willing to take psychotropic drugs for the long-term, which is CRAZY.

Except, it is not so crazy, when they are being lied to, or they receive false or conflicting information.

What we desperately need is INFORMED CONSENT with REAL Information, but patients are not getting this information, maybe until it is already too late.

If there were true Informed Consent, then who would lose money?

Therefore, it is left up to the individual patient, a non-expert, to protect theirself.

The government FDA is not doing its job, even though many citizens falsely believe otherwise.

Truth is no-longer of importance.

The Do No Harm credo is out the window.

I do not like scams, and I do not like to see other scammed.

Scammers, though, are fascinating.

3 hours ago, novacova said:

Had no idea that the general population was under the influence of psychotropics.

Because it’s simply easy and convenient for the lazy patients and doctors, and of course the influence of pharma.

Sorta in a way that is driven by convenience and monetary gain.

The solution requires a little discipline. Diet and meditation can resolve nearly all, if not all mental health issues from mild depression to chronic schizophrenia. Read up on Viktoras Kulvinskas, Dr. Carl Pfeiffer, F. Curtis Dohan and others.

During WWII epidemiological data indicates that hospital admissions for schizophrenia dropped significantly in countries that faced severe wheat shortages during the war.

Another thing to consider is folks come here from other countries and by all empirical accounts, many tend to go berserk, diet shock perhaps? Anyway, am an advocate for a diet of real fresh live food, the more the better for the brain.

Correct.

Going berserk might also partially be caused by US advertising, which focuses on instilling feelings of inadequacy, helplesness, and artifically creates needs which can never be met.

Diet, as you say, affects the brain.

So does sleep deprivation, which is something that Americans say they suffer.

14 hours ago, Taboo2 said:

The only person to highlight the impact of these drugs on a national stage was RFK Jr.

& Tom Cruise (of all people) too - Many years ago:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rnztuLdCzg

5 hours ago, novacova said:

Had no idea that the general population was under the influence of psychotropics.

Because it’s simply easy and convenient for the lazy patients and doctors, and of course the influence of pharma.

Sorta in a way that is driven by convenience and monetary gain.

The solution requires a little discipline. Diet and meditation can resolve nearly all, if not all mental health issues from mild depression to chronic schizophrenia. Read up on Viktoras Kulvinskas, Dr. Carl Pfeiffer, F. Curtis Dohan and others.

During WWII epidemiological data indicates that hospital admissions for schizophrenia dropped significantly in countries that faced severe wheat shortages during the war.

Another thing to consider is folks come here from other countries and by all empirical accounts, many tend to go berserk, diet shock perhaps? Anyway, am an advocate for a diet of real fresh live food, the more the better for the brain.

When 25 percent of women, in the USA, is taking psychotropic drugs, then...FOR SURE....the ENTIRE general population IS AFFECTED....Absolutely, and without question.

Why?

You mean you question my contention?

many factors may lead to depression that drugs cannot fix:

• diet -- most people probably deficient in vitamin B complex, creatine .. various other nutrients that keep the brain chemistry balanced

• sunlight -- people indoors all day + doesn't help living in a cold climate with short days

• lack of exercise -- exercise raises endorphins

• crappy music -- a lot of people are listening to crappy dark negative music, heavy metal, which has a negative effect on the psyche. some parents wanted to sue heavy metal bands because they thought their music was linked to their children's suicides. Nirvana was the biggest band at one point. Cobain was suicidal.

Edited 9 hours ago9 hr by save the frogs

10 hours ago, novacova said:

Had no idea that the general population was under the influence of psychotropics.

Because it’s simply easy and convenient for the lazy patients and doctors, and of course the influence of pharma.

Sorta in a way that is driven by convenience and monetary gain.

The solution requires a little discipline. Diet and meditation can resolve nearly all, if not all mental health issues from mild depression to chronic schizophrenia. Read up on Viktoras Kulvinskas, Dr. Carl Pfeiffer, F. Curtis Dohan and others.

During WWII epidemiological data indicates that hospital admissions for schizophrenia dropped significantly in countries that faced severe wheat shortages during the war.

Another thing to consider is folks come here from other countries and by all empirical accounts, many tend to go berserk, diet shock perhaps? Anyway, am an advocate for a diet of real fresh live food, the more the better for the brain.

Diet and meditation can help depression and other mental disorders, but are nowhere near a cure all.

This is AI but it can be researched in multiple areas..............That statement is a false premise. While healthy food and meditation help people feel better, they cannot cure severe brain illnesses like chronic schizophrenia or deep depression. These medical conditions need professional care, therapy, and prescription medicine.

Why Diet and Meditation Are Not Enough

• Brain chemistry: Severe mental illnesses involve complex chemical and biological changes in the brain.

• Medical needs: Schizophrenia requires specialized psychiatric treatment and antipsychotic medicine to manage psychosis.

• Risk of harm: Stopping medical treatment to rely only on lifestyle changes can lead to severe health dangers.

How Lifestyle Habits Help

• Good support: Eating well and meditating can lower stress and improve daily mood.

• Partner care: These habits work best alongside regular medical treatment, not as a replacement for it.

• Healthy body: Good physical health supports overall mental wellness, but it cannot fix a clinical brain disorder by itself.

• The people I know personally that have depression are all well aware of their disease, and aware enough that they've taken the diet , exercise, enough sleep, meditation, talk therapy and stress lowering to help, but only stay level because they have good doctors, the right medicine, and are monitored through the years to make sure it's still the right choice.

• People who don't have depression have no idea what it feels like to have it, unless you do the research and are living with someone who has clinical. Environmental and seasonal are curable with changes of locations. Clinical needs a lot more, as do other mental illnesses like schizophrenia, biological and not environmental.

• A good diet can surely help with any ailments and bad diets are rampant worldwide, which is why all factors need to be investigated. A person who has depression living on junk foods, stress and up north will certainly improve with the diet and change of location, but it might take a lot more.

Edited 8 hours ago8 hr by fredwiggy

19 hours ago, GammaGlobulin said:

Dear Folks,

The uptake of psychiatric (psychotropic) drugs among Americans, and probably the world, has exploded in recent decades.

And yei think you mixed it up all:

There is not only One t, the Sanity-Quotient around the world, not to mention the Happiness-Quotient, seems to be falling.

We all realize that there truly is NO Psychotropic Drug which does not gradually lose its efficacy, over time.  And, there are many psychiatric drugs which become rapidly ineffective over short time intervals.

Some might say that “psychiatric drugs” have caused the general population to become crazier than what we might have expected if there were no psych pharmaceuticals being advertised and sold.

We also know that the relative benefit, even if one can assume that there might be a benefit, of most psychiatric drugs, long-term, is in the single digits of a percent.

Therefore, why do doctors prescribe them?

Here is a vid which might shed light on what most of us already know.

https://youtu.be/WoS9dIjLFv8

(Please see following "comment" for the video which was intended to be attached here, to the OP. Thank you.)

Why do people take such a risk of taking psychotropic drugs…long-term?

We all know, and the pharmaceutical companies know, for sure, that the brain compensates for long-term use of psychotropic drugs through neuroadaptation, which is the process of altering the brain’s physical and chemical structures to restore internal balance. The brain achieves this by changing receptor sensitivity, modifying neurotransmitter production, and shifting synaptic connectivity.

Big Pharma knows this….full well.  And so, what is going on?

Are they crazy?

Best regards,

Gamma

I think you mixed it up. All.

There is not only ONE class of "drugs", but many for different purposes:

Antidepressants

Antipsychotics

Mood stabilizers

Anxiolytics

Stimulants

In the hands of experienced docs they work perfectly.

Which one you had to try?🤡

I believe in Psychiatric (psychotropic) drugs, but I don't take any myself.

I used to take hallucinogens and psychedelic drugs, and while on them, I believed in EVERYTHING. But now, I don't take them, so my belief system is very limited to only what I physically experience.

Believe what, that they exist? Yes. That they work? Yes. That they should be administered by doctors? Up to the doctor and patient.

Your inane rambling are of no import.

Most adults are no longer on the meds by the end of year 1 and only about 10% are still using the drugs daily by year 5. Some though have had success taking them intermittently but that is not what drug companies are selling. Seems like a nasty lifestyle choice trying to "time " taking it. Ends badly for many.

2 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

This is AI but it can be researched in multiple areas

Relying on ai for answers, especially when pharma, medical and science is involved, is absolutely ridiculous given that the models are bent and the output is easily manipulated by either not or intentionally avoiding or not having the mental capacity to ask the correct questions and be critical enough to recognize if the output is skewed. Though obviously you’re a pill popping advocate of pharma because of their success in convincing you.

Spending time and broadening your knowledge and understanding of how the body responds to what is put in it would perhaps help you to realize that psychotropic substances and its dependency are extremely toxic for the brain. Unless you’ve been so deeply indoctrinated and can’t get passed it, then you should read up on those that I posted previously, including Aajonus Vonderplanitz many others, and not run to the idiot daddy of yours ai which is nothing more than a skewed piece of software, ie use your brain and critically ask yourself the right questions before looking for answers. Anyway, in short, there are a lot of examples out there where diet alone has pulled folks out of severe mental illnesses. And am not going post a tone of excerpts and essays to further the laziness of others who are capable of their own reading especially after pointing you in the direction to start looking.

Just now, novacova said:

Relying on ai for answers, especially when pharma, medical and science is involved, is absolutely ridiculous given that the models are bent and the output is easily manipulated by either not or intentionally avoiding or not having the mental capacity to ask the correct questions and be critical enough to recognize if the output is skewed. Though obviously you’re a pill popping advocate of pharma because of their success in convincing you.

Spending time and broadening your knowledge and understanding of how the body responds to what is put in it would perhaps help you to realize that psychotropic substances and its dependency are extremely toxic for the brain. Unless you’ve been so deeply indoctrinated and can’t get passed it, then you should read up on those that I posted previously, including Aajonus Vonderplanitz many others, and not run to the idiot daddy of yours ai which is nothing more than a skewed piece of software, ie use your brain and critically ask yourself the right questions before looking for answers. Anyway, in short, there are a lot of examples out there where diet alone has pulled folks out of severe mental illnesses. And am not going post a tone of excerpts and essays to further the laziness of others who are capable of their own reading especially after pointing you in the direction to start looking.

I posted AI to show what's available out there, and it's countless links. I've read up on this for 30 years, up until recently. I've read 7 books on depression and have members of my family who have it, a best friend who took his own life because of it, and several past girlfriends and a wife who have it.

Like I mentioned, diet and exercise are necessary, but severe cases of mental illness aren't going to be changed by that alone. Seasonal and environmental depression can , but clinical is a totally different story.

I'm not near a pill popping advocate of any pills not necessary to control a disease or help with the symptoms of some. I've been exercising and into nutrition all of my life, and always look for natural ways to help things. When people let themselves go for many years, medicines are necessary to help them get back to "normal", along with the natural ways. Some mental illnesses require more than diet and exercise, IF you can get the patients to even do that.

Reading thousands of articles, along with those books, and personal experience, isn't relying on big pharma as I don't trust them nor doctors, as they over prescribe and kill thousands yearly. the fact remains that thousands of people's lives have been saved by proper depression medicines, and will continue to do so, as long as they're the right ones, are monitored, and many can be weaned off them. They're not a cure all but for symptoms.

Edited 5 hours ago5 hr by fredwiggy

@GammaGlobulin Should we take this as a call for help? As I understand it, you have now been mixing almost all the different drugs you could find and are aware of. After that, you have increased the doses to maximum, and now you have reached an astronomic level of tolerance, so you not even think they affect you no more. This is simply you reaching out, to see if someone has anything stronger you can try?

15 minutes ago, fredwiggy said:

I've read up on this for 30 years, up until recently. I've read 7 books on depression and have members of my family who have it, a best friend who took his own life because of it, and several past girlfriends and a wife who have it.

That doesn’t really mean anything, what a person has and how much they read about a subject and experience with subjects of the matter doesn’t particularly give them critical insight. Am not going to mention how much I have read over how many years and what I know of what experience, as it is here say on an internet discussion forum and an indictment on credibility as it is on yours, which seems to lack the understanding that psychotropic drugs, especially when used extensively worsen mental conditions. It’s astonishing that you seem to have missed this with all your in-depth experience and knowledge. These type of drugs are extremely toxic and are a mental health hazard and should be avoided at all costs, even to the pain and misery of self discipline of diet and meditation.

24 minutes ago, novacova said:

That doesn’t really mean anything, what a person has and how much they read about a subject and experience with subjects of the matter doesn’t particularly give them critical insight. Am not going to mention how much I have read over how many years and what I know of what experience, as it is here say on an internet discussion forum and an indictment on credibility as it is on yours, which seems to lack the understanding that psychotropic drugs, especially when used extensively worsen mental conditions. It’s astonishing that you seem to have missed this with all your in-depth experience and knowledge. These type of drugs are extremely toxic and are a mental health hazard and should be avoided at all costs, even to the pain and misery of self discipline of diet and meditation.

Of course it does, as this is how doctors also learn about a subject. By reading all of that, i do know what happens when you take these types of drugs, and if you read all of what I wrote, you would see that I mentioned this, and also mentioned what needs to be done with people who have depression.

The meds have saved countless lives. the end result is exactly that. A temporary "fix" until others things can be used. many are using them for many years and doing well.

Every person is different, as their brain chemistry , diets, and everyday habits and environments are different. This is why a good doctor is necessary to monitor the patients condition as long as they're doing things that doctor prescribes. that many do not have caring doctors doesn't help them. Keeping the patient alive is first priority, and medicines can do that, as long as they're the right ones and monitored.

6 minutes ago, fredwiggy said:

Of course it does, as this is how doctors also learn about a subject. By reading all of that, i do know what happens when you take these types of drugs, and if you read all of what I wrote, you would see that I mentioned this, and also mentioned what needs to be done with people who have depression.

The meds have saved countless lives. the end result is exactly that. A temporary "fix" until others things can be used. many are using them for many years and doing well.

Every person is different, as their brain chemistry , diets, and everyday habits and environments are different. This is why a good doctor is necessary to monitor the patients condition as long as they're doing things that doctor prescribes. that many do not have caring doctors doesn't help them. Keeping the patient alive is first priority, and medicines can do that, as long as they're the right ones and monitored.

The point wasn’t eluding to how much one has read up on a subject or what it is that they believe what knowledge they have. Most medical professionals, whether right or wrong are heavily influenced by corporate interests which leans their opinions which leads their findings, it’s just human nature.

More often than not the process of deduction is finding the correct questions of deducing to the direction of answers and solutions. Not as simple as just having an answer to suppress a causation of a fundamental origin.

16 hours ago, Tourist2 said:

Someone suggested: either snap out of it or bullett / pickaxe to the head.

Can't stop whinging, self pity and/or ASB?
Hopelessly addicted?
Can't stop <deleted> with people and/or doing crime?

A permanent cure to all these ills is available but would soyciety accept it?

Aggressive sarcasm can hit well when it is properly understood and shows some respect, but here I only see ignorance.

5 hours ago, newbee2022 said:

I think you mixed it up. All.

There is not only ONE class of "drugs", but many for different purposes:

Antidepressants

Antipsychotics

Mood stabilizers

Anxiolytics

Stimulants

In the hands of experienced docs they work perfectly.

Which one you had to try?🤡

I would not be fool enough to try any of the psychiatric drugs you mention, even though most have overlapping effects.

I value my brain, in its present state, too much to wish to artificially change states of awareness, other than in fairly predictable ways using Chinese Green Tea.

Even Chinese Green Tea now has a bit too much caffeine for my tastes, at the moment.

The brain chemistry of two or more individuals is not the same, and depends upon genetics.

Therefore, some might be more sensitive to various added chemicals, compared to others, and this includes caffeine, obviously.

Also, the psychiatric drugs you list have very little, if any benefit, compared to placebo, and all do have the capacity to do significant harm.

But, as I say: I am not a fool.

I do not need to worry on my own behalf.

I have the power to refuse what might be offered by drug companies and by shrinks.

So do you have the freedom...and so....

JUST SAY NO....

On 8/4/2026 at 12:45 PM, fredwiggy said:

The wrong medicine can make things worse for patients. The right ones have saved thousands of lives. Constant monitoring, which some doctors fail to do, is a major problem. Reducing depression symptoms, which is their intent, can make a person easier to cope with daily life, work and relationships. That they have side effects, like all other medicines, makes the monitoring essential. I've seen them work with quite a few acquaintances and friends.

What disturbs me most is that science hasn't a clue why these psych meds work, or don't. They do know how they affect the brain but mostly, it's Whack-a-Mole. Try Prozac, didn't work. Drop Prozac, try Zoloft aso.

Was it the drugs, or change in circumstances / attitude / time / placebo that made you feel better? Or that people were paying attention to you feeling bad?

Yes, GG, all these drugs have an unknown expiration date. You might get 15 or 20 years out of them. Psych meds actually change the neural pathways in your brain, creating a chemical need. All such need very careful and consistent tapering to wean. This is why immediate transition from Prozac to Zoloft causes so much distress. The original drug was not tapered before starting the second.

Are there more suicides today? Do we want to stop suicides? Why do we want to stop suicides? Are psych drugs preferable to ECT?

There are no quick fixes if you're feeling crazy. Talk therapy can work for some. So can diet, exercise, relationships.

In general, people should avoid these. I worked in a giant psych warehouse where such drugs were used mainly for control. I had keys to the meds cupboard and I tried each and every one of those drugs my patients were on. There was not one that didn't eff you up.

2 hours ago, Gottfrid said:

@GammaGlobulin Should we take this as a call for help? As I understand it, you have now been mixing almost all the different drugs you could find and are aware of. After that, you have increased the doses to maximum, and now you have reached an astronomic level of tolerance, so you not even think they affect you no more. This is simply you reaching out, to see if someone has anything stronger you can try?

Just do not take any of the drugs in my presence, and this includes cannabis, and we will get along together half-way decently.

3 hours ago, WDSmart said:

I believe in Psychiatric (psychotropic) drugs, but I don't take any myself.

I used to take hallucinogens and psychedelic drugs, and while on them, I believed in EVERYTHING. But now, I don't take them, so my belief system is very limited to only what I physically experience.

I believe in psychedelics for healing. However--WARNING!--do not take psychedelics if you are taking prescription psych drugs. Both work on the same pathways and risk serotonin syndrome, a life-threatening overdose of serotonin.

1 minute ago, unblocktheplanet said:

I believe in psychedelics for healing.

Shamans in Peru may be able to get away with Ahuyasca because they know they're doing maybe. I'm not sure the average person is capable of using psychedelics for healing.

Some anti-depressants have been show to actually increase suicidal thoughts in some people.

On 8/4/2026 at 2:04 PM, Hummin said:

You avoid the rest of my post, which is just as essential as what you pointed out.

Severe depression will eventually pass, and then you have a choice. You can continue down the same road as before, or make the changes you are able to make to reduce the risk of another episode.

Your brain and body are like a garden. You need to nurture them, take care of them, and remove what harms them. Continuing to cultivate the same patterns that often lead to depression will only produce more of the same. You need to cultivate positivity instead of negativity.

Constant rumination, and spending time and effort on negativity, is not a good recipe. In many cases, it becomes avoidance and an escape from the real issues that people should be using their time, energy, and effort to face and change.

You do not need to watch this video.

BUT, OTHERS DO NEED TO WATCH THIS VIDEO.

11 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

I believe in psychedelics for healing.

Would advise to abstain from any and all mind altering substances, no matter how benign it may be.

On 8/4/2026 at 2:04 PM, Hummin said:

You avoid the rest of my post, which is just as essential as what you pointed out.

Severe depression will eventually pass, and then you have a choice. You can continue down the same road as before, or make the changes you are able to make to reduce the risk of another episode.

Your brain and body are like a garden. You need to nurture them, take care of them, and remove what harms them. Continuing to cultivate the same patterns that often lead to depression will only produce more of the same. You need to cultivate positivity instead of negativity.

Constant rumination, and spending time and effort on negativity, is not a good recipe. In many cases, it becomes avoidance and an escape from the real issues that people should be using their time, energy, and effort to face and change.

Shrinks like to say that any mental illness is never 'cured' only in 'remission'. I think that's a debilitating POV for the patient: "I'll never be cured, I'll always be this wa."

20 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

What disturbs me most is that science hasn't a clue why these psych meds work, or don't. They do know how they affect the brain but mostly, it's Whack-a-Mole. Try Prozac, didn't work. Drop Prozac, try Zoloft aso.

Was it the drugs, or change in circumstances / attitude / time / placebo that made you feel better? Or that people were paying attention to you feeling bad?

Yes, GG, all these drugs have an unknown expiration date. You might get 15 or 20 years out of them. Psych meds actually change the neural pathways in your brain, creating a chemical need. All such need very careful and consistent tapering to wean. This is why immediate transition from Prozac to Zoloft causes so much distress. The original drug was not tapered before starting the second.

Are there more suicides today? Do we want to stop suicides? Why do we want to stop suicides? Are psych drugs preferable to ECT?

There are no quick fixes if you're feeling crazy. Talk therapy can work for some. So can diet, exercise, relationships.

In general, people should avoid these. I worked in a giant psych warehouse where such drugs were used mainly for control. I had keys to the meds cupboard and I tried each and every one of those drugs my patients were on. There was not one that didn't eff you up.

You are a braver man than I, Gunga Din...!!!

I would never test those drugs on my brain.

And of course, brain science is not yet advanced to the point where we can understand how these drugs work.

There is nothing "missing" in our brains, no deficit of some chemical, for which we must add other chemicals...And, I guess, this old theory has now been discredited by observation.

23 minutes ago, unblocktheplanet said:

What disturbs me most is that science hasn't a clue why these psych meds work, or don't. They do know how they affect the brain but mostly, it's Whack-a-Mole. Try Prozac, didn't work. Drop Prozac, try Zoloft aso.

Was it the drugs, or change in circumstances / attitude / time / placebo that made you feel better? Or that people were paying attention to you feeling bad?

Yes, GG, all these drugs have an unknown expiration date. You might get 15 or 20 years out of them. Psych meds actually change the neural pathways in your brain, creating a chemical need. All such need very careful and consistent tapering to wean. This is why immediate transition from Prozac to Zoloft causes so much distress. The original drug was not tapered before starting the second.

Are there more suicides today? Do we want to stop suicides? Why do we want to stop suicides? Are psych drugs preferable to ECT?

There are no quick fixes if you're feeling crazy. Talk therapy can work for some. So can diet, exercise, relationships.

In general, people should avoid these. I worked in a giant psych warehouse where such drugs were used mainly for control. I had keys to the meds cupboard and I tried each and every one of those drugs my patients were on. There was not one that didn't eff you up.

People respond differently to medication. Some have genetic variants that affect how they metabolize or respond to certain drugs, which can increase side effects or reduce effectiveness. For some, SSRIs and other psychiatric medications can worsen symptoms or simply be the wrong treatment.

Personally, I have lost three friends to suicide after they started taking SSRIs. I am not saying the medication caused their deaths, only that individual responses to these drugs can differ dramatically.