Product Description

From Ativan to Zoloft, Effexor to Prozac, this work describes at the dangers of psychiatric medication, and offers guidance on how to safely stop taking them. When first published in 1999, "Your Drug May Be Your Problem" was ahead of its time. The only book to provide an uncensored description of the dangers involved in taking every kind of psychiatric medication, it was also the first and only book to explain how to safely stop taking them. In the intervening years, there have been numerous studies suggesting or proving the dangers of some psychiatric medications, and more studies are underway to determine the long-term and withdrawal effects. In the meantime, this book continues to be ever relevant and helpful. Fully updated to include study results and new medications that have come on to the market, "Your Drug May Be Your Problem" will help countless readers exert control over their own psychiatric treatment.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #353437 in Books
• Published on: 2007-08-18
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

About the Author
Dr Peter Breggin is the author of a dozen books including Talking Back to Prozac and The Antidepressant Factbook. He lives in Ithaca, New York. David Cohen, PhD, is a professor of social work at Florida International University. He lives in Miami Beach, Florida.

Customer Reviews

giving choice through truth
This a must read for anyone who may wish to consider stopping taking psychiatric medication or wishes to be more informed about such drugs in general. There are few books around which give insight into how to stop taking psychiatric drugs and this is the best. On many occassions when people have stopped taking psychiatric drugs, they have become ill, often this is blamed on an underlying mental illness such as depression or schizophrenia and psychiatrists offer convincing arguments about the efficency of drugs to their patients, which helps establish a system of psychiatric slavery. Breggin and Cohen present the view that withdrawal or discontinuation of psychiatric drugs can in fact cause serious withdrawal syndromes, which in fact may mimic mental illnesses, such as psychosis or depression and some possible consequences of withdrawal may even cause death. It is of course vital to be properly informed about stopping any such medication and this book gives good information, whilst recommending clinical supervision, though this may not have to be from a psychiatrist.

Highlighted is the lack of open and honest research by drug companies and their inflated claims about their products. This is especially topical as it has recently come to light that Glaxo kept quiet information which showed seroxat to be no more effective than a placebo, whilst having potential for serious side effects. The way in which certain drugs, the neuroleptics, have and are used as chemical restraints, is also themed.

More and more drugs are being prescribed for mental illness and the truth is that very little is known about psychiatric drugs and their effects on the human brain, Breggin and Cohen do not pretend that they know all about the human brain but they do not have an arrogant attitude towards their fellow man either, some psychiatrists do and may even view those that they label as a different type of human being.

This book shows that there are alternatives to drug "therapy" but does not give easy answers either. The truth is that if stopping drugs is your goal, it may be a difficult journey with no guarantee of success but it may be a very rich and rewarding experience too, if only partly successful. The best advice given is not to start taking psychiatric drugs if at all possible and if you do then it is best to use the least possible for the shortest time.

It would be wonderful if all psychiatrists could read this book and affect changes but this will never happen. If you wish to stop taking psychiatric drugs then please read this book as a first step.

Excellent source of hard-to-find drug information.
This is the perfect book for anyone who wonders why she or he feels WORSE -- whether emotionally or physically -- when using psychiatric drugs like Prozac or lithium. Both easy to understand and thoroughly researched, "Your Drug May Be Your Problem" explains why the drugs are dangerous, how to safely stop using them, and how to deal with emotional crises without resorting to drugs. In a culture in which psychiatric drugs are pushed by everyone from the White House down to the neighborhood elementary school, this book is a refreshing change. I WISH I'd had the information contained in this book six years ago when doctors put me on a nightmarish regimen of psychiatric drugs. All in all, a fascinating and enlightening read.

Finally!
I'm a normally functioning working woman with usual pressures from job, children, etc., and I'm amazed to see how quickly my doctor has rushed to prescribe drugs for any complaints I voiced. Xanax, Valium, Zoloft... Try to get off them once you're on them and your doctor doesn't believe that they're making things worse! I found this book to be a true revelation and wish it had been around before I got started with drugs, when all I needed was some understanding -- and maybe a vacation. With age and maturity, I've realized that anxiety and depression are also the price to pay for life's joys and accomplishments. This book brings a really refreshing perspective, and is packed full of information that I've read nowhere else. This is a must-read for anybody who's been handed a prescription for psychiatric drugs.