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Three Cheers for SSRIs

 
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When Prozac first hit the market in 1988 people were frightened of it. TV talk show hosts like Phil Donahue dedicated entire episodes to the new antidepressant claiming the drug caused people to do crazy things like put their babies in the oven or try to commit suicide.

Once the negative exposure surrounding the Vista Lab drug died down people quickly learned that Prozac was good news. The SSRI (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) antidepressant was the biggest thing to happen in psychiatric pharmacology since the advent of antidepressants in the 1960’s that included drugs like Elavil and Anafranil.

Prozac’s function involves balancing levels of Serotonin in patient’s brains thereby improving moods for many. It didn’t take long before millions of Americans went on the drug, some with tremendous results. In the years that followed, other SSRI’s were developed including Zoloft, Paxil, Lexapro and others, and have met with great success for many.

There is a reason why these pharmaceutical companies are doing so well selling these drugs. It’s because they work and today 11% of the population in the United States takes the drug regularly. The vast majority of patients taking Prozac agree that taking a chemical to improve their quality of life is worth it.

Depression, sleepiness or insomnia, unexplained aches and pains, fatigue, loss of interest in doing things a person used to love are all signs of a possible brain chemistry imbalance. Anyone with these symptoms would be remiss not to ask their doctor about antidepressants. In addition the drug can be prescribed for post partum depression and PMS.

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EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

I agree with the above comment.

The Physicians Desk Reference states that SSRIs and all antidepressants can cause mania, psychosis, abnormal thinking, paranoia, hostility, etc.

Go to www.SSRIstories.com/index.php where there are over 3,000 cases, with the full media article available, involving bizarre murders, suicides, school shootings [48 of these] and murder-suicides - all of which involve SSRI antidepressants like Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, etc, . The media article usually tells which SSRI antidepressant the perpetrator was taking

April 23, 2009 - 6:30pm
EmpowHER Guest
Anonymous

"Depression, sleepiness or insomnia, unexplained aches and pains, fatigue, loss of interest in doing things a person used to love are all signs of" mild side effects of an SSRI antidepressant.

Not sure what planet you are on, but down here on earth there are SO MANY horrific effects of these drugs that I rarely get a chance to catch my breath trying to keep up with them all! I have served as an expert for two decades in SSRI-induced tragedies like the murder/suicide of comedian Phil Hartman and his wife, Columbine, Red Lake, Andrea Yates, the Atlanta Day Trader, the NY City Subway Bomber - to name only a small handful that involved antidepressants. Two entire families just this last week in Maryland alone dead in murder/suicides due to these deadly drugs and you are touting them as miracles?!! You are two decades too late.

Did you miss the revelation last year that studies hidden by these companies for decades show that they are of no more benefit than a sugar pill?! (Yet they have listed warnings of suicide and homicidal ideation.) And what about the US Justice Dept filing fraud against one of these companies for hiding the data they had on Lexapro causing suicide in children - like the 7 year old in Miami this last week? We pull peanut butter off the market for causing less damage than we have seen from these drugs in a week! Check out just some of the cases: www.ssristories.com

You want to know why the drug makers do so well? It is because these drugs are so incredibly addictive that once someone is on them they have a customer for life UNLESS they are lucky enough to find there is a safe way to withdraw from the drugs - EXTREMELY SLOWLY.

Ann Blake-Tracy, PhD, Executive Director,
International Coalition for Drug Awareness
www.drugawareness.org & www.ssristories.com

April 23, 2009 - 5:51pm
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