Posts Tagged ‘psychotic episodes’

Mental health patients complain of ‘zombification’

Tuesday, March 15th, 2011

Note from CCHR:  The article posted below is about involuntary commitment under the U.K.’s  use of “community treatment orders” under their Mental Health Act.   Since these involuntary commitment orders have gone into effect (2008), the number of people forced into psychiatric wards has 10xed what was expected.   Quite simply,  if you are diagnosed mentally ill, you can lose all your civil and human rights.  Even if you commit no crime, you can be incarcerated in a psychiatric facility against your will.   The idea of “danger to self or others” is also a very, very loose description and particularly horrifying in the UK, considering they also have laws against what they term “anti-social behavior.”   From the New American:

In July 1998, the U.K.’s Crime and Disorder Act enacted the “Anti-Social Behaviour Orders” (ASBOs) to tackle disagreeable and disruptive acts. ASBOs are court-ordered restrictions on “unsociable conduct.” Breaching an ASBO is a criminal offense.

Eight years into the legislation, some 12,675 ASBOs had been issued. Nearly 2,000 youngsters, aged 10 to 17, were jailed by 2007 for an average of six months each for breaching ASBOs [the rest were all adults]. Even that was not enough. According to Mail Online, May 27, 2007 (“Revealed: Blair’s secret stalker squad”), the government attempted to widen the definition of “mental disorder” so that the right not to be detained in a psychiatric facility based on cultural, political, or religious beliefs would be forfeited.

So, what are some of the offenses that would constitute getting as ASBO?   Try spitting in the street, swearing, “noise pollution” being drunk, loitering, intimidation…think we’re kidding? Read this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anti-Social_Behaviour_Order

The “community treatment orders” under UK’s Mental Health Act are considered “psychiatric ASBOs.” http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/psychiatric-asbos-will-fail-say-mental-health-experts-438809.html So, if you are diagnosed “mentally ill” you can be ordered to act a certain way, take your drugs, be forced to have  a curfew, not be allowed to consume alcohol.  Now think about that for a minute;  Millions of citizens have been diagnosed with one or more mental disorders, be it “bipolar, “depressed” or “ADHD” to name but a few.  Once labeled “mentally ill” – game over.  You can be court ordered to behave a certain way or face psychiatric incarceration.  Plain and simple. This is the Brave New World of Psychiatry. See links and references at the end of this post read this article from the and more links at the end of this post

Excessive use of forced detention and coerced treatment by the NHS means patients have little control over their treatment

The Guardian
By Mark Gould
March 15, 2011

Between 2008-09 and 2009-10 there was a 17.5% increase in the number of people being sectioned under the Mental Health Act. Photograph: Alamy

“I became ‘zombified’ for nearly 12 months when I was forced to take mood stabilisers and antipsychotic medication,” says Reka Krieg. The 30-year-old has bipolar disorder, so has periods of manic activity and psychotic episodes, which led to her being forcibly detained and treated in hospital in 2009.

Krieg’s case exemplifies the crisis in NHS psychiatric care, which is resulting in excessive use of coercive detention and treatment of people with mental illness. Latest statistics released in January show a 17.5% rise in the number of people being “sectioned” – under the Mental Health Act (MHA) – from 32,649 in 2008‑09 to 38,369 in 2009-10. This means that nearly 40% of patients in NHS psychiatric units are there under legal duress.

Years of drastic bed cuts mean wards are full of only the most unwell patients – those seen to be a danger to themselves or others. This includes rising numbers coming into hospital via the judicial system. Eight hundred and thirty women detained under the MHA came into hospital via prison or the courts last year, a rise of more than 85%, while the number of men rose by 48%, from 1,982 to 2,935.

The use of community treatment orders (CTOs) has also rocketed. Since they were introduced in 2008, more than 6,200 have been served – 10 times the expected number. Under a CTO, patients are released from detention, but can be forcibly returned to hospital if they fail to take their medication or other treatment. However, patients complain that once given a CTO, it takes them too long to get it removed, obliging them to stick with medication they believe they no longer need.

CTOs are “a complete waste of money,” says Krieg. “I had a history of repeat hospital admission, but I was better when they decided to impose the CTO, which I hated. I felt I had no control over my human rights.” She was finally released from the CTO after two appeals with the help of a specialist lawyer.

And it seems that CTOs have not eased the pressure on psychiatric wards. Last November, the Care Quality Commission, which oversees patients detained under the MHA, found that some hospitals were reporting 125% bed occupancy rates, and nearly a third of the 486 locked NHS wards in England and Wales had occupancy rates of 100% or more, meaning they were forced to send patients home early to accommodate new arrivals.

Mental health charities and senior psychiatrists say the situation is appalling, and they are lobbying for changes to the health and social care bill currently going through parliament, to make it harder to impose compulsory treatment.

Tony Zigmond, the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ lead on mental health law, says the situation is “a disgrace”. He fears some mental health services are becoming so focused on the risk of patients harming themselves or others that they make excessive use of compulsion and coercion.

He describes detention under mental health law as “a lobster pot – easy to get into but hard to get out”. His college and the Mental Health Alliance, an umbrella group of charities, civil liberties organisations and lawyers, are lobbying MPs to amend the health and social care bill to make it harder to impose CTOs. Otherwise, he fears the use of CTOs could spiral out of control. “The top line is that CTOs have increased the number of detentions,” he says. “In effect, they are prisons without walls so the numbers on them could be limitless.”

Paul Farmer, chief executive of mental health charity Mind, says he is “extremely worried” about the rise in CTOs, “especially as 30% of them are being imposed on people who have no history of not co-operating with treatment”. He adds: “CTOs are a looming threat of readmission hanging over the heads of people who are trying to rebuild their lives and independence.”

Lee Milner, 41, has schizoaffective disorder, which results in episodes of elation or depression coupled with hallucinations. A volunteer and campaigner with mental health charity Rethink, Lee has had extensive experience of detention in hospital since 1992 when, following the suicide of his father, he tried to set fire to the family home. He was last sectioned in 2010 and agrees that hospitals are packed with only the most serious cases. “The ward was like being in the dark ages. How the nurses qualified I never know … When I tried to talk to the consultant about spirituality, he just asked if I wanted more medication.”

Zigmond wants a more consensual approach to treatment, and more space set aside in hospitals for patients to use as sanctuaries in times of crisis. “Why not give patients the option of coming off medication and being able to come into hospital if they need to?” he says.

Read the rest of the article here:  http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/mar/15/mental-health-patients-forced-detention

More on ASBOs

‘Psychiatric asbos’ slammed – UK Health Service Journal

http://www.hsj.co.uk/news/psychiatric-asbos-slammed/36479.article

Psychiatry’s Brave New WorldThe New American

http://thenewamerican.com/index.php/usnews/health-care/4112-psychiatrys-brave-new-world

Asbo capital condemned for ‘abuse of power’

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2007/jul/04/localgovernment.publicservicesawards

ASBO WATCH

http://www.statewatch.org/asbo/ASBOwatch.html

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Psychiatric Meds 101: A Surprising Discovery – Your Own Personal Hell

Tuesday, July 20th, 2010

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By Shane “The People’s Chemist” Ellison
Author, Over-The-Counter Natural Cures

I may be a perfect candidate for psychiatry.

I ask questions with period marks to shorten conversations. I avoid eye contact with strangers in fear (maybe it’s anxiety) that I might learn too much about them. I secretly think that Metallica would be making better music if they went back to bludgeoning themselves with party drugs and alcohol, instead of “therapy.” I’m trying to master the Law of Un-attraction to shield myself from a “real job,” small homes and junky cars.  And, I’m constantly giving my children advice, only to give it to myself.

Psychiatry, can your drugs help me?

Perhaps these questions are what motivated me to pursue a career as a drug design chemist, winning multiple awards for my work. Nothing gets me more excited than drugs and how they affect the body (except my wife’s abs). I’ve studied their molecular anatomy, risked life and limb to mix and match explosive chemicals in a round bottom flask, and even sold my soul to Big Pharma in exchange for a lab bench and chemical hood.

During this time, I’ve made some surprising discoveries about psychiatric meds, which include antidepressants, antipsychotics, stimulants, and anti-anxiety drugs. Understanding what I’ve learned will protect you from the flood of side effects that are now being discovered at breakneck speeds, courtesy of the myriad of patients being prescribed psychiatric drugs in the name of mental health.

Your Own Personal Hell

Antidepressants strive to increase the levels of a “coping” molecule known as serotonin in the brain. It supposedly helps us find happiness when it’s covered in an avalanche of nastiness. But, it’s never been proven. Still, the drugs attempt to boost serotonin by “selectively” stopping the “reuptake” among brain cells. This is where the whole SSRI acronym came from—“selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor.” It’s a slick name, but a stupid idea. Nothing is selective in the body.

While trying to block the reuptake of serotonin, antidepressants can also prevent its release and that of another brain compound known as dopamine. The areas of the brain responsible for release and reuptake of these neurotransmitters are so damn similar (after all, they work on the same molecule) that an antidepressant drug isn’t smart enough to understand which one it is supposed to work on. So it does what any dumb drug would do, it blocks both. That’s why users usually carry a glassy stare in their eye. Fully under the psychiatric spell, they’ve tuned out.

Deep sadness, fear, anger and aggression can set in over time. By removing serotonin and dopamine from the brain, long-term antidepressant users can’t find or feel happiness. Instead, they may become buried in the avalanche of nastiness. And if you can’t find or feel happiness in life, what’s the point? What’s going to stop you from snapping your own neck or spraying bullets on your classmates? Not much when you live in your own personal antidepressant hell.

Think this is all opinion?

According to the FDA, antidepressants can cause suicidal thoughts and behavior, worsening depression, anxiety, panic attacks, insomnia, irritability, hostility, impulsivity, aggression, psychotic episodes and violence.  Some even cause homicidal ideation according to the manufacturers. Many long-term antidepressant users will tell you they no longer feel normal emotions—they’re numb, like zombies.

But the side effects of these drugs aren’t limited to hijacking your feelings and emotional state, causing violent and psychotic states. Physical side effects occur too and include abnormal bleeding, birth defects, heart attack, seizures and sudden death. Over one hundred and seventy drug regulatory warnings and studies have been issued on antidepressants, to sound the alarm on these side effects.

For Elephant Use Only

Psychiatrists prescribe antipsychotic meds such as Zyprexa and Seroquel, for anything from schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, delusional disorder, psychotic depression, autism or anything else they can think of, even “pervasive developmental disorder,” which is perfect for boosting sales because it targets children who suffer from irritability, aggression, and agitation. It’s a shame ‘cause these drugs are good for nothing but sedating irate elephants, not curing psychiatric disease.

According to a study published in Psychological Medicine, antipsychotic drugs cause brains to shrink – they lessen brain matter and volume. Originally designed for those deemed “schizophrenic,” the drug companies came up with a brilliant marketing campaign to sell these drugs to a much wider market—unsatisfied antidepressant users. You’ve probably seen the ads—if your “depression medication” isn’t working, then don’t blame the drug; you may just have bipolar disorder!

Once swallowed, antipsychotics sail through the blood stream where they’re carried to the brain. Like a giant oil spill, antipsychotics cover the brain in a medicinal slick, where brain wave transmission is blocked. Users become devoid of normal brain activity. Motivation, drive and feelings of reward are shunted. If psychiatry considers this a “treatment,” they’re the crazy ones.

If you’ve ever seen someone who has suffered from the “spill” courtesy of following doctors orders, you can’t mistake one of the most common side effects, it’s called Akathisia. Involuntary movements, tics, jerks in the face and the entire body can become permanent side effects for antipsychotic users.

Antipsychotics also cause obesity, diabetes, stroke, cardiac events, respiratory problems, delusional thinking and psychosis. Drug regulators from the U.S., Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa warn that they can also lead to death. I wouldn’t be surprised if psychiatrists considered this a cure…

Use This to Jump The Grand Canyon

If you’re going to attempt to jump your scooter over the Grand Canyon, or ride your snowboard off Kilimanjaro, stimulants are great. They flood the brain with dopamine and trigger an inhuman surge of adrenaline, responsible for making you believe life is grand, despite eminent death. Outside of that, you’re either a speed freak, a college student trying to learn an entire semester of Biology 101 in 4 hours, or a fifth grader “following doctor’s orders.”

Top stimulants being prescribed today are nothing more than a mix of amphetamines packaged into trade names like Adderall, Dexedrine and Ritalin.  Street thugs sell it as meth, poor man’s cocaine, crystal, ice, glass and speed. It’s no wonder kids are now abusing Ritalin, Adderall and these drugs more than street drugs, they’re cheaper to get and they’re “legal,” hence the term kiddie cocaine.

Even the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) categorizes Ritalin in the Schedule ll category, meaning a high potential for abuse—just like cocaine and morphine. All of them have the same effects regardless of how they’re named: Central nervous system overload leading to heart attack and/or heart failure. And kids are dropping faster than Meth Heads at Raves…

I’m not exaggerating.

Eleven international drug regulatory agencies and our own FDA has issued warnings that stimulants like Ritalin cause addiction, depression, insomnia, drug dependence, mania, psychosis, heart problems, stroke and sudden death.

 Bash Your Head in with Anti-Anxiety Drugs

If you’re not man enough for a drug that could sedate an elephant like antipsychotics, then psychiatrists will prescribe anti-anxiety meds, particularly benzodiazepines. Choosing between the two is akin to deciding whether or not you should be hit in the head with an aluminum bat or a wooden one; anti-anxiety meds being the latter.

Discovered in the stinky chemistry labs of Hoffman La Roche in 1955, anti-anxiety meds aim to trigger sleep receptors in the brain, just slightly. So, rather than being riddled with anxiety, you are put to sleep, halfway. It’s “treatment,” and psychiatrists have been “practicing it for decades.” But, it has yet to work, because drugging your problems away is more dangerous than anxiety. The use of anti-anxiety meds is coupled with a host of nasty side effects such as seizures, aggression and violence once the drug wears off. Hallucinations, delusional thinking, confusion, abnormal behavior, hostility, agitation, irritability, depression and suicidal thinking are all possible outcomes according to Big Pharma’s heavily guarded research papers.

Getting off the drugs could be harder than abandoning a heroin addiction. Some have described withdrawal from “benzos” being akin to pulling hundreds of fish hooks out of their skin, without anesthesia. If you doubt their addictive nature, go to Google search and type in a few of the leading anti-anxiety drugs like Klonopin or Xanax and here is what you’ll find:

“Klonopin withdrawal” 1,860,000 results

“Xanax withdrawal” 1,980,000 results

Exposing Psychiatry: How to Get The Truth

In total, the side effects of psychiatric meds spread far and wide. And most are hidden from patients and doctors alike. Fortunately, Citizens Commission on Human Rights has solved this problem with a state-of-the-art database that allows people to search through the adverse reaction reports sent to the FDA on psychiatric drugs. It also provides international drug regulatory agency warnings and studies published on the side effects of the drugs.

So, can psychiatry help me? No. And that’s surprising because psychiatric meds are some of the biggest selling drugs, poised to seal the hopes and dreams of millions.  Regardless of what mental state I might be in (or anyone else for that matter), there is not a single drug that cures, treats or solves the perceived problems of mental health.

While people can suffer miserably from emotional or mental duress that can hinder their lifestyle, the pseudo-science of psychiatry has yet to solve any of these problems, and in fact only contributes to poor health as seen by the wide array of side effects. Marketing campaigns and ghostwritten medical journals are designed to obscure these facts. But the psychiatric drug side effect database courtesy of CCHR ensures that all patients have access to the truth, to the documented facts, which could save their life or that of a loved one.

 About the Author

Shane Ellison holds a masters degree in organic chemistry and is the author of Over-The-Counter Natural Cures.  An award winning chemist, he has been quoted by USA Today, Shape, Woman’s World, as well as Women’s Health and appeared on Fox and NBC as a natural medicine advocate.  Sample his book free at www.thepeopleschemist.com

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Huffington Post—Adderall: The Most Abused Prescription Drug in America; can cause lasting mental defects & death

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

The Huffington Post
By Dr. Ronald Ricker and Dr. Venus Nicolino
June 21, 2010

Adderall is abused mostly by college students and young adults. Estimates are that somewhere between 20-30 percent of college students regularly abuse Adderall.

Adderall has the dubious distinction of being the latest addition to the rogue’s gallery of lawful drugs that have made the transition to the black market. In recent years, abuse of Adderall and its imitators has increased by nearly 200 percent. Calling it an “upper” is like calling a hydrogen bomb a grenade. It is made of pure amphetamine, it’s already picked up its share of street monikers: Speed, Beans, Black Beauties, Christmas Trees, and Double Trouble, amongst others.

What are the pluses in this wonder-drug? In ordinary people it often but not always offers increased concentration. It also keeps people awake for more studying and lots more partying. It often offers a sense of euphoria and happiness and a lot better and more frequent sex, all fun at parties.

Between the glut of pop-psychology theories (often fraudulent) and the never-ending blitz of promotion by Big Pharma, people now believe they can diagnose themselves with something like ADHD as easily as ascertaining if they have a head cold and believe they have the ability to determine the correct medication for their condition. Sometimes they’re grandiosely right. Most of the time, however, they’re wrong on both counts. Even more of the time, diagnosis is irrelevant. The relevant question is where’s the “connection?” Sadly, that’s where many of us physicians fit in. We certainly don’t intend to, but often serve as the ‘connection’. Then, of course, there are those ‘patients’ and doctors that inhabit the bottom of the barrel: lying ‘patients’ and immoral doctors. Scripts can and are sold, for lots of money. Never mind the human cost, there’s money to be made and drugs to be copped. Take that prescription to the pharmacy. Or, take your money to a nearby local University. You’ll pay $30 to $40 dollars per pill for a very small amount of Adderall, usually sold to you by a student. Sales are usually student to student although the numbers of genuine drug dealers are growing rapidly in numbers, bringing with them all the problems of low-life, criminal drug dealers. Dealers recognize good business opportunities. Imagining little Johnny, having just finished Geography 1A, dealing with a real dealer chills the mind.

Illicit Adderall is taken in many ways. Most obviously, a pill can be swallowed. Pills can also be chewed, ground up and snorted, and ground up and injected (the most dangerous way of administration, by far). And then there’s ‘Stuffing’. This is accomplished by ‘stuffing’ Adderall in any orifice with a mucous membrane (anus, vagina, penis, mouth, etc.). Shooting gets the most immediate and strongest effect. Snorting is second, chewing third, and stuffing fourth. What ‘stuffing’ lacks in immediate ‘oomph’ and the loss of whatever dignity the person may retain, is made up by the length of effect and allows for the greatest amount of Adderall to be used at one time. The anus and vagina are big places and can hold a great deal of Adderall.

Sadly, there’s no free lunch.

1) Side effects are numerous. Some are minor, some serious, and some very serious. Most users have no clue as to negative side effects and usually don’t care. Ignorance, we suppose, is bliss. The most important and most negative side-effect is the Overdose. Overdose with Adderall is nasty. Results include Cardiac and/or pulmonary arrest, death, severe and lasting mental effects/defects. Which one happens to you is a matter of chance. If you’re in an Emergency Room and still alive your chances are relatively good. If you overdose at your apartment and are alone, the chance of your living is slim. If you Over Dose at a party, maybe a Frat Party, you’ve probably bought it. Drunken, high Frat boys are not known for their medical skills or even a modicum of clear thinking. Minor side effects include anxiety, and transient depression. More serious effects include heart palpitations, elevation of blood pressure, Tourette’s syndrome, seizures, stroke, and psychotic episodes or plain old psychosis.

Read entire article:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-ronald-ricker-and-dr-venus-nicolino/adderall-the-most-abused_b_619549.html

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Australia’s “growing problem” is child drugging—Antipsychotics given to toddlers linked to 45 child deaths in the U.S.

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

The Herald Sun
March 24, 2010

CHILDREN as young as one are being prescribed powerful anti-psychotic drugs that have been linked to deaths overseas.

The strong medication is designed to quell psychotic episodes normally experienced by adults with schizophrenia and bi-polar.

There are concerns some doctors are illegitimately writing scripts for pre-schoolers and primary school children for unapproved medical reasons, such as behavioural problems or ADHD.

Figures provided by the Therapeutic Goods Administration showed up to 3351 NSW children aged under 18 were prescribed the drugs in 2007-08.

Of them, at least 62 toddlers aged five and under — including five one-year-olds — were prescribed the drugs in NSW in that period.

“You can assume children under 12 are illegitimately being prescribed these drugs for behaviour problems. It should not be the case,” University of South Australia’s associate professor in psychiatry Dr Jon Jureidini said yesterday.

“These drugs are not marketed or recommended by the TGA for that use.”

Common medications such as Risperdal, Zyprexa and Abilify are not approved for children under five. The TGA has approved Risperdal to treat children with autism.

Side effects can be so severe in adults that elderly patients with dementia are warned they have a higher risk of sudden death.

Read entire article:  http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/national/kids-prescribed-toxic-drug-cocktail-of-anti-depressants/story-e6frf7l6-1225844541982

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Australia: Documents reveal 10,000 kids prescribed powerful, dangerous anti-psychotic drugs including toddlers

Tuesday, March 23rd, 2010

The Herald Sun
March 24, 2010

CHILDREN as young as two are being prescribed anti-psychotic drugs that have been linked to deaths overseas.

Almost 2000 children aged under 18 were prescribed the drugs in Victoria in 2007-08.

Figures provided by the Therapeutic Goods Administration reveal at least four two-year-olds were among 422 under-10s given drugs designed to quell psychotic episodes normally found in adults with schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder.

But there are concerns some doctors are writing scripts for preschoolers and primary school children for unapproved medical reasons, such as behavioural problems.

“You can assume children under 12 are illegitimately being prescribed these drugs for behaviour problems. It should not be the case,” said University of South Australia’s Assoc Prof in psychiatry Dr Jon Jureidini.

“The vast majority of preschoolers who are prescribed are not for psychotic episodes but for behaviour problems,” he said.

“These drugs are not marketed, or recommended by the TGA, for that use.”

Common medications such as Risperdal, Zyprexa and Abilify are not approved for use in children under five due to the lack of evidence on their safety.

But the TGA has approved Risperdal to treat children with autism.

In 2007-08, almost 10,000 under-18s were prescribed anti-psychotic medication in Australia.

Side-effects can be so severe in adults that elderly patients with dementia are warned they have a higher risk of sudden death.

Read entire article:  http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/victoria/toddlers-given-anti-psychotic-drugs/story-e6frf7kx-1225844491890

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