tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10459981.post129800193988783776..comments2023-09-28T15:35:46.255+01:00Comments on <center>FIDDAMAN BLOG</center>: Meeting with MHRA - The minutesUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10459981.post-24873542972818764832008-11-25T17:20:00.000+00:002008-11-25T17:20:00.000+00:00Great work Bob. When I was withdrawing my GP had v...Great work Bob. When I was withdrawing my GP had very little inormation on what the side effects. Very well put case that hopefully will result in better education of prescribers.<BR/><BR/>CamAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10459981.post-78268734613603541342008-09-12T20:52:00.000+01:002008-09-12T20:52:00.000+01:00I'm very impressed and proud of you Fid! thank you...I'm very impressed and proud of you Fid! thank you, from an advocate and a patient!soulful sepulcherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12271584927611299868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10459981.post-53332883500480324652008-09-10T22:04:00.000+01:002008-09-10T22:04:00.000+01:00"18. RF asked whether the management of withdrawal..."18. RF asked whether the management of withdrawal could be covered in the training of doctors. KW explained the difficulty any organisation would have in influencing medical schools when each school determines its own curriculum."<BR/> I'm glad that this came forth. This is how we nip this problem in the bud. Gary has included SSRi addiction in the Masters of Public Health curriculum at the university of Arizona. I think if it was brought before the medical schools, that at least a few hours could be spent on the dangers of this a a public health issue. The funny thing is, when the docs were asked to look up info on SSRi's, they went to the GSK website...not the best place. Gary showed them how to hunt for info like this that was not one-sided but looked at the issue from all standpoints.<BR/> You take one properly educated doc and think about how many lives can be changed and saved through just a few hours taught in the classroom.<BR/> This is the kind of thing that can be explored.<BR/> Also, when you are given Accutane, a drug here for acne that causes birth defects, increases suicidality, and liver malfunction...they don't let you have the drug for several weeks. You have to fill out a little online test to make sure you are aware of the problems associated with this drug, etc. When you do this properly, your doctor is given a registration number for you and you are able to fill you script with this number. This is an ideal plan...why can't they do this with SSRi's?SHELLYhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13315084956649424962noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10459981.post-89403826813365112742008-09-10T21:33:00.000+01:002008-09-10T21:33:00.000+01:00Great work Fid ! I do hope they are listening and ...Great work Fid ! I do hope they are listening and something finally gets done as there are so many people taking these drugs that sooner or later the bubble will burst and no one will be able to deal with them. I continue to suffer from withdrawl problems 3 years after stopping the drug and the whole experience has been horrific and no doctor has a clue how to help me.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10459981.post-45655649846031826372008-09-10T09:25:00.000+01:002008-09-10T09:25:00.000+01:00Well done, Fid! Although minutes taken at a meetin...Well done, Fid! Although minutes taken at a meeting can never reflect the athmosphere in a room, it seems they were at least willing to listen without being patronizing and that is a big step forward. Trying to make them understand the severity of the problem is a tall order indeed and you´re doing well. Thank you! I believe that awareness must come from countries like the UK with big populations with many victims, a system for patient reporting and therefore a better chance of some day being taken seriously. <BR/><BR/>In addition to the problems discussed at the meeting, there is another one that has to be addressed. Have the MHRA officials and their equivalents across the world, drug makers and doctors thought seriously about how to handle a situation in which a patient has developed really dangerous side effects and simply must come off the drug without tapering to avoid further exposure to the offending toxin? Do they realize how dangerous a cold turkey withdrawal can be? I don´t think they do and they never will unless they start to take the problem seriously by properly examining and monitoring sufferers of physically handicapping withdrawal problems and stop dismissing it as "relapse of depression", "all in their heads", "dizziness and nausea" and "harmless brain zaps". As many people unfortunately have experienced, it can be far worse than that. <BR/><BR/>Hopefully, they will some day soon finally begin to realize there is a real problem with Seroxat and the entire SSRI/SNRI class of drugs even though it will probably take ages before they begin to grasp the personal consequences for the unfortunate victims of a protracted withdrawal that can last for years or maybe even permanently and cause devastating mental, physical and social damage.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10459981.post-58970840731408727622008-09-09T19:38:00.000+01:002008-09-09T19:38:00.000+01:00I think they have been listening for awhile... the...I think they have been listening for awhile... they just haven't been acting.<BR/><BR/>By, at least proposing to contact the BNF is, I think, a major step forward, also agreeing to meet with David Healy.<BR/><BR/>Far too much onus is put on doctor's to help patients through withdrawal, they have no guide, in fact turn to the current page in the BNF and the guidance is very thin. In contrast, the guidance for tapering a patient off benzo's is rather detailed.<BR/><BR/>If this change can be implemented then hopefully doctor's won't wrongfully assume that the patient is suffering from the original illness and will realise that there is a major problem with SSRi withdrawal.<BR/><BR/>The whole Jelly baby thing was to prove how difficult it is to taper off a single tablet, ie; 10mg of Seroxat.<BR/><BR/>I am not sure whether every SSRi offers the liquid - if they don't then they bloody well should.<BR/><BR/>The meeting lasted just over an hour.<BR/><BR/>FidFidhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07329260132388791267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10459981.post-53660407178542549252008-09-09T18:43:00.000+01:002008-09-09T18:43:00.000+01:00Great that you got a meeting with the MHRA . Well ...Great that you got a meeting with the MHRA . Well done. Shows they are beginning to listen at least? how long did the meeting go on for? Seems quite short compared to the SUG one. I still think they are selling patients short, Seroxat should be removed from the market or at least restricted to current users, and those users should be encouraged to wean. I wonder how much Seroxat costs per pill? <BR/><BR/>How much does it cost the NHS a year to prescribe SSRI's to patients? <BR/>Their usual excuse is they prescribe drugs because there is not enough resources or funding for therapists. If an average psychotherapist charges 20 to 30 euro a session, and an average month of SSRI's costs 50 euro , then surely they could switch the money into weekly or monthly psychotherapy?<BR/>How about using therapists and psychologists in training for a cheaper rate? or free services? <BR/><BR/> Their excuses are wearing thin at this stage. We need real, concrete changes for patients. they are talking about 2009 before anything new is implemented. They pass the drugs quickly enough, why do they take so long to respond to crises which they create? It was the same with the Benzo's and its worse now with SSRI's...Truthman30https://www.blogger.com/profile/13472167017897959954noreply@blogger.com