Anyway, I digress.
PLUS Perth, Angus Voices and the Dundee Healthy Minds Network have recently been involved in a discussion after each watching the critically acclaimed documentary/film, Medicating Normal (See review here)
The discussion panel consisted of representatives from the above mentioned, namely; Beverley Thomson, writer, speaker and researcher; Dr. Dan Fisher, psychiatrist and person with lived experience of recovery from schizophrenia; Dr. Dainius Pūras, Professor of Child Psychiatry and Public Mental Health at Vilnius University; Susan Scott, development manager at Plus Perth, Mick Rattray, musician, and Angela Peacock, who appears in Medicating Normal. The discussion was moderated by Nicole Lamberson.
It's not easy listening to how lives have been shattered but one does come accustomed to it. Being a blogger and researcher for over 16 years, I've heard/read many first hand accounts, many similar to my own experiences on, and withdrawing from, GSK's 'miracle pill', Seroxat (Paxil)
Groups such as those featured in the video (below) have so many commonalities. They were brought together because they encountered similar experiences. They, after years of being told they had something wrong with them, all reached a point of Eureka after researching the prescribed drugs they were given, some by choice, some by accident. They are part of a club that has grown considerably over the years as more and more laypeople question the efficacy and safety of psychiatric drugs (brain pellets).
It's a tragedy, that despite there being thousands upon thousands of similar stories, people who have never experienced brain pellet harm, be it personally or witnessing a loved one going through withdrawal hell, seem apathetic to the problem. Medicating Normal isn't a movie being directed toward those who sing from the same hymn book, it's directed at those who choose, for whatever reason, to shrug their shoulders and continue about their daily routines of posting photos of their dinner on Facebook and Twitter.
So, how can we tap into the psyche of the apathy crowd? - Making movies about personal experiences is one way, writing blogs is another, forming groups that put these horrendous accounts into the public domain and also discussions. Talk, talk, talk! Write, write, write! Eventually the apathy crowd, which includes prescribers, coroners and pharmacists, will have to sit up and pay attention.
There has been quite a campaign in recent years to stifle the voices of those harmed by brain pellets. Those who prescribe after assessing patients refuse to see the damage they are doing - prescribed harm is often dismissed as anecdotal or conspiracy - the latest trend, on Twitter at least, is that those who speak out about their experiences on brain pellets are part of an antipsychiatry cult.
It's quite laughable but a normal human reaction, I guess. I mean, who wants to go to bed at night knowing they may have caused suffering to another human being? A defence mechanism kicks in and those that do wrong convince themselves that they are doing right. With no logical explanation, they create a façade in the hope that others in their profession will promote. It buries the problem and clears the conscience of the problematic pill-pushers.
The discussion below hits home in so many ways for me. Patient has depression - Patient is given brain pellet - Patient still depressed - Patient given another brain pellet brand. Patient develops side effects - Patient told it's another disorder - Patient given another brand of brain pellet - and so the cycle continues.
Polydrugging is papering over the mistakes made by the prescriber, nothing more, nothing less.
The quote, "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results", is often attributed to Einstein.
When we hear or read about experiences of those harmed by drugs on top of drugs, it's quite easy to see who the insane ones are. It certainly isn't the flowers of Scotland featured in this video.
I salute you all.
Here's the discussion:
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