Guest Post - Rip Van Winkle Awakes Surveys the Damage and Seeks Answers

Following on from Mark Carter's two previous guest posts.

Mark's time on SSRi medication should be a stark warning to those considering medication and those who dish it out.

Part I - Guest Post: Like A Lamb to the Slaughter

Part II - Guest Post: Life ‘at’ and Escape ‘from’ Paroxetine Island


Third and final installment...

Rip Van Winkle Awakes Surveys the Damage and Seeks Answers

Hi, my name is Mark and I am a recovering drug addict.

Even qualifying it by saying I was made a ‘drug addict by stealth’ by my friendly family doctor peddling poisons under a wrapper of fraud lies and deceit doesn't seem to lesson the spiritual heartbreak of this confession. The weight of which I find  difficult to bare at times.

As I write I am now 33 months drug free and yet I still feel like Rip Van Winkle waking up. Withdrawal is like an onion, each month you peel away another layer of drug damage and often you cry.


At 18 months and stabilising I then wrote letters of outcry to major media outlets. I then decided to confront those who did this to me and seek answers. I soon learned that seeking answers from the medical profession was a lost cause for none were to be  found or forthcoming. In fact quite the opposite.

First I presented to psychiatrist Dr SB  at the Te Raphiti Clinic Howick to make an official-in-person complaint regarding Paroxetine.  After having my humanity insulted for 10 years I was now about to have my intelligence insulted.

Seeking an explanation to my withdrawal horror Dr S.B. turned on me and tried to blame it on the Healtheries supplement I had taken. I thought that strange as he was the very one who had said it was O.K. to take. (Part II)

On explaining my sexual damage and trying to get an explanation for it he interrupted me with:

“Have you considered the fact you might have a sexual disease?”

What the … no doubt some kind of Te Raphiti joke!

This disgusting comment was extraordinarily offensive.  He did not ask me one single question regarding my lifestyle before throwing this insult at me. He clearly had no idea who he was talking to. Then when I tabled a research document by Dr David Healy, he refused to engage in it and immediately stood up and said, 

“Right I am discharging you back to your doctor now”

I was now convinced it was Dr SB by name but Dr BS by nature!


I then decided I would make a complaint regarding my plight to the Health and Disability Commissioner (HDC) and went to advise family doctor Dr W of this and to also voice  my concerns regarding Paroxetine and seek from him an explanation to my very serious sexual damage. When I told him he had chemically castrated me. He dismissively replied:

 “Well, what do you want me to do about it...look I’ve got other patients waiting to see me...you have got psychological issues, I am referring you to the psychiatrist.”

It was now that I decided he did not deserve to be my Health Care Provider any longer so I immediately found a new one.

His parting comments:

“So do you think I shouldn’t prescribe SSRIs then?”, and “I would never have given you something I thought would have harmed you.” , were very revealing!

It is amazing what a letter of complaint to the HDC can do for 3 months later Dr W was in two newspapers singing a new song ‘Fewer Pills, better Life’ and ‘Pill-popping ends’. This turnaround was extraordinary. These stories are freely available to all.

‘Pill-popping ends’

‘Fewer Pills, Better Life’

I then reluctantly went to see the psychiatrist, for one reason and one reason only, and for the same reason I had gone there previously…..to try to get an explanation for my sexual damage, yet knowing full well they would just play games. I wasn't disappointed. Not happy with Dr B.S.‘s previous comments I requested to talk to someone else. I soon realised it was going to be another session of sick comedy when Dr Z. T. (Zero Truth) started off by claiming he had never heard of PSSD! I personally find this statement unbelievable especially since Eli Lilly have added PSSD to their prescribing information.

Here is Dr Z T explanation for my sexual damage;

I asked, “Is it going to improve because it seems to me like it’s been 2 years and it seems to be diminishing you know… I just want to know if it’s coming back or its  going to be permanent.”

Dr Z T from New York on secondment to the Te Raphiti Mental Health Clinic, Highland Park, Howick replied...

“Well I think the other factor that has to be considered here is age, now I  have the advantage or disadvantage of being older than you are and I know that ahhh  desires tend to diminish with age, so there’s that, and then there is also … circumstances I have to tell you that one thing I appreciate about New Zealand culture and on the other hand I have to say is quite different from the States is, there is very little sexual provocation around here women tend not to dress sexually whereas in the States if you are on the sidewalks of New York probably every 10th woman you would be looking at because she is dressed provocatively and have…. so the demure in which you are has a lot to do with it and one of the ways we know this is that ahhh because ahhh stories about Catholic priests and sexual abuse aside, when people dedicate themselves to the monastic life ahhh their  testosterone levels go down measured in this more accurate way as I’ve described um… so…. so  the prognosis here in part  depends  on whether or not you are reacting to age whether or not you are getting sexual stimulation apart from manual and um… and then  there’s the whole question of what role sex plays  for you psychologically ahhhh and um  to what degree  is that bound up in intimacy and that gets to be very complicated, there are some people who don’t have sex unless they are  feeling really close to another person, and there are other people for whom being close to another person is in fact somewhat of a turn off that’s why there are all these people who are married and have mistresses, (said with short subtle nervous giggle), so it can get very complicated and I can’t give you a prognosis!” 

For the audio click here.

It is high time the medical profession woke up and smelled what they are shoveling. This explanation is typical of the self-protecting, Vomitous, verbal diarrhea which exudes from  so called doctors. No doubt these people are actually intelligent yet they sure seem hell bent on doing all they can to prove otherwise! Is it any wonder patients are clueless about what is going on. And if doctors are not vomiting forth nonsense then their self-protecting silence is deafening.

Dr Z T was visibly physically repulsed at my suggestion that he try Paroxetine refusing to consider such an idea, finally giving this explanation as to why he would not try it:

“I would not take anything without googling it first” 

If only I had been so wise. It is obvious he wasted his money going to Medical School. He could have clearly put his skills and money to better use by investing in and working at a second hand car dealership. Dr Z.T.  refused to talk sensibly and engage in discussing researched facts for when I tabled truths regarding GSK and Paroxetine he stood up and said “well you are clearly not interested in our help”. Funny he didn't even suggest anything. “I’m leaving the room now” and he left refusing to talk to me, refusing to come back into the room, and leaving me in the room with two observing students! Let me just say that Dr Z T’s behaviour  was the most unprofessional, childish, immature, rude display I had ever witnessed from anyone in the workplace ever.

I then walked to the Managers office, made a complaint and then left. Interestingly I mentioned to the Manager that Dr BS had previously advised me that they do not prescribe Paroxetine at this clinic and yet the Manager said “that is not correct because we do”…oh boy! There are many who cannot get off paroxetine. Why is this? Well for a start doctors are totally misinformed of the potent nature of this poison. Secondly many, unlike myself, are unable to put aside 3 years of their life to spend hours daily lying on the floor in a foetal position with uncontrollable-sobbing-anxiety crying out to God to take them, while being hit with wave upon wave of traumatizing drug induced suicidal ideations.

In some ways Rip Van Winkle has awoken yet feels he has morphed into a Teletubby, same bloated stomach look, same distorted gait, same difficulty accessing vocab from  brain and (no offense to Lala, Po, Dipsy, and Tinky Winky)  same sexual (in)ability.

I say it is a miracle I am still alive after surviving this hell as such I speak for the dead in order to protect the living. I am gravely concerned that adverse reactions are being greatly underestimated by the public, the medical profession and the regulatory authorities. As such I believe a public health problem of epidemic proportions is unfolding in this nation or for that matter worldwide.To those working as pimps for pharma I would like to say...

“The prescribing of Paroxetine/Aropax/Seroxat/Paxil/Loxamine/any other name this evil poison is hiding behind and its evil cousins (including Venlafaxine/Effexor) must be stopped!”

It is time for Medical Professionals to wise up, man up, own up, stand up and speak up!

Thank you for reading my story and thank you to Bob Fiddaman for being a voice for the voiceless.

Regards

Mark Carter( Poisoned, ruined and sexually destroyed by an SNRI and SSRI)

BSc (Maths), BAppSc (Psych), Dip.(Psych), Dip.(Health and Human Behaviour), Dip.(Primary Tchg), Dip.(Bus), Dip.(Tesol), Cert.(Tesol), Cert.(Applied Theology).

Pending: Dip.(Applied Mental Health), Unfinished: Actuarial degree, BCom, and BTheol.


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If you would like to write a guest post for this blog then please email by using the contact tab at the top of this blog.


Bob Fiddaman
                                                                                        

Guest Post: Life ‘at’ and Escape ‘from’ Paroxetine Island

The hell of Aropax withdrawal

Following on from Part I [Like a Lamb to the Slaughter] of Mark's trilogy of guest posts.

This post sees Mark describe the frustrations and hardships of withdrawing from GlaxoSmithKline's Aropax, known in the UK as Seroxat and in the US and Canada as Paxil.

Life ‘at’ and Escape ‘from’ Paroxetine Island [PI]

Life at Paroxetine Island(PI) can only really  be described in hindsight and with insight once one has spent time back on the mainland and drug-free. Here are some observations:

• On arrival at PI one has all motivation, passion, spontaneity and confidence taken away and one is given yawning, fatigue and indecisiveness 24/7 in exchange.
• On my 1st night at PI I experienced the most real, horrific and terrifying dream of my life. It involved my death. At the time I was clueless as to what caused this.
• Like creeping mold is to the internal walls of a house in winter so too was paroxetine to my brain. It was a slow, insidious takeover of not just my brain but also my soul. Dulling my emotions and senses, and even when the wallpaper started falling off I was clueless as to the cause.
• My quality of life grew worse and worse, as I became more and more removed from reality.
• Life was sucked out of me and I was no longer living I was simply existing.
• I became a loner and yet I wasn't lonely.
• Much time and effort was spent fighting back evil intrusive thoughts, thoughts that did not belong to me, thoughts that were extraordinarily immoral, offensive and almost audible in my mind beckoning me towards self-destructive behaviour. Thoughts that were demonic in nature.
• Personality and behavioural changes occur on PI perhaps best described as a severing of the conscience.
• Loss of feelings and caring occurred, a total disconnect from reality. The mantra of PI was:
•  ‘So what, who cares’! And I was soon singing it.
• An early attempt to break free and swim to the mainland resulted in such psychological, emotional horror and panic I rushed back to my doctor and asked to go back to PI. I was sent back no questions asked. 
• Despite promising to never swim away again several more failed attempts to escape left me in a state of learned helplessness, a massive major paradigm shift now occurred in my being. I now believed that I needed to be on Paroxetine Island!
• One day I learned of a person who had escaped from PI and swum back to the mainland. I became very envious, jealous even!
• I was now determined that I too would get back to the mainland. Little did I know that I was about to start a 3-year traumatizing nightmare, a journey through ‘Hell,’ that was going to require every ounce of strength to survive, fighting for my life, daily. 

My Escape from Paroxetine Island (PI)

I would like to start by just saying that my escape from PI was the most difficult thing I've ever done in my life. No non-poisoned-by-an-SSRI-brain can conceive, imagine, or understand the traumatising nature of this ordeal.

• I presented to my doctor in January 10, after 10 years use, wanting to get off paroxetine. His reply “okay come off slowly”, and sent me on my way. (Absolutely criminal!)
• I had no idea what slowly was. But decided to start to alternate doses 20 mg one day and 10 mg the next.
• After 6 months I was on 10 mg and in a distraught state.
• The distress drove me to seek counselling, yet it offered no relief. Except lighten my wallet.
• At 9 months and on 5 mg feeling death would be a welcome relief I reluctantly presented to my Doctor (Dr W), only to be told I had an underlying depression and I needed to up dose. At this point I realised Dr W was clueless. I replied, ‘that is not right’. He referred me to a psychiatrist Dr S.B.
• Confused, distraught, frustrated, and in a very dark place, somehow knowing deep down something was not right here but what could it be, I confided in the neighbouring pharmacist. He leaned over and quietly whispered, “Mark I’m not supposed to tell you this but it’s not you it’s the drug”.
• It was like a light switch was flicked, the light bulb went on, I came to my senses. Of course it’s not me, it’s the drug! It was the damn drug! How could I have been so stupid! Words cannot describe the humiliation that started to flood my being followed by anger and disbelief.
• I immediately started digging, and stumbled upon an SSRI addict’s and survivors support group. I realised I had found a place ‘sought by millions but found by few’. I owe my life to them.
• On asking the psychiatrist Dr S.B. if he was aware of any problems with people getting off Paroxetine  he replied, “Well if there were problems with people getting off paroxetine people would be suing the drug companies” [I was later to realize this was a Dr who clearly had his initials around the wrong way].
• He also okay’d a Healtheries supplement I wanted to take to try to get some relief. I was sent on my way. I now realised I was on my own.
• I broke free of PI on 28 September 2010.
• The 9 month taper down and the next 2 years drug free was hell. The nightmare I had to suffer (believe me to call it a nightmare is an understatement) coming off this drug had nothing to do with me and everything to do with this drug!
• I wouldn't want my worst enemy to go through this. I was unable to function experiencing daily uncontrollable restless anxiety, endless crying and drug induced suicidal ideations starting from 6 a.m. lasting throughout the day and receding somewhat in the evening. I felt as if I was being psychologically and emotionally raped daily. This withdrawal horror went on for almost 3 years, with the drug induced withdrawal hell pushing me for months to cut my wrists, then for months it tried to get me to hang myself, then it wanted me to shoot myself, and if that wasn't enough drive my car into oncoming traffic. I still remember the day I fought off an overwhelming desire to jump off a bridge.
• These drugs are not given to patients under 18 because they cause suicide …well if my experience is anything to go by they should extend the relabeling ban to those under 50!
• In order to get through this hell alive I dragged several family members so far into emotional overdraft I will never be able to repay them. You can forget being able to hold down a job during this ordeal it’s a battle to just survive each day.
• I so much wanted to reinstate to take the horror away, yet I was driven by a sense of unbelievable anger and humiliation to not do so. Often chanting back ‘it’s not me it’s the drug’ when waves of hell flooded me.
• All I wanted was an opinion on my sore arm, I never consented to this.
• At about 18 months drug free I felt the shark infested waters start to recede, a few months later I washed ashore onto the mainland, exhausted, traumatized and in total disbelief that I was still alive.
• I felt like Rip Van Winkle coming to after being placed in a living coma becoming acutely aware of the damage done to me, waking up in shock and disbelief.
• Let there be no mistake about it, if I was an enemy combatant and the NZ army did this to me, someone would have been dragged to the Hague and jailed for this! 
• Hippocratic Oath…..Yeah Right!
• I was determined to get an explanation for this insult to my humanity an answer for something no human should have to endure.

Mark Carter NZ

Coming soon Part III

Bob Fiddaman

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Guest Post: Like A Lamb to the Slaughter

As this blog grows I get more and more requests from readers asking if they can write a guest post. This has proved very popular and gives a chance for people, patients to vent... none more so than the author of this post, Mark Carter.

As you will learn, Mark is yet another victim of the over prescribing of psychiatric medication, another victim of off-label prescribing.

Mark's story... and this is just part 1 of 3, is nothing new. Thousands, if not millions, of unsuspecting patients are, within minutes, walking out of consultation rooms with pills that are nothing more than loaded bullets. They are being diagnosed with ailments, in Mark's case sore wrists and arms, and then prescribed drugs that have no indication to treat the diagnosis.

This is, sadly, on-going globally.

Mark is from Auckland, New Zealand.

Here's part I of his story.

Like A Lamb To The Slaughter - Part I

I have decided to do a posting for Bobs blog for the following  reasons:

1. It’s not acceptable to me, for SSRi’s  especially paroxetine [Seroxat, Paxil, Aropax] and including venlafaxine [Effexor] to continue to be on the market.

2. It is my wish that these drugs be exposed for what they truly are; toxins that disrupt and chemically damage the brain and body.

3. I feel morally obligated to communicate to the general public the dangers of these poisons , as I have been grievously injured by taking and subsequently discontinuing them,

4. A dangerous, negligent and appalling level of ignorance from doctors who have thoroughly hoodwinked patients into believing black is white, and  from whom no one has a chance of being informed of the truth.

5. I have nothing to hide only devastation to human life to expose

6. If I can stop one person from taking an SSRI or its evil cousins then its been worth it.


It all began in the summer of 2000. In December I presented to an Occupational Specialist Doctor D. with sore wrists and arms from keyboard overuse at my work site.

I was a 37 year old single, cheerful, happy, sports loving, opera chorus singing male. I had never smoked, drunk alcohol, or taken any drugs prior. I also had never had any psychological issues.

I was diagnosed with chronic pain syndrome and given what I now know to be a smorgasbord of poisons.

At the time I was like a lamb to the slaughter, naive, trusting and oblivious to oncoming danger.

I asked the right questions as anyone would, are these addictive, are there any side-effects?

I left assured they were not addictive but  may find they give me a dry mouth.

I was also assured they would heal my arm.

Arrived home that day with canisters of amitriptyline, nortriptyline, venlafaxine, and paroxetine . I was told nothing regarding tapering down or not stopping abruptly.

I never felt comfortable with the diagnosis of chronic pain syndrome. The term at the time was repetitive strain injury or occupational overuse syndrome.

I also was filled with dread at being sent back to a job that I clearly could not do any longer. I clearly had an injury in my hand in which pain and an inability to type was amplified when using a keyboard and receded when not using the keyboard.

I was told to take a course of each drug and if no benefit move onto the next one.

I was totally unaware that I was about to expose myself to some of the most dangerous addictive mind-numbing soul destroying potent body damaging chemicals ever manufactured for human consumption.

I was totally unaware of the nature or the toxic effects of venlafaxine and paroxetine.

In hindsight I felt pressured to take these drugs, I mean not taking anything was never a tabled option.

I worked my way through the drugs, on starting the venlafaxine I immediately started getting  floaters in my eyes. I was clueless. I also recall being incredibly fatigued, my walking became labored. I rang Dr D at the time from my former work site regarding  the struggle to cope and was told to double the dose. Not long after this, my employer, as I could no longer use a keyboard, fired me.

As I no longer had to bare  a workload and didn't really want to take drugs I  quit cold turkey the venlafaxine, as one would with a so-called non-addictive drug that was doing nothing except fatigue me.

What I didn't know at the time,  but I do now, is Dr D had persuaded me to take a sequence of drugs not authorized for use for my injury. He had in fact persuaded me to participate in the off-label use of the drugs and did it by obtaining my uninformed consent.

Shortly after this I started to manifest an uncontrollable anxiety, a kind of  psychological panic, a distressed tearful state. There was something clearly wrong with me and something I had never experienced before.

I was clueless as to the cause of this, and thought it may be due to some external stresses at that time.

Concerned  I now presented tearful agitated and confused to my family Doctor W of 20 years,… like a lamb to the slaughter. I can still remember my exact words at the time.

“There is something wrong with me, I don’t know what it is, you know me I’m so against the taking of drugs, but do you think I need something for this.”

Without any hesitation, enquiry or diagnostic checklist I was presented with a prescription for paroxetine 20 mg per day and sent on my way assured it was not addictive, safe and may cause a little weight gain.

And that was to be the start of a 10 year drug addiction with a sore arm somehow morphing into a drug induced 'mental illness'.

Stuck on paroxetine-Island only to be met by psychological and emotional shark infested waters every time I tried to leave.

And in addition totally unaware that I was now exposing myself to a slow chemical castration.

Mark Carter - New Zealand

Part II Coming Soon


If you would like to write a guest post then I can be contacted via the 'Contact' tab at the top of this blog.


Bob Fiddaman

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Adult ADHD - The Comic

I've heard about adult ADHD before, never really took much notice as I honestly thought that grown-ups wouldn't be taken in by such mumbo-jumbo. I didn't even know [my naivety] that adult ADHD was being promoted here in New Zealand - kind of makes sense that it is though seeing as the NZ government tackle everyday emotions with drugs. Quit smoking - try Champix - Depressed - Try an SSRi.

Adult ADHD is, it has to be said, one of the more ridiculous mental disorders to hit the streets and make the pharmaceutical industry even richer.

Yesterday, whilst sitting in the waiting room of a doctor's surgery, I was thumb twiddling, bored out of my mind as the only magazines available to read were trashy gossip types, you know the kind, the close-up paparazzi shots of actresses in their mid thirties who [shock-horror] have rings under their eyes or a crease or two on their thighs.

Not one for reading about rings and creases I turned my attention to the array of brochures lining the waiting room wall. Two in particular caught my attention, one was a quit smoking brochure, the other 'Adult ADHD'.

The quit smoking brochure was basically promoting Champix, the smoking cessation drug that can make you want to kill yourself. I've highlighted the whole Champix promotion here in New Zealand in a previous post [see - Sometimes the New Zealand Government Get It Wrong]

In this post I will focus on the second brochure I picked up yesterday. [See Fig 1 and 2]

I was giggling to myself whilst reading the 'science' or lack of. There's even a test adults can take to seek help from their doctor if they score 4 or more out of the 6 questions provided.

I took the test, hey I had nothing better to do and I found it more entertaining than reading about creases and rings on the latest celebrity to be dragged down from a pedestal she never wanted to be on in the first place.

I scored 4 and the brochure recommends that I make an appointment to see my doctor.

Yikes! I may have adult ADHD - How on earth did I get this mental disorder?

Well the brochure tells me, in no uncertain terms, that adult ADHD may be a result of my kids having ADHD?

Now, I'm confused? My kids don't have ADHD, although if they had taken any of the tests designed to make them have ADHD then I'm sure the brochure would have reeled me in.

Okay, so my kids don't have it, how come I do?

According to the brochure common symptoms of adult ADHD are:

Difficulty in relationships - Yup, myself and Maria do have our disagreements and, hey, I was divorced many years ago due to having difficulties in a relationship - They got me.

Difficulty in starting complex tasks and completing tasks - Um, does that include putting a shelf up or prepping a wall to be plastered? If so, they got me again.

Increased incidence of car accidents/traffic violations - well, I don't drive but I do cross the road without using pedestrian crossings - I think that's called Jaywalking in America - maybe it's now been deemed as a mental disorder? You laugh but almost everything else is so why not Jaywalking?

Lack of organisation - Oops, they got me again. I couldn't organise a drinks festival in a brewery!

Apparently, when compared with adults who don't have adult ADHD, I may have higher rates of anxiety, depression and substance use disorders. I'm doomed, doomed I tell ya.

Fear not, the brochure tells me some important news, a lovely big green box with bold white writing tells me, "While ADHD cannot be cured, medication and behaviour management strategies can help to control the symptoms associated with ADHD."

Oh yippie! I'm saved... saved I tell ya.

Okay, so how did I get this brain disorder? - I know it's a brain disorder because the brochure tells me so.

"ADHD is a brain disorder that can cause hyperactivity, impulsivity and difficulties paying attention"

Oh, someone just walked in the waiting room with a limp....

Dang it there goes my concentration.

The brochure continues with the science behind adult ADHD:

"It is estimated that 4% of adults in the US have ADHD" - Golly, must be something they put in the water, right? Anyway, I live in New Zealand and drink rain water [through a filter of course]

"If this rate of occurance is true for NZ", according to the brochure, "this means that approximately 86,000 adults between the ages of 18 and 50 years of age have ADHD."

Gadzooks!

Furthermore, the brochure tells me:

"ADHD is a highly heritable disorder, and approximately 20% of parents of children with ADHD have ADHD themselves."

The test is based around six questions, the answers range from never to very often. You can take the test yourself, just click on Fig 2.

I have to say the whole brochure kept me entertained and lifted my boredom whilst sitting for almost an hour in the waiting room - very uncomfortable on those hard plastic chairs that I found myself fidgeting a lot, ironically that's yet another symptom of ADHD.

The 6 question test that appeared in the brochure, called 'The Adult ADHD Self Report Scale Screener' [ASRS] is copyrighted to the World Health Organisation [WHO]

The information sourced in the brochure comes courtesy of Janssen Pharmaceuticals. Janssen manufacture and market Concerta [methylphenidate], a drug used for ADHD.

The brochure may fall into the hands of someone who actually believes the garbage written within it. How often do people get emails telling them they have won the Nigerian lottery? Many of us do, but many of us recognise that it's just a scam - sadly there's a small percentage sucked in and it's those that often part with money to release the lottery winnings from the Bank of Umberjaja.

This brochure was written in exactly the same way as those Nigerian email scams. They were designed to target the vulnerable, to make those vulnerable people believe that, a; they could have something and b; they just needed to part with some cash to get to that something.

That's pretty much how the pharmaceutical industry work - they plant the seed then offer the remedy. They offer no science but selective science. They'll gather 50 or so studies on ADHD, cherry pick all the bits that benefit them and bury the bits that would actually benefit the patient.

If written in the 1970's, early 80's this brochure would have made a great skit for the 'Not the Nine O'Clock News' team. Messrs Atkinson, Smith, Jones and Stephenson wouldn't have needed to work out a funny routine, the brochure is basically the screenplay.

I've used 'Not the Nine O'Clock News' as an example because the brochure reminds me so much of the 'Constable Savage' skit performed by Rowan Atkinson and Griff Rhys Jones. It's so ludicrously absurd that one has to laugh at the belief.

Constable Savage [Jones] likes to take the law into his own hands. This is frowned upon by his Sergeant [Atkinson]. It's not difficult to make comparisons here.

The comedic brochure, complete with The Adult ADHD Self Report Scale Screener, is below.

Fig 1

Fig 2

Bob Fiddaman

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Annette Beautrais and the New Zealand Suicide Problem

Annette Beautrais - 'Expert' in Suicidology

A report released in New Zealand last week has shown that almost 25,000 children have been diagnosed with behavioural and emotional problems. The percentage of children with diagnosed mental health conditions jumped from 1.8 per cent to 3.2 per cent since 2007-08. See Number of 'anxious' kids skyrockets

The NZ government have, like most governments, been duped.