Truth or Fiction: What are Parents to Believe?

This post is the second in a series, from Kristina Kaiser Gehrki, that started with “When a Stranger Calls.” It explores the active role pharma-funded “patient advocacy” organizations play in creating and delivering school-based mental health education targeting children.

“The truth.” Dumbledore sighed. “It is a beautiful and terrible thing and should, therefore, be treated with great caution.” – Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

Parents in Fairfax County, Virginia tend to be affluent and well educated. The 2016 US Census found the median household annual income is more than $114K, and 60% of adults age 25 and older hold a bachelor’s degree or higher.

Well-paying jobs and well-rated schools help attract families to the region. Every high school in the Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) district has been “designated among the most demanding public schools in the country” and the county’s magnate program, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology, ranks in the top ten of all US high schools. Fairfax parents often spend money for private services (music lessons, tutoring, counseling, etc.) in anticipation they might improve their children’s academic and emotional wellbeing. Therefore, I was unsurprised to see a large turnout at the 5th annual FCPS Mental Health and Wellness Conference.

My work with FCPS spanned more than a decade. The district first hired me as an independent communication consultant. Shortly after, I was hired “in-house” as a central office communication specialist. Later I became a marketing teacher coordinator because I missed working directly with children. I am very familiar with the inner workings of FCPS from district headquarters to individual schools. However, I had never previously attended this annual conference.

Before I discuss the instructional content taught at the conference, it is important to convey some background info that helped spark its creation. For decades, the school district had draconian disciplinary policies ranging from silly to tragic. FCPS made the national news in 2009 when a high school at which I taught suspended and sought the permanent expulsion of a teenage girl who took her birth control pill at lunchtime. The FCPS disciplinary actions made the national comedy show, the Colbert Report. Another student was denied school attendance for nearly two months because she had her acne medication in her locker.

These FCPS disciplinary procedures received attention from the American Civil Liberties Union given that students who were suspected of wrongdoing were routinely interrogated by school administrators and police officers assigned to each school. When principals suspected students of possible wrongdoing, it was common practice to call students into the principal’s office, hold them for hours, deny them a phone call to their parents, and fail to explain any possible Miranda-type Rights. School administrators sometimes told students if they wrote and signed confessions of wrongdoing, the school district would “go easy on them.” Often the adults’ promises of leniency in exchange for students’ cooperation were never honored and many students who signed incriminating personal statements received the maximum district punishment allowable.

The consequences and related downward spiral for two other FCPS students punished for wrongdoing were tragic. The high school boys were suspended and expelled from their neighborhood schools and, understandably, struggled with the resulting shame caused by being ostracized and alienated from their friends. The Fairfax school district stated the boys could face possible arrest if they should ever step foot on their former school’s property at any time to include weekends. This meant the students, both football players and one who was described as a “model student,” could never again attend a sporting event, high school dance or any other social activity at their former school at which their friends would be. Both boys became depressed after their involuntary transfers and both later ended their lives. One of the sessions offered at the FCPS conference I attended was presented by the Josh Anderson Foundation, created in memory of one of these two FCPS students who died.

ADHD: A Sharp Increase in Diagnosis

Given FCPS' long history of severe punishments that failed to use restorative justice principles to help children learn and grow from mistakes, I really wanted to attend the session titled, "Resilience and Thriving: The Secret Power of Stress." But I just couldn't do it considering the ironic title in relationship to the district's not-so-distant past. Instead, I attended two other sessions both of which featured the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD). The first was titled, “Community Resources for Families and Youth.” Instructors included the Executive Director of the National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI) northern Virginia office, a representative from CHADD’s northern Virginia chapter and another representative from an organization for foster and adopted children.

Some information parents and teachers learned in this session included:

•  ADHD is a serious disorder that has a neurobiological and neurochemistry basis.
• If financial means is a deterrent to have children assessed for ADHD and other DSM disorders, parents can ask the school system for screening/services and some external services are free or provided at discounted rates depending upon family income.
• ADHD diagnosis should not be based on children’s self-reporting of symptoms because “evidence” shows children’s perceptions don’t always correspond with the cognitive and functional disabilities professionals can best identify during objective assessment.
• If teachers share with school personnel their concerns about students possibly having a disorder like, say, ADHD, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act includes “Child Find” which federally mandates that schools locate, identify and evaluate all children with disabilities from birth to age 21.
• CHADD publicizes ADHD as a life-span disorder. The presenter at this FCPS session repeatedly stressed ADHD is also an adult disorder. CHADD has a poster illustrating this life-span disorder approach. 
• CHADD, which bills itself as the National Resource on ADHD, offers a Teacher-to-Teacher program purported to have “expert educators” to help teachers understand ADHD.

Some information parents and teachers did not learn from this session:

• CHADD’s 2013/14 report states it is “increasing service related programs such as Parent to Parent and Teacher to Teacher. These strategies are focused on increasing revenues…” 
• The number of US children and teens receiving a diagnosis of ADHD increased by 43% from 2003 to 2011. 
• The chances of a child being diagnosed with ADHD and prescribed ADHD drugs are related to the state in which the child resides. For example, children living in Kentucky are three times more likely to be labeled with ADHD than are children living in Nevada.
• Boys are three times more likely to be labeled with ADHD than are girls.
• 25% of children in preschool who have been diagnosed with ADHD are being given drugs and receiving no talk therapy or other behavioral interventions. 
• The United Nations International Narcotics Control Board (INCB) expressed concerns about CHADD’s active lobbying for the use of Ritalin for children labeled with ADHD while being heavily funded by the makers of Ritalin. INCB said this promotion of sales of an internationally controlled substance could be identified as covert advertising and charged CHADD with being a vehicle for marketing a controlled substance directly to the public in violation of the Controlled Substances Act of 1971. 
• Ritalin maker, Ciba-Geigy (now Novartis) admitted CHADD was their conduit to the public. CHADD and National Institutes of Mental Health personnel were regular visitors at the Department of Education office of Special Education authoring ADHD materials.
• American taxpayers are also funding CHADD given that two federal agencies, The Center for Disease Control (CDC) and the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD) each donated $500,000 or more to CHADD this year.

Before this session ended, I asked the instructor how CHADD was able to offer so many parent and teacher programs, some of which include free dinner. She said CHADD operated through donations and grants. Pharmaceutical companies were never mentioned.

The reality is CHADD’s top corporate donors are pharmaceutical companies. Shire Pharmaceuticals, makers of several ADHD drugs, contributed a minimum of $100,000 to $299,999 in 2018. In 2014 the US Justice Department announced Shire pharmaceuticals paid $56.5 million to resolve civil allegations that it violated the False Claims Act as a result of its marketing and promotion of several drugs to include Adderall XR and Vyvanse, both marketed for ADHD. 

Next in line is Supernus Pharmaceuticals donating $25,000 to $99,999 to CHADD in 2018. Supernus began as a US subsidiary of Shire and is currently “developing multiple candidates in psychiatry to address significant unmet medical needs in the treatment of Impulsive Aggression (IA) and for the treatment of ADHD.” CHADD’s total pharmaceutical-related funding for 2018 is much more given that in 2009, CHADD took more than $1.5 million from pharmaceutical companies alone, roughly 36% of its total 2009 revenues. This includes pharma funds for advertising.

The third top CHADD corporate donor in 2018 is Akili Interactive, a company that develops video games marketed to help treat children diagnosed with ADHD. I’m including Akili’s $25,000 to $99,999 donation to CHADD as a pharmaceutical-related donor, however, because Shire is directly invested in Akili. In addition to the monetary investment, Shire worked closely with Akili to structure and launch the first clinical study of the Project: EVO™ billed as a cognitive measurement product in pediatric ADHD. This week in typical FDA and industry revolving-door fashion, Akili announced it has hired former FDA and Pfizer employee, Dr. Anil Jina, as head of medical affairs preparing to “launch its first digital medicine and drive the aggressive expansion of its pipeline.”

Educate Before You Medicate

Reading the description of the second session gave me some hope. Titled, “Educate Before You Medicate," the session description stated: “Prescription medication are being more widely used among children. However, medications alone will not improve the health of children. Learn about the proper use of common medications and lifestyle changes to help keep children healthy.” The instructor held a doctorate in pharmacy and his bio stated he is a healthcare consultant, entrepreneur and patient advocate.

We viewed the instructor’s PowerPoint which shared data about how to safely store medications, a brief overview of nutrition, and common prescription drugs that are sometimes abused by teens. I waited for some information about adverse drug effects, particularly data that pertained to children and teens, but this info wasn’t part of the presentation.

Some information parents and teachers learned in this session included:

• “Most medications used to treat mental illnesses such as depression, bipolar and others take an average time of 4 to 6 weeks before these drugs are the most effective.”
• Many mental illnesses have a biochemical basis.
• People need to stick with their medication plan and should not stop taking their medication.

Near the end of class, the instructor asked attendees for questions or comments. A parent started asking questions about psychiatric drugs and side effects, specifically inquiring about Zoloft. Out of respect for privacy, I won’t share the gender of this parent or their child’s. The worried parent shared frustrations about the teen’s deterioration. The parent’s frankness surprised me a little given that publicly discussing mental health topics is sometimes seen as a cultural taboo in the parent's country.

The instructor-pharmacist responded to the parent’s questions with something to the effect of “it’s important to discuss these issues and possible side effects with your doctor.” I understood the reasons for his response. Unfortunately, I also understand far too well that doctors are often unable or unwilling to recognize their pharmaceutical interventions have destroyed those they professed to help.

I raised my hand and mentioned akathisia, serotonin toxicity and the FDA Black Box suicide warnings on all SSRIs. I shared the RxISK.org website where adverse effects are reported by actual users. The instructor went over to his laptop and accessed the RxISK website. He then returned to the lectern and shared with the class the Walgreens pharmacy website. He said parents can learn more about individual drugs on this website, adding it was “more reliable” presumably because it was from Walgreens. I replied that I had nothing against Walgreens. (My daughter was a college freshman and worked in the Walgreens beauty department at the time of her death). I pointed out that the Walgreens website likely only contains the drug info provided by drug makers and not by actual drug consumers. If parents look for information about Zoloft on the Walgreens website the instructor provided, they will not learn about akathisia. Further, the FDA Black Box warning is not readily apparent on the Walgreens Zoloft homepage and users must click an additional link to find this warning. Parents and teachers will also not find akathisia info on the CHADD and NAMI websites the FCPS conference instructors praised as valuable resources.

During his presentation, the instructor promoted NAMI. When class ended, he encouraged us to take a NAMI handout before we left.

Some information parents and teachers did not learn from this session:

• US FDA Black Box warning info, suicidality as an adverse drug effect and Informed Consent was not part of the prepared instruction
• A significant percentage of NAMI’s funding is from pharmaceutical companies. Exact funding amounts are obfuscated given NAMI’s broad donation categories of “$5,000 or more.” However, a US Senate investigation into NAMI’s conflicts of interest determined NAMI took $23 million from pharma between 2006 and 2008. It is reasonable to assume this year NAMI collected more of the same. 
• NAMI’s 2017 annual report has a long list of pharmaceutical “corporate and foundation supporters.” They include Eli Lilly, AstroZeneca, Otsuka America Pharmaceuticals, Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America, Lundbeck, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Allergan and PhRMA (a trade group for the pharmaceutical industry). 
• Pfizer heavily funded NAMI in 2009 when the company was busy illegally promoting the drug, Geodon, for non-approved use in children. Pfizer paid more than $2 billion in criminal and civil fines for pushing their antipsychotic drug onto pediatric, adolescent and geriatric patients for off-label uses. 

One Parent’s Search for Answers

After we left the session, the parent who bravely sought information about drug side effects started telling me about the child’s deterioration. I politely stopped the conversation and asked if it was okay if I tried to "guess" the sequence of events. I asked because I strongly suspected what was happening to this parent’s teenager is similar to what happened to mine. I thought if I could accurately tell this parent the “story” of their child’s demise before being told, it might better encourage the parent to seek out independent and accurate info that could save the teen’s life. I then recounted the adverse effects that ended with my daughter, Natalie’s, prescription-drug-induced death. The parent nodded in agreement as I was speaking.

The parent then shared their family’s lived experience. The teenager was prescribed Zoloft. After starting this SSRI, the teen changed dramatically and started self-harming. New drugs were added and the SSRI dose was increased. The teen subsequently attempted suicide. At the present time, it is unlikely this teen will be able to leave home for college. These symptoms were not part of the teen's original presenting challenges.

I recommended a list of books and online resources for the parent. I spelled out the word akathisia on a piece of paper so that the parent could seek critical mental health and wellness information upon returning home.

"The ancient study of alchemy is concerned with making the Sorcerer's Stone, a legendary substance with astonishing powers. The stone will transform any metal into pure gold. It also produces the Elixir of Life, which will make the drinker immortal.

You know, the Stone was really not such a wonderful thing. As much money and life as you could want! The two things most human beings would choose above all – the trouble is, humans do have a knack of choosing precisely those things that are worst for them." Dumbledore – Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

The third post in this series highlights actions parents, teachers and schools can take to improve and safeguard children’s well-being.

Kristina Kaiser Gehrki is a public health and safety advocate who believes our most important knowledge stems from personal experience. She holds degrees in strategic communication, journalism and education. Her teenage daughter, Natalie, died a prescription-drug-induced death after suffering SSRI adverse drug effects that were undiagnosed by her doctor and improperly treated with SSRI dose increases.

Q&A With Kristina Kaiser Gehrki

Back in April this year my blog reached a milestone. It was the ten year anniversary of when I first launched this blog and as part of its 10 year birthday I decided to run a series of Q&A's with fellow advocates and people who have been part of my 10 year journey. Previous Q&A's can be seen at the foot of Kristina's (Pictured above) Q&A session.

I first became aware of Kristina after I had read the history surrounding her daughter, Natalie, whom at the age of 19 took her life, shortly after her dosage of Zoloft was increased over the telephone by her prescribing physician. Kristina has wrote a two part series for David Healy's blog, RxISK. Kristina's two accounts of her daughter were beautifully written, so much so that it prompted me to leave a message in the comment section of RxISK commending her on her excellent writing skills. (Natalie's Story can be read here & here.)

Some months later I opened my email and saw a message in my inbox from Kristina. I knew straight away who she was as her two accounts about Natalie's prescribed death had penciled her name into my subconscious. I am a fan of writers, those who have the ability to paint pictures with words. Kristina has this ability. This prompted me to ask Kristina to write a guest post for my blog, a post which has attracted over 3,000 views to date and one which has been 'liked' and shared on Facebook hundreds of times. See - Guest Post: Let's Bring Akathisia Out of the Darkness.

Today sees the birthday of her daughter, Natalie, she would have been 23. I feel it's fitting to publish Kristina's Q&A today, much of which will astound you if you are unfamiliar with the background of Natalie's treatment by apparent health care 'professionals'.

Pay particular attention to Kristina's explanation of the state of Virginia's negligence laws - I must admit, these laws are absurd given the number of deaths by prescription drugs throughout America these days.

Also, you HAVE to see Kristina's outstanding delivery to members of an FDA Advisory Panel, a delivery that left FDA employees stunned into complete and utter silence - link to the footage is within Kristina's answers below.

We shall be meeting in person soon and both heading off to Chicago for a showdown with a major pharmaceutical company. We're also going to be sharing stories over a pint or two in her hometown of Virginia, hopefully not in a jazz bar though. More on that in a future post.

Anyway, here's Kristina's Q&A.

Bob Fiddaman.

--

Full Name: Kristina Kaiser Gehrki
Age: 51
Location: Fairfax, Virginia

Natalie

Q: Kristina, Natalie would have been 23 today (Dec 8, 2016), this may be a difficult question, so forgive me if it's painful for you. What is your fondest memory of Natalie?

A: There are so many fond memories it is difficult to choose just one. Natalie was a petite girl with a super-sized laugh and witty sense of humor. Overall, my fondest memory is simply hearing the beautiful sound of my daughter's laughter. It is something I dearly miss.

Natalie often used humor to spotlight the cruel ironies of the world. My fondest specific memory is a letter to the editor she wrote our local paper, the Washington Post. Natalie was sixteen at that time, and the U.S. planned to execute a man whose IQ was so low he was legally “mentally retarded.” Natalie shared her death penalty views and pointed out the absurdity of killing a person who was “mentally retarded.” She said the execution clearly reflected the lowest IQ’s— that of the politicians who made this decision.

I still have her letter and reading it encourages me as I advocate for fully Informed Consent. Informed Consent is a fundamental human right. Consumers have a right to know what they are consuming, whether it’s a genetically-modified tomato or a Black Box drug that can cause violent death. Fully Informed Consent should be provided by prescribing doctors and by pharmacies. It is critical and something we, unfortunately, never received.

Q: What do you say to people who believe that antidepressants are safe and effective?

A: I have several family members who work in the health care field. I am not anti-drug, I am simply pro-information. The fact is “antidepressant” drugs are neither safe nor effective for children. This has, belatedly, been reported in scholarly journals and by some of the few remaining independent journalists. My daughter was prescribed SSRI drugs (Prozac and Zoloft) not for depression but for what the doctor labeled “OCD-like symptoms.” Natalie didn’t receive a specific diagnosis; she was assigned a rather ambiguous billable code that enables doctors to collect insurance money. We asked for a specific diagnosis many times and our questions were often met with excuses. The intense anxiety (Akathisia), confusion, memory loss, change of gait, nausea, etc., Natalie experienced after consuming the products were not presenting symptoms: They were adverse drug reactions.

I’ve learned a lot about unethical pharmaceutical marketing tactics and FDA failures since my daughter’s death. Unfortunately, like many parents who unwittingly gave their children dangerous, ineffective drugs, I learned too many facts far too late, despite that I asked all the right questions I knew to ask. Ironically, my academic and professional background is in communication and marketing. Before Natalie’s death, I presented conference workshops regarding how to communicate crisis and risk. I share this information only to stress that if this tragedy can happen to us, it can happen to anyone. And when I say “tragedy” I am not speaking only of Natalie’s akathisia-induced death. Rather, Natalie was poisoned for many years. Even when she stopped taking the drugs, many of the adverse drug side effects were still present. We simply didn’t recognize then what was happening nor why.

It is difficult if not impossible to recognize signs of adverse drug reactions when consumers are intentionally left in the dark. Several internal memos from Eli Lily (Prozac), Pfizer (Zoloft) and GlaxoSmithKline (Paxil) show these companies knew their respective products were dangerous and no more effective than a sugar pill. The FDA also appears to have known about these risks long before my daughter was ever conceived and before the Black Box warning. Natalie was first prescribed Prozac prior to the Black Box warning. The FDA warning came out while she was taking the drug, but the doctor never informed us. Years later when she was prescribed Zoloft, the doctor assured us "Zoloft is a different drug than Prozac.” This doctor communicated nothing at all about the existence of a Black Box warning. The pharmacy never communicated it. While I believe Black Box warnings have saved lives, I also have spoken to many parents who stated their doctors actively discounted the Black Box warning, claiming the warning is overblown and unnecessary. One doctor dismissed it by telling the parent, whose son later died an SSRI-induced death, “Don’t worry. The FDA puts that label on everything.”


Q: What advice would you give to Coroners faced with suspected suicides of teenagers?

A: It seems many coroners don’t speak for the dead. Too often they seem to protect fellow doctors and the pharmaceutical companies by failing to recognize and/or report adverse drug reactions associated with polypharmacy and metabolism. My daughter died a horrifically violent death one day after first taking 200 mg. of Zoloft, a dose prescribed over the phone, by a doctor who never physically saw Natalie. The doctor never informed me that she had directed such an increase.

After Natalie died, I asked the coroner for blood samples because I wanted my daughter's blood tested for metabolism. The coroner rather casually declared she might not have enough of my child’s blood left after she was done conducting the state’s tests. The state of Virginia would not test for metabolism when I requested it. I was able to obtain a small sample of Natalie's blood which was sent to an independent lab. The results showed Natalie was not a very effective metabolizer of SSRI drugs.


Q: What advice would you give to parents whose children/teenagers are on antidepressant medication?

A: I’ve previously stated it seems our society has gone from one in which “Mother knows best” to “Mother knows nothing.” I believe “modern medicine,” the pharmaceutical and psychiatric industries and government regulators have helped create this paradigm shift. My first advice to mothers is, "Don't be intimidated and coerced. Take back your motherly instinct and parental power. Recognize that it is you who knows your child best. Follow your gut instinct."

My second piece of advice is do not believe the “chemical imbalance” theory, and that so-called “antidepressant” drugs are a safe and effective treatment for children. I now have to live the rest of my days missing my child and feeling profound guilt for having believed such fallacies.

My third piece of advice to parents is to reflect on your child’s presenting symptoms vs. your child’s current symptoms. It is sometimes easy to forget what your child was like before the drugging began, particularly when these adverse drug reactions create more desperation to help your child. Doctors, many of whom are also duped, may convince parents that they are doing a great job parenting because they are actively “treating” their child. My daughter’s personality changed dramatically after consuming these drugs. They robbed Natalie of her soul, her spirit and, in the end, took her very life. It was a slow, painful death.

Lastly, I'd like to encourage parents not to buy into the medicalization of anxiety, sadness and worries. Try safer, more effective ways to reduce such feeling such as exercise, diet, art therapy, etc.

Q: You are in the process of writing a book, can you, without giving too much away, tell me a little bit about the whole process of book writing, and in particular, the difficulties you face as a parent who has lost a child.

A: The book has some similarities to the Diary of Anne Frank, considering it is Natalie, herself, speaking from the dead. She was an intelligent, prolific writer who kept a diary of sorts. You can see some of Natalie's writing in the documentary “Letters From GenerationRx.” She documented many adverse drug reactions without ever knowing she was experiencing and documenting them. She believed what the doctors repeatedly declared: that her physical and mental suffering was a sign of a disease and not signs of drug toxicity. Drug-induced psychosis and akathisia causes extreme anxiety and fear. I’m amazed Natalie did as well as she did for as long as she did considering that, as her side effects worsened, doctors routinely increased the offending drug.

The book is quite difficult for me to write and compile because it requires a careful review of Natalie’s medical records and diaries. These records clearly highlight signs of drug toxicity, yet the doctors repeatedly failed to recognize this reality. I should also add that the psychiatrist responsible for the ultimately fatal 200 mg of Zoloft did not provide us with Natalie’s complete medical records. This psychiatrist stalled, giving us only a few records at a time. Finally, the doctor called and left a voice mail message—a message I still have. She claims an “office flood” destroyed Natalie’s remaining medical records.


Q: You and I have briefly discussed the state of Virginia negligence laws. For the benefit of the readers, can you explain in laypersons terms how difficult it is for residents of Virginia to file suit for negligence?

A: This is an unbelievable injustice and one I learned about only after Natalie's death. Virginia is one of only three states in the U.S. that has an archaic law called contributory negligence. It requires a jury to find the defendant 100% responsible for the outcome or the victim gets nothing. In cases such as Natalie’s it means we must prove her death was 100% the result of the doctor’s negligence and/or the product manufacturer. Given that the general public does not want to believe the truth surrounding SSRI-induced “suicide,” it is extremely difficult to meet the Virginia requirements and also challenging to find attorneys who will take these cases. If I were a doctor, I’d choose to practice medicine in Virginia. And I do mean “practice” in the true sense of the word…

For more information about the contributory negligence law, see: Link.


Q: Would you recommend blogging to parents, or anyone for that matter, who had lost someone dear to them through antidepressant-induced suicide?

A: Bob, I don’t know enough about this to answer here.

Q: Back in September you kindly wrote a guest post for my blog, entitled, 'Let's Bring Akathisia Out of the Darkness.' The post featured a letter you wrote to Christine Moutier, Chief Medical Officer of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) - Can you tell me what feedback, if any, you have had from the letter you sent them?

A: The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) takes a lot of money from the pharmaceutical companies, and their board of directors contains several people with direct ties to the pharmaceutical industry. These incestuous relationships remind me of the FDA’s revolving-door employment agency. AFSP has never responded to my letter in which I requested they help increase akathisia awareness and reduce drug-induced “suicides.” I put the word “suicide” in quotes because I don’t believe people who die from prescription-drug induced self-harm while suffering from SSRI-induced akathisia have died by their own hand, so to speak. These deaths are sometimes labeled ego-dystonic suicides or suicide beyond one’s will. I simply call it prescripticide.

Q: Have you ever had any correspondence with either Eli Lilly (Prozac) or Pfizer (Zoloft)?

A: No. I learned that Eli Lilly was largely responsible for starting the whole “antidepressant” industry scam by intentionally skewing the real data in their Prozac clinical trials. I consider Eli Lilly my daughter’s first killer. Pfizer comes in next as killer number two as their internal documents show Pfizer knew their product, Zoloft, caused akathisia and suicidality among healthy volunteers in their clinical trials. Glaxo Smith Klein was so impressed by the “Lilly Protocol” deceit that helped gain Prozac FDA approval they then recruited the same employee to conduct similar trials for Paxil. Natalie never was prescribed Paxil, but it is interesting to note how the pharmaceutical industry shares their top talent.

Drug company fraud and corruption—all designed to put profits before people—ought to be made into a Hollywood movie. People might not believe such evil is real. But my daughter went off in a coffin instead of off to college. Her violent death is our reality forever more.


Q: You have met many fellow advocates on your journey, many of whom who have suffered personal tragedies with regard to antidepressant induced death. How has this helped you and do you still keep in contact with this network of fellow advocates?

A: Shortly after Natalie died, I started googling “Zoloft causes suicide” and similar searches. I quickly found stories of many families, such as Woody Witzack, Stewart Dolin and Candace Downing, families whose loved ones also died SSRI-induced deaths. Mathy Downing, who lost her twelve-year-old daughter after Zoloft, told me “Ours is a sad club to belong to, but you will meet a lot of wonderful, caring people.” She was right. I’ve met many wonderful people similarly dedicated to helping others avoid our tragedies. I very much appreciate these fellow advocates and friends.


Q: I was recently privy to witness a speech/statement to you gave to members of an FDA Panel. Can you tell me what that was about and, for the benefit of the readers who never saw this, could you tell me what you said to those panel members? (Footage of Kristina's delivery to the FDA after her answer)

A: I attended the FDA’s recent hearing on “Manufacturer Communications Regarding Unapproved Uses of Approved or Cleared Medical Products.” I had no plans to speak and wasn’t on the speakers’ list. However, after listening to hours of pharmaceutical industry propaganda and industry-funded shills, to include the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, I felt upset and nauseous. Many of the so-called “patient advocates” were sent to the hearing by the pharmaceutical companies and their funded organizations. Few people can afford to travel to the Washington Metro area and speak up for their loved ones who were harmed or killed. I was glad I did.

I arrived with no prepared speech and simply spoke from my heart. Perhaps I could have been a bit more cordial and succinct, but, really, who can expect parents to be pleasantly deferential when speaking to the government body whose actions and inactions caused the torture and death of their child?

Watch Kristina's speech here.

**Instructions**

CLICK HERE - Skip to 0.45.55


Q: Where do you see yourself in 10 years’ time?

A: Like other people whose loved ones have been harmed and/or killed, I will continue advocating to help prevent this from happening to other families. Losing a child, or any family member, to avoidable death, is terribly painful. However, the best thing we can do to honor our loved ones is to cherish their memory, create happy moments and live our lives with meaningful purpose. Ten years down the road, I will still be advocating, but, hopefully living in a sunny place surrounded by lush greenery and a little garden.

Q: Finally Kristina, some personal questions...

1. What book are you currently reading?

A: Ah, this is a difficult question. I have a large stack of books I want to read, some for pleasure and others for research related to my own book. None of the research related books are happy reads, but the authors--Robert Whitaker, David Healy, and Peter Breggin--are all excellent writers.

2. What was the last CD you listened to (in full)?

A: Vienna Teng’s Waking Hour. She is a talented musician with a beautiful voice. Natalie loved Vienna Teng. Shortly before she died, she downloaded the song “Lullaby for a Stormy Night.” Natalie was suffering from Zoloft-induced psychosis, complained of violent nightmares and insomnia. I doubt she was able to truly understand she was going to die. Akathisia is so overwhelming; perhaps Natalie just wanted to go to sleep. Hence, the lullaby.

3. What is the best movie you have seen this year?

A: The Edge of Seventeen with Woody Harrelson. It’s an entertaining comedy about the awkward challenges of the teenage years. Given that I taught high school marketing for many years, the movie resonated with me. It was realistic and made me laugh. Laughter is a very important part of my life.

4. What country would you most like to visit?

A: While I’ve traveled a lot, I would like to see Ukraine. Given that my grandparents were Ukrainian, I grew up eating Ukrainian food and have fond memories of my grandfather playing the accordion and dancing the polka.

5. If you had the choice of being either a defense or prosecution lawyer, which would you choose and why?

A:  I would aim to be proficient at both, but would prefer defense. It seems the U.S. system is increasingly stacking the deck against the “common person” and not just regarding pharmaceutical fraud. Unfortunately, the U.S. imprisons more people at a higher rate than any country. Every person should have the right to adequate legal representation. The notion of the right to a fair trial, along with “anyone can grow up to be president,” are two quaint, Disney-like notions that are U.S. fallacies.

For Natalie

December 8, 1993 - February 6, 2013

Previous Q&A's

Q&A With Ablechild's Sheila Matthews-Gallo

Q&A With Leonie Fennell

Q&A With the "Truthman"

10 Years of Blogging - Q&A With Neil Carlin

Q&A With My Dad

Q&A With Musician Kirk Brandon