Description

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In Medication Madness, psychiatrist Peter R. Breggin, M.D., describes how people taking psychiatric medication can experience abnormal behavioral reactions, including suicide, violence, emotional breakdowns, and criminal acts. Dr. Breggin explains his concept of "medication spellbinding": individuals taking psychiatric drugs may have no idea whatsoever that their mental conditions are deteriorating and that their actions are no longer under control. He proves his argument by documenting dozens of cases from his practice and his consultations in legal cases.

Reading like a thriller, the book also examines how the FDA, the pharmaceutical industry, and the medical establishment continue to oversell the value of these drugs, and he provides information on how to safely stop taking psychiatric medications. Medication Madness is a compelling and frightening read as well as a cautionary tale about our reliance on medicine to fix what ails us.

About the Author

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Peter R. Breggin, M.D., is a psychiatrist and expert in clinical psychopharmacology. A former teaching fellow at Harvard Medical School and full-time consultant at the National Institute of Mental Health, he has written dozens of scientific articles and more than twenty books, including the bestsellers Toxic Psychiatry and Talking Back to Prozac. He has served as a medical expert in criminal and civil cases involving psychiatric drugs, including product-liability suits against drug manufacturers. Dr. Breggin founded the International Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology, taught at universities, and is on the editorial boards of several scientific journals. He lives in the Finger Lakes region with his wife, Ginger, and practices psychiatry in Ithaca, New York.

Praise For…

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“Following his landmark book Talking Back to Prozac, psychiatrist Breggin follows up by arguing against what he calls the ‘spellbinding' effects of psychiatric medications, and he doesn't mean ‘spellbinding' as praise. His point is that all psychiatric drugs are dangerous; he describes how these medications can compromise brain function, resulting in bizarre, even violent behavior. Breggin, a former staffer at the National Institute of Mental Health who has testified in liability suits against pharmaceutical companies, cautions that consumers should thoroughly examine the drug labels for side effects as a precaution for such drugs as stimulants, antidepressants, tranquilizers, antipsychotics and mood stabilizers. The tragic cases of beleaguered patients detailed here are troubling. Breggin joins the growing group of experts who argue that the FDA is ‘more dedicated to serving the drug companies than consumers,' relying on doctored or incomplete evidence and botched tests. Breggin's assertion that psychotropic drugs induce rather than treat brain imbalances is controversial, but this book is a reasoned look at these drugs, which have come under increasing scrutiny in the media as well as medical world.” —Publishers Weekly