Customer Reviews

Toxic Psychiatry: Why Therapy, Empathy and Love Must Replace the Drugs, Electroshock, and Biochemical Theories of the "New Psychiatry"

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I enjoying reading this book very, very much. It provides vital information which is needed, but most often excluded by psychiatrists, to make any sort of informed decision in reguard to many psychiatric treatments. This book shows the horrors of psychiatry, from a psychiatrist's viewpoint, this in itself makes for very interesting reading. I found the points made to be logical and truth revealing, not candy coated and over-simplified. For a non-medical book, the points are explained in depth and have been researched from many sources, which are conveniently labled and listed in the back of the book.

I gave this book 5 stars, because even though I don't believe it to be perfect in composition or perfect in ideology, it is so dense with material, that it speaks volumes. So It gets 5 stars, imperfect as it is.

Although I do believe "Toxic Psychiatry" shows a one-sided picture, I believe this does not obscure the point being made; that there is something seriously wrong with psychiatry and how it's methods of treatment are applied. The general prevailing idea of this book is that Pills do not help anybody in finding the reasons for their emotional conditions, they simply make them less able to feel them. Kind of like putting anesthetic on a cut rather than anti-septic.

One thing to keep in mind is that we have all been exposed to countless other one-sided pictures on our tvs, in magazines, on billboards, in pamphlets, and many other places reguarding this subject (incessant advertising). We already know that side. This book fills in the gaping holes and it answers valid questions that aren't even hinted at in those other one-sided pictures we have seen. (How many people do you know that have taken Paxil, only to find out that it can and does cause severe withdrawel after discontinuation? But these people didn't know about that, of course. Their doctors never told them. Some of these people are even told that the withdrawel symptoms are from their "pre-existing condition." I have had family and friends who have had this happen to them. It seems to be more than a coincidence to me. Suffice it to say, it angers me greatly.)

I have seen many 'caring' commercials which prey on people's need for empathy and their willingness to evade blame for their behavior by gently convincing them that they have a horrible biological disorder and that it is easily curable by 'mild' drugs that have 'no' harmful and/or 'no' permanent side effects. (instead of telling them that the research doesn't show that there is a biological disorder, but only a limited success with treating the 'disorder' using biological means [psychotropic drugs] and that there either ARE long term side effects, or that potential long term side effects are unknown but very possible)

Advertising coupled with the eager willingness of many psychiatrists to prescribe psychotropic drugs makes for a very dangerous combination.

There is much deception in psychiatry, from seminars sponsored by large corporations which twist psychiatrists perceptions, to free samples given to psychiatrists which twist their prescription habits, to constant and repetitive advertising by pharmaceautical companies which engrains 'depression' and other illnesses in the minds of those who are subjected to these advertisments. (the prospective customer)

There's one thing I didn't agree with Breggin about, which is his way of practicing psychiatry, which involves only talk and no medication. Sometimes medication is necessary, but only as a very last resort, as it can have some very irreversible effects (not only side effects, but also effects on a person's ability and willingness to control themselves and improve their lives themselves).

This book is a must read, and not just to those who are interested in psychiatry, but to all of those exposed to the advertising of psychotropic drugs.

One must keep in mind that this book should not discourage you from seeking help if you need it. It also should not make you completely anti-drug, but instead more understanding to how they work, so that you can decide what you think is right for yourself, not have that decision made for you even if it's not what's best for you. The decision should be taken very seriously, not casually as those who stand to profit from you would like you to believe.


Now, on a side note, I'll share my experience with psychiatry as one of my reasons for so firmly believing in Peter Breggin's message.

Before I start, I will mention that the conclusions I came to were not made after reading Peter Breggin's book, so do not think they were thought up after reading "Toxic Psychiatry".

I myself have been diagnosed as 'bi-polar' and at one time I believed it myself. I experienced the effects of psychotropic drugs and that of being labeled.

I found myself fitting the role of a bipolar person more after being labeled than before being labeled. I was put on lithium, which made me feel horrible. I researched the drug and I found that the side effects I was having (nausea, lethargy, etc.) were in fact from the drug. I spoke with my psychiatrist reguarding the side effects, not disclosing that I had researched the drug further than the useless pamphlets that I was given, and to my dismay, my psychiatrist told me that the side effects I was having were not side effects of the drug, and that I had improved very much.. Even though the side effects were causing my grades in school to spiral downward very quickly and the drug was affecting every part of my life in a negative way, I had "improved very much".

I have seen the dark side of psychiatry first hand and I can understand Breggin's perspective. I do not trust psychiatry, but I am not completely biased, as I do realize that not all psychiatrists are necessarily just like the psychiatrist that I had. I have been off of any psychotropic drug now for about six years. I received no psychological help and no drugs. I will not lie, I went through hell and back, but I found the causes for my "highs" and for my "lows". I found them to be caused by -real- things that happened to me (yes, real things, not my ' biological brain disorder'), and I have learned to control my emotions. I do not have "highs" or "lows" anymore because I do not have incredible anxiety which spurred on my highs, and I do not have depressive and suicidal thoughts anymore, which spurred on my intense lows. I do, however, live my life passionately and I realize the reason for my passions more now than I ever did before. I don't understand how telling me that I was sick and that my brain was defective, then putting me on drugs that limited my ability to think clearly were supposed to help me. If anything, if I stopped feeling passionately about life and my ability to think clearly was limited, it would've been a tragedy, not a cause for celebration.

This book is a cause for celebration, as it may help those in need actually find the help they need, and maybe they can live without the limits of a chemical straightjacket. (As Breggin puts it)

I was amazed at some responses to this book - it seems many people haven't read this book carefully and are responding more out of passionate beliefs about the use of psychoactive medicines based on their own experiences with them.

This book does not advocate the outright stopping of psychoactive medicines. It points out, through very careful discussion of a huge host of experimental data, case studies, and a wide range of professional opinion (in addition to the author's), that none of the so-called diseases that these medicines supposedly treat has ever been shown to have a biological basis. In fact, this discussion is so complete and convincing that it would seem to be outright denial to argue the opposite, even though that is what the media and numerous "experts" do regularly - many of these so-called experts going so far as to blindly ignore data that they either previously or later agreed did support the opposing viewpoint.

The book then goes on to point out through more careful analysis of a great deal of data that these medicines are all very general and act on large areas of the brain, and do not (and quite frankly can not) treat specific biological problems. They all treat symptoms in a very general sense. Additionally, all of them have severe side effects, and many (if not all) cause permanent brain damage.

This book makes an important point concerning these so-called "diseases of the mind" which bears repeating. People in the throes of these afflictions, or people very close to them, are often suffering so greatly that they want nothing more than to have the symptoms alleviated. It is widely known that a large number of alcohol and drug abusers are simply medicating away their depression, anxiety, or other more extreme form of mental anguish. Should we as a society and as individuals suffering from these afflictions be so ready to accept what amounts to a professionally sanctioned drugging away of these symptoms?

The book does not state, as some people have erroneously suggested, that psychiatric and psychological problems are all rooted in one's childhood, or that one's parents are always to blame. It does, however, suggest and point out through numerous case studies and analysis of data that these problems are almost always due to a personal, mental, family, or spiritual crisis of some kind. It also suggests that developing the will to investigate and ultimately resolve these crises with a competent therapist is almost always preferable to drugging them away, for a multitude of reasons, not the least of which is that it develops one's sense of personal self-determination and self-knowledge rather than subjecting her or him to a further demoralizing dependence on drugs.

I would suggest suspending judgment and giving this book a careful read. It is easily one of the most disturbing books I have ever read, and is a shocking expose of the abuses of the psychiatric industry for its own gain.

Before jumping to conclusions, ask yourself this: what would this man, a psychiatrist himself, who has been exposing and fighting these abuses for his entire career, have to gain from telling people about the cruelty and pseudo-science that is rampant in the psychiatric profession? And what would the psychiatric and pharmaceutical industry, whose combined economic influence is staggering, and whose gross domestic product probably rivals that of many smaller nations, have to gain from keeping this information out of the media and away from public knowledge?

Dr. Breggin's respect for children is evident in his writings. He challenges the current cliches of "chemical imbalance" and "genetic" as being "causes" in the behavior of most children. He offers as an alternative the proven family therapy approach for the child who is "acting out". Working with the entire family, rather than just the "problem" child, often shows that family stresses are acted out by the child in behavior that distrubs others. If this is in fact what is occuring, labelling and medicating the child will only delay addressing the family stressors and fears and unjustly stigmatize the child as "the problem". This scapegoating of the child is undeserved and usually cruel. Dr. Breggin has clearly evaluated our working "theories" and meticulously shown their severe weaknesses and biases. He further shows how compassionate family therapy and non-judgmental education of the family to what is actually happening within it leads to reducing the child's acting out and the proud survivorship of that family as an emotional unit. Our awareness to this problem can only help the child, parents and society. This can be truly a Win-Win-Win situation as we look more carefully at the facts. Congratulations Dr. and Mrs. Breggin for your courage to buck the Establishment and its vested interests and to inform us of the problem and its solutions. Paul Huffington M.D.

This is an extremely important book for anyone seeking mental health services, for anyone who knows someone doing the same, or for anyone working in or planning a career in mental health; i.e., for anyone today. I teach undergraduate psychology, and plan to increasingly incorporate this book and its information into my courses.

The trends observed by Breggin in this 1991 book, toward the dominance of mental health by biopsychiatric views, have increased during the 1990's, as Breggin's more recent books (e.g., Talking Back to Prozac, and Talking Back to Ritalin) attest. Toxic Psychiatry is a more comprehensive work, providing evidence that both mild and severe psychosocial problems may in fact be exacerbated by the biopsychiatric approach. Details of specific drugs and their effects, as well as alternative theoretical and treatment perspectives round out this book. Breggin possesses the expertise to discuss these issues in depth and specificity, but also the clarity of writing to make this information accessible to the general reader.

While making no pretense of presenting a "balanced view" in itself, this book provides the necessary balance in a culture where media and political forces so strongly promote the other side. Breggin's extensive inside knowledge of the political and economic forces driving the mental health "industry", and his documentation of those forces, should command everyone's attention.

This book is a big wake-up call as to how dangerous going into therapy can truly be, and a must-read for anyone considering it. There are inspiring survivor stories, and helpful hints on choosing a truly helpful therapist. The only part of the book that I question is autism. More than likely, according to valid studies, autism is biological. I was happy to read, however, that most parents of autistic children resist psychiatric drugging. Even if one day it is discovered that, without a doubt, mental illness is biological, it makes no sense to add another biological defect to the brain with drugs. I know from firsthand experience that much of what Dr. Breggin says is true, and that the feelings that I felt while taking the "miracle drugs" are not merely the product of a "mental illness", but from the drugs themselves. Dr. Breggin has some very good points. Read the words of a rare psychiatrist.

Few psychiatrists have spoken out against the oppression of people diagnosed with schizophrenia or manic-depression. The psychiatric establishment uses the "biomedical model" as an excuse to continue its torture and oppression of psychiatric patients.

Dr. Breggin has the wisdom and compassion to mistrust the psychiatric establishment. Instead, he lets himself be guided by the patients' own authentic experience.

Instead of judging and ridiculing patients, Dr. Breggin approaches them as worthy paricipants in the human condition. He views them as fully human beings with human dignity whose lives have meaning and value.

Dr. Breggin discusses the biomedical model expounded by neuroleptic drug manufacturers and psychiatry. He mentions some family "advocacy" groups which depend on drug manufacturer largesse.

There are now forced drugging laws in almost every state in the U.S. These groups, along with their drug company sponsors, have been the main lobbyists for legislation forcing (by court order) peaceful, law-abiding citizens to submit to painful, degrading, debilitating, potentially fatal "treatment."

In the first chapter of this book, Dr. Breggin tells of his experience volunteering at a mental ward when he was an undergrad at Harvard. He and his fellow students caused dismay among the administrators of the hospital when they asked permission to take some patients on walks or a short trip. The students wanted to do this on a one-to-one basis. The students suspected that the "mentally ill" patients' main problem was the "treatment" they were receiving at the hospital. Unfortunately, those students' suspicions were confirmed.

Dr. Breggin suggested to one of the administrators that it was neither humane nor healthy to have the temperature so low in the patients' ward. The administrator replied, "Schizophrenics don't feel temperature like the rest of us do."

The Harvard undergrads finally did get permission to work with individual patients. The undergrads worked with fourteen patients, all of whom eventually left the hospital to live on their own. Only two or three returned.

These particular patients had been at the ward for decades. Hospital administrators thought of them as hopeless.

Dr. Breggin's undergrad experience was an obvious refutation of the biomedical model.

What bothers me the most about the biomedical model, though, is that, even if it were well-grounded in scientific evidence---which it is not---it still would not justify torture.

I have known the great privilege of having a family member who has a diagnosis of schizophrenia. She is not "sick." She does not have a "neurobiological brain disorder."

If she had a neurobiological brain disorder, neurologists, not psychiatrists, would be treating it.

She is a warm, gifted, sensitive, highly intelligent young woman with special problems which make life unusually difficult for her. This difficulty has been magnified and exacerbated a thousand-fold by society's scapegoating and psychiatry's degradation and cruelty.

I recently read Toxic Psychiatry and Talking Back to Prozac and find them very compelling. Regardless of whether of not depression is biological in nature, the books provide some interesting "Food for Thought" about the uses and abuses of psychiatric medications. My personal experience of one family member on Prozac for appx. 10 years, and one on Prozac combined with 5 or 6 other medications over the past year, has led me to believe that perhaps there are alternative, effective therapies available. We are all different in our needs. Perhaps the effects of a caring, compassionate, listener, may be more beneficial to some of us than the effects and side effects of drug therapies. Hats Off to Dr. Breggin for suggesting an alternative approach. He may sound simplistic and idealistic, but he apparantly has helped many people, and offers hope to those who have suffered from the use of psychiatric medications.

Every person would be wise to own a copy of Toxic Psychiatry. It's accessible to professionals and "average" people, and is both informative and interesting.

This is the book that education, psychology, sociology, and pre-med students should be reading in college. No one should be able to get out of med or pharmacy school without this information.

For the general population, here's a chance to find out what psychiatry, schools, and the medical profession don't want you to know. They don't want you thinking about lobotomies, and how a Nobel prize was awarded for the procedure. They aren't enthusiastic about discussing the origin of "anti-psychotic" drugs, which were developed to provide a chemical lobotomy. And they certainly aren't eager to have people discussing the validity of the psychiatric diagnoses that have become so popular.

Jim Shackelford

After my own 25 years in the mental health field it is refreshing to discover a colleague willing to lay out the facts. For practitioners it should prompt a healthy self examination. For patients, parents and family of patients, this is a must read. Based on my own experience in the field, Dr. Breggin's account of the psychiatric profession is accurate and important and no one should enter into therapy without reading it.

I couldn't resist writing this. The ad hominem abusive, straw man, slippery slope and other fallacies running rampant in some of the other reviews are just ridiculous!

First off, comparing insulin to brain chemistry is not a logical argument! Just because it has been proven that certain levels of insulin are necessary for proper metabolism, it does not mean that brain chemistry works the same way!! The two processes are completely different. One is very well understood and proven, while the other is not understood well at all and is definately not proven. Using this logic, I could say that diabetics take insulin, therefore I must take lead to fix my "electrostatic disorder." I cannot invent a disorder in this way, except in a work of fiction! Beware of "convincing" analogies, especially ones that seem like common sense, they are all too often wrong, wrong, wrong, and more wrong.

Breggin also has been in private practice since 1968. If he spent a few years being an expert witness in lawsuits, then that only shows his dedication to his cause, not that he has been "gallivanting around" as one reviewer seems to think! If you want to know a little about Breggin, try http://Breggin.org.

Also, Breggin does not oversimplify the problem and say that "all drugs cause brain damage." He quotes case studies and peer-reviewed journal writings concerning specific drugs and specific disorders. He does not draw his conclusions out of thin air and make only blanket statements! There are no rabbits being pulled out of any hats anywhere but in the review I'm commenting on.

And another thing, just because someone is depressed, it does not mean they will commit suicide! Stop convincing people that they will kill themselves if they don't recieve drugs! It cripples people and makes them unwilling to help themselves! It's not logical and is NOT shown through any studies that a majority of depressed people will kill themselves if not medicated. In fact, studies have shown that the biggest factor of whether a patient improves or not is whether they believe that they will get better or not, it is not whether they recieve psychotropic drugs or not.

Breggin also does not come anywhere close to making it seem that patients are defined by their illness! It's laughable to suggest the notion having read the book! He demands the utmost respect for even the most troubled persons and I believe he shows how there is more to the person that their disorder by his disgust for how psychiatrists don't look for the reasons for a person's disorder but instead only try to match a person to the "diagnostic criteria" of the DSM IV. If anything, the practice of matching patients to illnesses defines a person by their "illness," NOT Breggin's perspective of the patient.

Also, to say that Breggin "throws the baby out with the bathwater," while admitting the book has several good points, only to give it one star is a bit ironic and hypocritical, don't you think?

And in closing for this review.. Just because Tom Cruise and the wacky Scientologists are anti-psychiatry, it does not mean that there is nothing wrong with psychiatry. That is an obvious ad hominem circumstancial fallacy if I have ever heard one. (For those who have no idea what that means, it means that just because someone is part of a group, it does not mean that a statement they have said is wrong. A group may be known for their likely incorrect viewpoints, but it does not make untrue all of the beliefs of every group member. An example would be how Hitler created the idea for the Volkswagon Beatle. The Nazi's were wrong for mass murdering Jews, but that doesn't mean that they were also wrong in thinking that smaller, more efficient cars could actually be a good thing for society.)