Antipsychotics and Mental Illness: the Great Debate

I totally agree. I have bipolar and before I was diagnosed (I was diagnosed at 32) I had long periods of depression, I would just lay around and sleep all day wishing I was dead. Then after the meds I was okay for a while but am now in a depression again, first I was hypomanic, and have been like this for 6 months. I actually have not been right for 3 years. But I'm seeing a new pdoc so hopefully he can help.
Michele

Thanks, Michele - your perspective is so helpful. I agree meds have to be improved, but until then...the right mix can help a lot. Hope the new pdoc helps.

You write as only a mother who has been there, done everything and lived "it" has the right to respond as you did.
Continue to advocate for Ben and always keep your eyes and ears open to all those who come up with new theories, new ideas about medication, and trust your gut and their proof. In the meanwhile, here's hoping that Ben continues to thrive for longer and longer periods, and should he slip that it's brief and taken care of by whatever works best for him.
I hope your response helps patients who will only be confused by the above findings. But that's medicine and science. Research and findings -until and unless truly proven - change from day to day, month to month, year to year. Something we have to make sense of for ourselves and never take as gospel.
Keep being a voice for Ben and for your truth!

All I know is that my husband, who's diagnosis is schizophrenia and bipolar, does a lot better and feels a lot better on his meds.

I think for each parent who has a child who has been "diagnosed" mentally ill it boils down to what do we want to believe about this person. I chose to believe that the person is trying to tell us something important about life, about our relationships. I chose not to believe that behavior can simply be put down to brain wiring gone awry. Which is more affirming if you are the so-called patient? Can you get well when everybody looks and treats you like you sick? Probably not. Can you get well if people put down your thoughts as the ravings of a lunatic? I doubt it. The Whitaker book is an especially important book, but it's going to make a lot of people feel uncomfortable because it exposes the shaky science behind the medical cure that many people have been relying on. Dr. Nancy Andreasen made her reputation on the whole theory of psych drugs "protecting" the brain, and then suddenly, whoops, she did further research and came to the horrifying conclusion that the drugs actually damage the brain in the long run. She sat on that information for two years because she didn't want people to jettison their psych meds (we all know what happens when you suddenly drop them.) So, Dr. Andreasen is a big part of the problem, but hey, it's not her life, is it? She makes money figuring that the rest of us are idiots. The only way some people will feel good about this is to hope that she will change her mind again in favor of untreated schizophrenia damaging the brain, but why would we wish for a damaged brain? It goes against God, when you think of it. We are all perfect in his presence, aren't we? Here's the link to the Andreasen article if you are not already familiar with it. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/16/health/research/16conv.html
and here's an extract. Shame, shame, I say.
Q. AND WHAT HAVE YOU FOUND?
A. I haven’t published this yet. But I have spoken about it in public lectures. The big finding is that people with schizophrenia are losing brain tissue at a more rapid rate than healthy people of comparable age. Some are losing as much as 1 percent per year. That’s an awful lot over an 18-year period. And then we’re trying to figure out why. Another thing we’ve discovered is that the more drugs you’ve been given, the more brain tissue you lose.
Q. WHY DO YOU THINK THIS IS HAPPENING?
A. Well, what exactly do these drugs do? They block basal ganglia activity. The prefrontal cortex doesn’t get the input it needs and is being shut down by drugs. That reduces the psychotic symptoms. It also causes the prefrontal cortex to slowly atrophy.
If I were developing new drugs, I’d switch targets. Till now it’s been chemically formulated targets. I believe we should be thinking more anatomically and asking, “With schizophrenics, which brain regions are functioning abnormally?”

As Annette said - "does alot better AND feels alot better on his meds."
Yes, that be the ticket. I truly feel the exact same way. I would be totally crazy and probably homeless if it wasn't for the anti-psychotic meds. They have got alot better then they were in the 90's.

Again me, Ms Kaye, to confirm that this article is boosting many enigmas in the treatment of psychiatric patients. Beforehand, it is well-known that our current acquaintances on mental illness are limited. In consequence, their treatment is yet under an reexamination both from professionals and exploiter of the same. In the middle of them stands producer of drugs, with its economic calculation, in first place. Every side in this transaction of services should to estimate that the health of patient is primary profit. As belongs to antipsychotics, the issue don't make any substantial difference. However, these drugs are the medication of choice in psychotic disorders as well as to many other serious mental illness. Against their side effects, they have dramatically improve the long-lasting prognosis of these mental disorders. It is very important to respect all recommendations of psychiatrist in medication with antipsychotic, in order to avoid their dangerous side effects. Above all, it is absolutely useless to use simultaneously some antipsychotics, such inherently practice any therapist.