SSRIs, Sexual Dysfunction, Suicide & Mass Shootings, How FDA Works | David Healy | Episode 232

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A critique of SSRIs and pharma’s influence on medicine, including SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction, suicidality, and violence. 

Long Summary: Dr. David Healy critiques modern medicine, focusing on SSRIs and psychiatric medicine, including: how pharmaceutical companies manipulate clinical trial data, ghostwrite studies, and influence medical practice, often ignoring patient experiences; highlighting issues like post-SSRI sexual dysfunction (PSSD), the immediate sensory effects of SSRIs, and their potential to induce suicidal or violent behavior; challenging the reliance on randomized controlled trials (RCTs) over individual patient reports; and more.

About the guest: David Healy, MD, PhD, a psychiatrist and pharmacologist, has decades of experience researching the serotonin system and SSRIs, working across Ireland, the UK, Canada, and the US. He is a professor at McMaster University and a vocal critic of pharmaceutical industry practices.

Discussion Points:

• SSRIs cause near-immediate sensory effects, like genital numbing, in most people.
• Post-SSRI sexual dysfunction (PSSD) can persist for years or decades after stopping the drug, affecting many long-term users.
• Healy argues RCTs prioritize averages over individual experiences, often missing serious side effects like suicidality.
• Pharmaceutical companies ghostwrite studies and manipulate data, with journals like the New England Journal of Medicine publishing misleading articles.
• Serotonin theory of depression lacks evidence.
• Industry tactics include dismissing patient reports as anecdotes and using high doses in trials to mask weak efficacy.
• SSRIs can increase suicide risk, not just during initiation but also when adjusting doses or withdrawing, as seen in cases like the Aurora movie theater shooting.
• Regulatory bodies like the FDA often fail to investigate adverse effects due to bureaucratic processes and lack of follow-up.
• Healy emphasizes doctors’ failure to prioritize patient observations, driven by industry-influenced standards of care.

Related episode:

• M&M 88: Depression, Serotonin, SSRIs, Psychiatry & Social Media | Joanna Moncrieff

*Not medical advice.

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