Criteria set by the the American Psychiatric Association (the APA) would classify almost half of us as mentally ill at some point during our lives.
Really? How about an alternative idea? The pharmaceutical industry influences the APA to classify ordinary life challenges as medical illnesses in order to sell drugs.
Another myth is that most mental illness results from chemical imbalances in the brain. Sounds good. When I heard this idea in the 1970s, it really helped patients feel less guilty for their depression, anxiety, or whatever. In the ensuing decades, however, researchers have not been able to find convincing evidence that this idea is true. Except, because the medical centers and the media have no reason to irritate their major donors and sponsors, you've not heard much about this, have you?
Pharmaceutical companies run many more studies than appear in the medical journals, and most of them do not see the light of day because they show no benefit from the drugs. Add in the positive studies and psychoactive drugs still fail to produce robust benefit. This book review by Marcia Angell, MD, a former editor of the New England Journal of Medicine, substantiates these revelations. Further, she advances evidence to suggest that these drugs may increase the toll of mental illness in our commmunities. Click here to learn more.
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