Untested psychiatric drugs in teens is questioned by the New York Times

In 2015 I went to a psychotherapy conference in Washington, DC that featured mindfulness and attachment theory as the common thread. World-renowned therapists, authors, and researchers were present including Dan Siegel, M.D. as the keynote speaker. During Dr. Siegel’s keynote, with 1,000 eager listeners in the audience, he asked “Who has read Robert Whitaker’s book, Anatomy of an Epidemic?” I felt like the only one that had not raised my hand.

When I returned to Austin, I checked out Anatomy of an Epidemic from my local library and with each opportunity I got to read portions of the book, tears would show up. I felt, simultaneously, sadness for people whose quality of life greatly declined due to long-term use of psychiatric medication combinations and rage towards an industry that seemingly has no accountability despite unbiased evidence that proves the significant side effects associated with long-term use.

Mr. Whittaker‘s hypothesis for the book was (paraphrased): If the discovery of psychiatric medications and the invention of SSRIs (anti-depressants) were so beneficial, then why are more adult Americans on disability for mental illness than ever before? Mr. Whittaker is an investigative journalist by trade and the way he weaves in research and interviews with many adult long-term psychiatric medicine ‘consumers’ answers this question and it’s an answer that is shunned by the mainstream media and, usually, most conventional doctors.

While I understand there are benefits, especially short-term and for acute episodes, of psychiatric medications, the ease of obtaining one or multiple prescriptions for medications that alter brain function, have many side effects and are not tested for long-term use nor interactions when taking multiple types of psychiatric medications, has concerned me since reading Mr. Whittaker’s book. In 2016, Kelly Brogan, M.D. wrote a book titled A Mind of Your Own and the first third of the book contains more evidence of the negative effects of long-term psychiatric medication use and the rest of the book outlines a lengthy plan of the need to ‘detox’ from the medications over a long period of time in order to safely experience the inevitable and uncomfortable withdrawal symptoms Dr. Brogan’s book was groundbreaking, similarly to Robert Whittakers finding yet it is shunned by the mainstream media and most people are not aware of these enlightening writings.

The topic of psychiatric medications doing harm continues to be ‘taboo’ in the mainstream media which is why I was surprised, in a good way, to see the New York Times write a front-page article (that appeared online on Sunday, August 28, 2022) titled “This Teen Was Prescribed 10 Psychiatric Drugs. She’s Not Alone: Increasingly anxious and depressed teens are using multiple, powerful psychiatric drugs, many of them untested in adolescents or for use in tandem” by Matt Richtel. He weaves in stories from several people who were prescribed a ‘cascade’ of pharmaceutical combinations as teenagers along with statistics and evidence around the increase in psychiatric medication prescribed for adolescents and teenagers even though they have not been formally approved by the FDA for this age group.

Again, I understand psychiatric medications can save a life during a crisis, whether it has been a traumatic experience or a suicide attempt. These types of scenarios are what the medications were tested for and the duration for usage was six (6) weeks, which was supposed to be enough time for the person to stabilize and get support structures such as therapy, residential treatment, or family assistance. However, the practice of short-term medication usage until the patient is stable has gone by the wayside for a variety of reasons; today these medications are easy to get through prescriptions from virtually any type of doctor or healthcare professional that is licensed to prescribe and can be cheaper and more accessible than therapy even though an enormous amount of evidence shows that medication on its own, without therapy, is just as effective as placebo.

The concerning piece for me as a psychotherapist and a mother is the uncertainty of how psychiatric medications can or could interfere with the developing brain of a teenager. Science has known for decades and decades that the human brain isn’t fully developed until at least 20 years old; rigorous and unbiased testing, with big sample sizes, would need to be done and analyzed by the FDA to determine if these medications are safe and effective for our growing children. I used to assume that if the doctor can prescribe it then the FDA says it’s OK but that is not the case.

Our kids are suffering with significant levels of anxiety and depression and the numbers are increasing dramatically in our post-pandemic society. The lockdowns, the isolation, the fear of a virus, the fear of an active shooter, and the fear of climate change all weigh on our kiddos and they have few resources within themselves to cope with it all. Sprinkle in bullying and social media and you have a perfect mental health storm for these developing brains and bodies.

Functional and integrative medicine professionals that have received specific training in biological root causes of inflammation and genetics can significantly reduce mental health symptoms but it requires financial resources (health insurance companies won’t cover what these doctors do, which is mind-boggling), diligence, and perseverance as it’s not easy for the average teen to give up the junk food and late-night screen time. But, if the whole family is supportive and willing to make these changes along with their teen(s), it is doable especially if the teen is also in therapy.

A burgeoning field called Nutritional Psychiatry, also known as functional and/or integrative medicine for mental health, is supported by unbiased and rigorous research that shows reductions in mental health symptoms when taking a whole-body approach. For example, a random control trial published in an open-access science journal in 2019, showed significantly lower levels of depression with teenagers after just three weeks of eating a healthy diet. Harvard-trained psychiatrist, Dr. Uma Nadoo is a thought leader and author within nutritional psychiatry and her book This Is Your Brain On Food can be a game changer for teenagers and adults who have symptoms of depression or anxiety and do not want to start taking psychiatric medications.

Flourish will be launching integrative medicine for mental health services in January 2023 that will focus on helping our people get to the root cause of anxiety and depression by taking a whole body approach to emotional wellness which includes therapy, body movement, dietary changes, and shifting towards healthy sleep and digestion patterns. We feel passionately about the whole body approach because it works WITH the body by resolving nutrient deficiencies, biological dysfunction, and emotional wounds. This approach was widely used before the new generation of psychiatric medications were stumbled upon and it’s time we go back to a pre-Prozac treatment for mental health.