Twelve Years Ago “Anatomy of an Epidemic” Was Published
And We’re Still Not Listening
When I was in primary school in the 80's, the faculty recommended that I be taken to a psychiatrist for evaluation. Like every other parent who acted on this recommendation, mine were advised to put me on ritalin. Fortunately, my mother noted some red flags and stepped on the brakes. A lot of the other kids weren’t so lucky.
In 2010, Robert Whitaker published an incredible, deeply disturbing look at the history and effects of psychiatric medications: “Anatomy of an Epidemic: Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs, and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America”. I picked up a copy in 2016 (the book was being promoted on BookBub), and here’s the review I left on GoodReads:
I’ve looked at the sources I could find. I’ve read the arguments defending psychiatric medication and I’ve read their counter-arguments. This is not some “long-kept secret”, the researchers who conducted the clinical trials and the results of the clinical trials and the testimonies of the experts and the personal testimonies of the sufferers are all cohesive, rational and in agreement.
This is hands-down the scariest book I have ever read, and it’s even more horrifying that it’s actually non-fiction. I cannot for the life of me understand (even after…
