Saying No to Psychotropic Drugs

By-line:

This post was contributed by Heather Johnson, who writes on the subject of online lpn schools. She invites your feedback at heatherjohnson2323 at gmail dot com.

Saying No to Psychotropic Drugs

Depression can happen to even the hardiest of us, depending on the circumstances we’re in. While most of us bounce back to normalcy in a short period of time, others have a harder time of coping, and are often labeled by society as mentally ill and prescribed psychotropic drugs by doctors in the psychiatric field. These drugs often do more harm than good, and have come under harsh criticism as being promoted indiscriminately by psychiatrists to fill the coffers of the drug manufacturers.

The side-effects of psychotropic drugs:

In the last five years, more than 60 warnings have been issued by international drug regulatory agencies about the medical side-effects that arise when psychotropic drugs are used, especially by those under the age of 18 – suicidal tendencies, increased hostility, diabetes, heart problems, strokes, depression, anxiety, disinterest, hallucinations, mood and personality swings, sleep disorders, delusions, lack of concentration, increased heart rate, confusion, increased nocturnal urination, agitation, irritability, mania, tissue damage, imbalance of hormones, diminished sex drive, nightmares and trembling to name just a few.

Can we treat depression without psychotropic drugs?

The answer to the above question is yes, we can. By:

• Treating the cause and not the symptoms: A good physician is able to treat depression as well as if not better than a psychiatrist by identifying the underlying cause behind the feeling of intense sadness and negative emotions, and providing relevant treatment. Often the cause of depression is a sudden trauma, loss of a loved one or just loneliness.
• Checking general medical health first: A thorough medical examination often reveals that most patients suffer depression as a side effect of a greater problem, such as intense headaches and other pains caused by tumors or other chronic diseases and conditions. Treating those diseases will often solve the problem.
• Examining the drugs and antibiotics the patient is on: Some antidepressant pills cause depression while prolonged usage of antibiotics causes a weakening of the immune system leading to fatigue and anxiety disorders. Eliminating these drugs from the patient’s medication routine in a systematic and proper manner helps in the treatment of depression.
• Checking the food habits of the patient: Foods that are low in good fatty acids and rich in complex carbohydrates often cause depression. Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (for which psychotropic drugs are normally prescribed) are usually found to be on a diet low in fatty acids and iron and high in sugar. Some foods cause allergies which in turn cause depression.
• Checking for conditions: Some conditions like extremely low blood sugar levels, thyroid problems and adrenal fatigue cause depression. Treating these conditions rids the patient of the somber mood.
• Following a pattern of good health: Eating healthy and nutritious food, getting enough physical exercise and sleeping well is often enough to treat depression at times. A mild sedative may be prescribed if sleep is elusive at first.

Very often, we find that mental healing is effectively accomplished with a combination of patience, tolerance and kindness. Trained medical personnel need to be committed to the patient’s well-being instead of immediately resorting to drugs or treatment by shock and incarceration.

A word of warning: It is not safe to stop psychotropic drugs abruptly without medical supervision or advice; the associated risks include side-effects and withdrawal symptoms.

More on cell phones--update

I am moving this post up with an update--it was a very unfunny hoax created by the Bluetooth people. I apologize for inadvertently passing it along as truth.

If you liked my recent post on cell phones...you'll love this video:

http://www.koreus.com/video/telephone-portable-mais-popcorn.html

Maybe you shouldn't try this at home

Lisdexamfetamine (Vyvanse) is a relatively new drug. Literature on this medication began to appear in Pub Med about a year ago. It is classified as a "prodrug," which means that it is taken in an inactive form, which then becomes active in the body.

According to the first reviews written about lisdexamfetamine, it supposedly has less abuse potential than dextroamphetamine (Dexedrine, and in combination with other compounds, Adderall), two other medications popular for treating attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder.

However, that doesn't mean toxicity is not an issue. In the words of the researchers themselves, this is what happened when lisdexamfetamine was given to a group of rats:

In an acute study, LDX doses of 60 mg/kg and higher caused increased motor activity. At 1000 mg/kg, one rat died and another was euthanized. In a 7-day repeat-dose study, all rats dosed with LDX (14 per dose group for each sex) showed increased activity; 10 male rats and 11 female rats at 300 mg/kg/day and 3 female rats at 100 mg/kg/day were euthanized because of self-mutilation and 1 male rat at 300 mg/kg/day was found dead. In a 28-day study, only rats at 80 mg/kg showed signs of self-mutilation and thin body condition. In both the 7- and 28-day studies, LDX caused significant changes in some blood chemistry parameters (e.g. blood urea nitrogen, alanine aminotransferase, aspartate aminotransferase) and organ weights (e.g. particularly heart, liver, brain, and spleen).

Self-mutilation is absolutely not a benign or neutral side effect.

"...the apparent lethal dose of LDX in rats is more than five times higher than the LD(50) of orally administered d-amphetamine, supporting a putative protective effect of conjugating amphetamine with lysine."

OK, whew! Apparently since rats were less self-destructive on this medication than they were on dextroamphetamine, they were good to go with the marketing!

Now, an article is showing up in Pub Med with the following title:

Poison Centers Detect an Unexpectedly Frequent Number of Adverse Drug Reactions to Lisdexamfetamine.

And the first sentence of MedLine Plus fact sheet on this medication is, "Lisdexamfetamine can be habit-forming." This about a medication that is supposedly designed to reduce abuse potential!

I cannot access the article online, but as soon as I can get the text, I'll be sure to share it.

Because of the toxicity issue, I want to post known side effects, as listed on MedLine Plus' fact sheet. If you experience any of these, consult your prescribing physician immediately:

restlessness
mood swings
irritability
difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep
uncontrollable shaking of a part of the body
dizziness
headache
dry mouth
stomach pain
nausea
vomiting
loss of appetite
weight loss
fever
fast or pounding heartbeat
chest pain
shortness of breath
fainting
seizures
hallucinating (seeing things or hearing voices that do not exist)
aggression
frenzied, abnormally excited mood
seizures
tics
blisters
rash

I am having a hard time with a medication that was supposed to be a kindler, gentler form of a very potent--and popular--medication having some seemingly serious problems that for some reason...are just buried in the literature.

Faraone SV, Upadhyaya HP. The effect of stimulant treatment for ADHD on later substance abuse and the potential for medication misuse, abuse, and diversion. J Clin Psychiatry. 2007 Nov;68(11):e28.

Blick SK, Keating GM. Lisdexamfetamine. Paediatr Drugs. 2007;9(2):129-35; discussion 136-8.

Biederman J, Krishnan S, Zhang Y, McGough JJ, Findling RL. Efficacy and tolerability of lisdexamfetamine dimesylate (NRP-104) in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a phase III, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, forced-dose, parallel-group study. Clin Ther. 2007 Mar;29(3):450-63.

Krishnan S, Montcrief S. Toxicity profile of lisdexamfetamine dimesylate in three independent rat toxicology studies. Basic Clin Pharmacol Toxicol. 2007 Oct;101(4):231-40.

Spiller HA, Griffith JRK, Anderson DL, Weber JA, Aleguas A. Poison Centers Detect an Unexpectedly Frequent Number of Adverse Drug Reactions to Lisdexamfetamine. Ann Pharmacother. 2008 Jul 1.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/medmaster/a607047.html

Antidepressants and weight gain

For anyone looking for a list of antidepressants and weight gain, I have a summary chart on my website: http://afterthediet.com/antidepressant_medications.htm

This listing is an excerpt from my CD, Nutritional Implications of Psychotropic Medications, a collection of fact sheets on the neuroendocrine and nutritional considerations of 59 different medications and over the counter supplements used for brain and nervous system conditions. Antidepressants are just one category.

I'll keep the link on the blog for anyone wanting it in the future.

Happy Fourth!

Zzzzzzzzzzap that snoring!

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Snoring is one of those things we do that we tend to laugh at, but which is important not to ignore. Snoring not only impairs the sleep of the person who does it, but that of the poor loved one who tries to sleep in the same bed with a snorer.

Today's post is devoted to snorers, and their loved ones...especially my loved ones who have patiently tolerated my snoring. I promise...I'm working on it! :)

(Since I am a guilty party, I wanted a photo of a couple in which the woman was the snorer, but there appears to be a clipart gender bias when it comes to this issue. Trust me, women snore too, and when we do it ain't a dainty thang!)


One of the primary reasons people snore is because they have obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). This is a condition in which, due to certain sleep postures, the airway is obstructed during the night, cutting off oxygen supply. At multiple intervals during the night, air supply is completely cut off...snoring is the result of trying to breathe through an impaired airway. One of the more common cures for this type of snoring is a CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machine, fashioned after the oxygen masks used by fighter pilots. It works, but honestly, sleep docs, it's really not the most amorous solution if you're working on behalf of both people affected by this problem.

Often times the culprit in OSA is excess weight. Obesity can force new and different sleeping positions that challenge healthy breathing during sleep. People who don't sleep well can easily fall into a habit of living on caffeine and sugar for energy during the day, which can worsen the cycle of poor sleep and weight problems. Before you know it...you're backed into a corner!

My programs all stress the importance of good sleep hygiene, in other words, making sure that most of what you do in the evenings is about signaling to your brain that sleep is coming...and then quieting your environment in order to promote that actually happening. Even little things such as changing into casual clothing, sitting in a reading chair, having a cup of chamomile tea, avoiding violent television shows and movies, minimizing alcohol intake, and avoiding intense exercise...can all help promote healthy sleep.

A very important issue to keep in mind is that with OSA, part of the problem is oxidative stress. In other words, little things you're doing that stress the brain promote degeneration of the cells in the brain that help to regulate breathing. It's not all about your weight or your habits.

Nutritionally, eating more fruits and vegetables and fewer simple carbohydrates (sweets and refined breads/pastas) can be very good anti-oxidative strategies. So can increasing your intake of omega-3 fatty acids and decreasing your intake of omega-6 fatty acids.

Recently, some researchers reported that the sleep aid melatonin may also be helpful.

What they found in rats that had been exposed to hypoxic conditions was that indices of inflammation started to show up. Brain cells started to die. And the brain, ironically, started making less of the enzymes needed to make antioxidants. When melatonin was provided, cell death was completely prevented, there were fewer inflammatory markers to measure, and antioxidant production increased.

There are two important things this study tells us. (1) When our sleep is impaired, and we're not producing enough of our own melatonin, we have potentially created an environment that gradually kills brain cells. As annoying as snoring is, the problem is about a whole lot more and it needs to be addressed. (2) Melatonin supplements can help correct the imbalance that caused the problem.

Just a footnote, I've had many clients tell me they started taking melatonin and when it didn't help them sleep...they stopped. The authors in this study did not seem to care whether or not melatonin produced sleepy rats. They focused on and reported cellular changes. These can occur whether or not you feel sleepy the first few times you try melatonin. If snoring is an issue for you, consider trying melatonin and being consistent with its use, whether or not it's immediately improving your sleep quality.

Hung MW, Tipoe GL, Poon AM, Reiter RJ, Fung ML. Protective effect of melatonin against hippocampal injury of rats with intermittent hypoxia. J Pineal Res. 2008 Mar;44(2):214-21.

Some help for skin problems

About a week ago I was visiting an addictions treatment center and something that really struck me was the severity of skin issues I saw in many of the residents. Part of that may be due to poor nutrition, part to stress, and part as a result of drug use itself.

In any case, there's a great website I found with information on healthy skin care that I thought would be of interest to some of you reading this blog. I'll post the information as a permanent link, but if you are interested now, the name is http://www.highonhealth.org.

Cigarettes and coffee for breakfast...why it's so easy to get stuck in that rut

My teaching assistant today comes from Star Wars. He is here with me, because I have lost track of the number of times, when trying to do a serious presentation about neurotransmitters, I have said, "R2D2" when I meant to say "DRD2". I will have to check the Universal Diagnostic and Statistical Manual to see if I meet the criteria for Intergalactical Dyslexia...

What R2D2 and I would like to tell you about his almost-namesake today, the DRD2 receptor, is that this subset of dopamine receptors is sensitive to how we eat. DRD2 is responsible for impulse control. People who have a disturbed DRD2 system are more prone to problems such as shoplifting, gambling, alcohol addiction, nicotine addiction, and binge eating. They also seem to have more intensive carbohydrate cravings.

Scientists recently reported that this receptor is especially sensitive to food restriction. That is, people who restrict their food intake seem to be more sensitive to the reinforcing effects (the effects that make you feel good and want to use) of several addictive substances, including opiates, nicotine, and psychostimulants.

(That is why R2D2 is a little wired today; he was running late and drank his coffee but skipped breakfast to be sure we got this posted.)

This particular study suggests that the same effect can be provoked when restricting food and using dopamine-promoting medications such as pramipexole (Mirapex). For anyone taking medications for Parkinson's disease or restless legs syndrome, this could be important information to discuss with a nutritionist.

One of the enhanced responses with food restriction is locomotion. And that makes me think of people who abuse some of these chemicals. They stimulate themselves, which suppresses their appetite, which enhances their stimulation and increases their physical activity. On an ongoing basis, (and people who abuse drugs tend to not only use them just once) that can create a calorie deficit which reinforces the positive effects of the drug use. And that can reinforce staying addicted.

Even if you're not using illicit drugs, maybe not eating and living on cigarettes and coffee is kind an offbeat, roundabout way to jumpstart the dopamine system into motion. I have had many, many clients who tell me they feel addicted to sugar, and when they simply don't eat it they feel better. Maybe this is one of the reasons for that relationship.

Just a little fun fact on this Friday that will hopefully give you something to think about.

R2D2 and I are now going to eat breakfast.

Collins GT, Calinski DM, Newman AH, Grundt P, Woods JH. Food restriction alters N'-propyl-4,5,6,7-tetrahydrobenzothiazole-2,6-diamine dihydrochloride (pramipexole)-induced yawning, hypothermia, and locomotor activity in rats: evidence for sensitization of dopamine D2 receptor-mediated effects. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 2008 May;325(2):691-7.