Coming Off Psych Drugs

In June of 2012, twenty-three people came together to discuss the subject of coming off psychiatric drugs. We were psychiatric survivors, therapists, mental health consumers, family members, and activists, united by a passion for truth-telling. More than half of us had successfully come off psych drugs, including cocktails of antipsychotics and mood stabilizers. What resulted from our three-day gathering was an unforgettable meeting of the minds.

psychdrugs_image_largerThis 75-minute documentary (directed by Daniel Mackler) offers a rare glimpse into the world of coming off psych drugs through the eyes of those who have done it. The film presents, among others, Will Hall, author of the world-renowned “Harm Reduction Guide to Coming Off Psychiatric Drugs,” Oryx Cohen, director at the National Empowerment Center, Laura Delano, blogger at www.madinamerica.com, and Daniel Hazen, noted psychiatric survivor and human rights activist.

Although this documentary is not medical advice, it intends to offer something even better:  hope. In a world where increasing numbers of people are put on psychiatric drugs every day, where more than 20 percent of Americans already take them, and where so many are told they need to stay on them for life, COMING OFF PSYCH DRUGS offers proof that another way is possible.

NOTE:  I have decided to place all of my films on Youtube for free, because I want to share them with the world.  You can still purchase DVDs of the films if you wish, but I don’t want money to stop anyone from receiving their message.  Here’s to a revolution in the mental health industry!

COMPLETE FILM HERE:

FILM TRAILER HERE:

Optional English subtitles.  DVD bonus footage: interview with director Daniel Mackler.

91 thoughts on “Coming Off Psych Drugs

  1. I enjoyed the film. Been off the drugs 4 times and going on a fifth, into 25 years now. Planning on going dutch with my family and psychiatry. I’ve had a bellyful. I don’t really agree with psychiatry and side with critics of the profession and dissidents. Their relationship with the pharmaceutical industry and government is unnerving.

  2. On a quick note, I have asked my doctors a number of times to discuss stepping down for two years now and it always gets sidestepped. Almost like its unheard of or ridiculous. I stumbled on Roberts video and now im just really pissed off. My supports are broken, be it that they are members of my family with alcoholic and street drug dependencies. So I called Detox centers and phyc wards with no luck. Today im suffering from dizzy spells after a year of riddling. I tried stepping down on my own but im scared and cant do it alone. Im scared to call the hospitals or authorities because, as we now know, they are only interested in one thing.
    So awaiting for two phone, my question is where do I go and are there more groups similar to the meeting of minds? Life just isnt getting better for me after five years of this. And yes Im getting worse. What a shameful waste of tax dollars and more so my life when I thought they where there toi help.

    • Look into the website of International Society of Ethical Psychology and Psychiatrist (ISEPP). http://psychintegrity.org/search-for-a-therapist/. See if their ideology is compatible with what you want. I would suggest searching for a professional with them in Find Help Section scroll down look for your state or country.

      The ISEPP psychiatrist (MD) might help taper and psychologist could help support while tapering. Their site is informative too.

    • Just do it yourself I tapered down with help of mainstream psychiatrist over 2 years by 100 mg every 3 months, and I still relapsed in 3 months. You just go at any pace this time a came off Seroquel quetiapine by myself by cutting the tablet in into about a tenth but I was on a lower dose to begin with. I have been free of it for nearly a year and I am feeling better but I know I can relapse as your brain becomes supersensitive and never full recovers.

      • Fully agree, you just have to decide to start. Its not nice snd I guess you can never know if its the reduced quetiapine or your old condition that causes side effects. Im now on 50mg in morning and 25mg at night and am able to take 50mg if I freak out. It’s my nerve endings that still ignite at times. My doctors only advice was to take it slowly

  3. Thank you for making this film. I am on a few different psyc meds right now. One of them is Seroquel, and my psychiatrist and I are tapering me down from 50mg to 25mg. Well, it’s only been about 5 days and each day I feel more and more like I’m crawling out of my skin. I don’t know if I’m going to make it through the withdrawals without going back to the dosage I was previously prescribed. My symptoms are anxiety, racing thoughts, clammy hands and cold and clammy feet, confusion, depression, fatigue and lingering, faint headache. I truly hope I am able to successfully taper down, and maybe eventually come off of it. I take it for sleep and I worry that the Xanax I’m taking won’t be enough to “take over” what Seroquel was doing for me. UGhh, I’m all over the place.

    Nonetheless, thank you for letting me know there’s hope!

    • yeah thats normal .. go slow .. drug side effect .. akathisia .. old russian torture system is what many of mental health doctors fallow … so might be permanent .. come down slow or have help and hope it gets better and some one looking after you . get page i found .. common for them to over dose people first time so end up suicidal or meant health problems ..
      a place to start .. proves they overdose people to hook you for life. any way its good link to reality.. https://rxisk.org/akathisia/

  4. HI, I have been on medication for 15 years, working but I struggle with meds. Anti pshycotic. Hoping to go to finland farm to ween off meds if possible. But dont know who to ring to arrange that is english speaking.
    My side effects of heart, nerves, etc….I need help , who do I speak to in Finland?
    I am functioning but it takes all my strength. I completed a holistic diploma in counselling and thought of open dialouge myself. Can you help me?

    Thank you
    Jenny from Australia

    • hi jenny — alas, i don’t think there are any places in finland to wean off drugs. the open dialogue program is for local people — and more for first-episode psychosis anyway…. have you seen the “harm reduction guide to coming off psychiatric drugs” — free on the web! wishing you well! daniel

      • find some one who look out for ya .. basically need nice home with a friend … all you do is call open dialog people talk to them most the time .. buy county place and i help ya … debating getting into it … remember you be okay … short term episodes usually … paying i buy old place on 20 acres in small town in Adirondacks … get animals and garden … have good therapist and phone number … your coming off drugs and just building relationships again .. good luck … probably help to be religious … its a meditation sanity protection .. human behavior book …

        • they have modern medicine / stem cells in ukriane american company . in panama american and argentine .. mexico as well . exosomes in states and your own blood . but go out of country ,. fix up organs instead of transplants with your own bone marrow stem cells. guy argentine can restore site .. paralyzed go to panama .. param be good for organs as well .. extend life . go back . ukraine if catch it early one treatment might cure all degenerative diseases … don’t panic .. pull stem cells from our own fat and bone in back . grow em from fat cells in baby cords .. medical waste controversial but can one treatment fix beginign of degeneration . just watch mel gibbons stem cells on joe rogan show. ukraine injects your stomach to renew nervous system .

  5. This was very interesting video. My son was diagnosed with mental disorder and it grew from just depression to anxiety to schizophrenia. Both I and his step mom believed he ahd some real bad problems and needed medicine. But he would stop taking the drugs everytime he had fallen back to hospital and was released. He know has come off his monthly shot . He seems to be doing well compared to his prior episode to last hospital visit. Yet he still has some now new issues and I dont know where to go for ideas . Since as you know the system will only try and get him back into hospital same day with a crisi intervention or get me to involuntarily commit him. Please tell me something Im just reaching out. Thank you

  6. Hi Jodi, We are so lucky to have Will Hall and his Harm Reduction Guide to Going Off Meds, and so lucky to have websites such as Daniel’s.
    In 1966, I was diagnosed and forcibly medicated and told I had to be on it the rest of my life. “Whaat”??. No way”. It sounds like you said something similar to yourself. In the early 80’s I took my last dose. So “cheers” for you.
    For a shorter course than mine, follow his guide carefully. I could name some strategies, but they’re all in the guide
    My heartfelt encouragement.
    Speaking of ‘heartfelt”, check out a blog on “Madness in America” website by Michael Cromwell.

  7. Hi, up until I herd about Will Halls story about 2 months ago I didn’t know it was even conceivable or possible for people to successfully come off anti sycotic drugs . I knew that I was not wrong that it was possible even when people told me I would have to take drugs permentally. This brings hope and strategy where there was only a bleak outlook. I have a long way to go if I choose to use the harm reduction guide to come off my drugs, but I have hope I can do it.

  8. Hi Daniel, Can you help me find a psychiatrist in London, UK to come off antipsychotic drugs. My partner’s psychiatrist is a bastard and wants him on them for the rest of his life – he’s quite clever too – he let’s him go off meds for a couple of months to struggle and keeps bringing him back to hospital to say he’s chronic and can’t manage without his meds. Any one you know in London to help – most counsellors know about benzos tapering but not antipsychotic.

    Cheers
    H

    • hi hannah — off the top of my head i don’t know anyone, but maybe you could look into the hearing voices network (not to assume your husband is a voice hearer), but i know lots of people in HVN in london have alternative views on meds and coming off meds and probably have access to and knowledge of better psychiatrists. and the hearing voices movement is very popular in the UK…. and there are facebook groups and whatnot, so maybe connection isn’t too hard? just a thought! daniel

      • Hi Daniel,
        Thank you so much for this film & site. I’m trying to come off 4 psych drugs planning to do it slowly & have some support. My life has been onhold the past 10 yrs with numerous hospital admissions & the meds multiplying. Even with the small reductions I’ve made on 3 so far I feel more like myself & more motivated. Is like waking up! Also have withdrawal symptoms & a spike in anxiety but trying to accept that. Thanks for all the web links you’ve provided in the comments below. Just wondering if you know of anyone is gone through this in Dublin, Ireland. Especially coming off a number of meds. Thank you so much for your work!

  9. Hi Marsha,
    I have broken an addiction to an anti-psychotic Navane, but I also failed several times and had to go back on the drug. Every situation is different, but what you described sounds more like when I had to go back on.

    What you need to do is stabilize, research, (Will Hall’s guide to going off of Psych meds is excellent) then when you are ready, try again.

    Mostly I want to send you encouragement

    It hurt my pride to have to “retreat”, but I was jammed and panicky. Going back to a minimum dose helped me regroup.

    My computer crashed. I’m sending this from the library.
    I will keep an eye out for your next post.
    My Best.
    Duncan Mills

  10. Will someone some where please help me. I don’t have any more money to put on my credit card and have no where to turn. I am very sick from being cut off cold turkey in the last stages of neuroleptic withdrawal last December and from my original problem of hashimotos thyroid disease and undetected nutrional deficiencies. I can’t think right now to type in the rest of my history. I have all but given up hope for recovery. Is there any way out from iatrogenesis of my magnitude?

  11. please help me find help for my daughter to get off these drugs. I can’t find a psychotherapist in her area (Sycamore, Illinois). She is finding it increasingly hard to hold things together. Cannot take time off work, or will lose her home. But I see her headed for a crash and don’t want her to be hospitalized and further medicated. ?She has severe anxieties and panic attacks. They have her on latuda and adivan. I just read Toxic Psychiatry by Peter Breggin, which led me to search for help and to you. She knows she needs to get off them, but tells me all she can do now is survive. I think she’s headed for a breakdown and am trying to find a psychotherapist who does not believe in drugs for her to work with. Can you steer me in the right direction for this? Thank you. JS.

    • hi june — i am in northern brazil now, quite off the grid!!! i would look up david garfield, a psychiatrist in chicago. i wrote a book with him some years back. he teaches at a few universities, and he will know people, i think!!! also check out the list of therapists on http://www.isps-us.org that might help. but it is a tough road — to find anyone good, to be honest…… write here again if these leads dont work and i might have some other ideas….. p.s. i am anonymizing your name a bit, for the sake of privacy… daniel

  12. Hi Lindsay,

    Great work to get clean of so many SSRI drugs. I was forced to take anti-psychotics for 14 years. I’ve been medication free for 30 years and the process of recovery (struggle) continues. I’ve been reading Will Hall, Robert Whitaker, and others who are rethinking approaches to mental Illness. It’s very dynamic. I am barely literate when it comes to internet skills so as yet I haven’t been able to have any exchanges with the internet psych survivor community. Best wishes with your exploration of this overdue revolution in treatment and thinking.

  13. I think the work your doing here is Amazing!! I’ve been clean from my psych medicines for almost 9 years, including Xanax, kolonopin, tranxene, restoril, depakote, varied SSRI’s, adderall and assortment of others. It was quite a deep and healing journey exploring my true spiritual nature. I would love to share more!
    Lindsay

    • My son as weaned of all meds , and is now on high vitamins, B3 And C but asleep, most of the time , are the antiphyphictic still in his stytem, it’s been 4 months. Was on depot clopixol injections and Depikote.

  14. Hi James, My heart goes out to you. I hear your cry. Our situations are not the same, but we have some things in common. I was given a diagnosis of schizophrenia at 18, hospitalized, forcibly medicated. After a long story and several more hospitalizations, I dedicated to getting off medication. After several failed attempts and after very slow reductions I succeeded.
    it’s terrible they gave you such a powerful drug at such a young age with no plan to withdraw you off it. It’s normal to be all messed up after a suicide especially for a child. It’s really good I think that you hate your situation and feel a passion to change. It’s unfortunate that you are so right that you can”t tell the psychiatrists about how you feel. It shows street smarts that you know this. I also think its great that you want to work and have a family and wat to throw out being a victim. You are a great candidate for going off meds long term reduction. The mechanics of this are really important so its important to learn about these before going off. If you found Daniel Machler then you probably have found Will Hall, Madness Radio. and other internet connections to psychiatric abuse survivors; including some very dynamic. people. There is a way out of where you are. Step by step. You can do it. Feel free to tell me more. I will follow up. God bless. Duncan

  15. I have been on psychiatric medications since I was in first grade started with Ritalin then in junior high it was a family member hung himself and I started smoking a pack a day and marijuana to a lesser extent I became withdrawn from family and friends and then I ended up on a psych ward and I can’t even begin to describe the number of medications I have been on since from zyprexa to seroquel to Wellbutrin to depakote the list would astound anyone who saw it I am 31 years old my family says I need medication to function what they don’t understand is medication has completely destroyed my life I have only had 3 jobs worked for 1 winter at 1 and 3 days at another and a week at another I depend on ssdi and my parents to live I desperately want off my medications I want to live a happy life and eventually have children I hate what I have became I think about suicide everyday I can’t mention this to anyone I know because I’ll end up on a psych ward I have been to them at least 40 or 50 times in my life all I think about wanting to die I have no control over my own life I have a social worker and I a going to a group home this afternoon I hate my life.

      • I am in the group home have been for 9 days now they started me on risperdal injections every two weeks and 3 mg once daily I was on invega from 2007 or 8 and complained about side effects for a year 6 months into that he put me on topamax to quote help me lose weight when I know for a fact it made it worse and he took me off it. And then my family moved so I moved as well was living in my own apartment for more than a year and a half before the move lived with my parents for 9 months until I got my own apartment again lived there for a year then my new doctor was a do so I didn’t want to talk to him about going off invega because if I had I problem I knew I’d need up on a psych ward and I don’t judge others but on state insurance the majority are mentally ill criminals or addicts and it’s more like jail than a psych ward. I then moved again and I was so thankful I was able to see my md I was seeing before moving and I thank the good lord I went to my eye doctor to get a new pair of glasses because when I did he noticed that I had optic nerve swellingm after my check up and ordered more tests I then researched my medications but thought I had a brain tumor till I found out invega can cause increased intercranial pressure and what is known as a pappiloedema I told him that and he agreed I was most likely correct but I still had to get a Mri 2 weeks it took because I was over 350 pounds at that time I saw my md and he titrated my dose to nothing in the mean time I nearly went blind in my right eye as a result it’s my lazy eye was before this happened nerve swelled to 85% in that eye and roughy 10 to 20% in my stronger eye it went completely away in both eyes in 3 months time I no longer have any faith in psychiatrists I know that the same can happen with risperidone but I have no choice since I am seeing nurse practitioner with the same county I don’t know what to do there’s no way they will let me go off the medications.

        • Hi James, Did you check out the link on Daniel’s website to Beyond Meds which is put together by Monica Cassini? I was just reading it: very educational, deeply supportive. We can’t know what is right for another. Everyone’s path is different. Any plan to go off meds safely requires becoming knowledgeable. Most Doctors are not trained in this. I hear your emergency and send my support.
          Duncan

    • I hate my life too. My life of being on anti psychotic drugs started when I was 20 and am 39 now. I got top marks at high school and uni. Was well brought up in a big family. I have been on more than a few different drugs including flupenthixol and olanzapine. I am now on a depot of 25 mg risperdal fortnightly. I went to a specialist to check the levels of chemicals in my head and they are all mostly shockingly low. Like my dopamine was 16 and the normal range is 139+. I have never had a job and hate doing everything except sleeping which gives me a break from the constant awful restlessness I feel. I also have some physical issues to do with my health too. All anti psychotic drugs are just plain sick and evil. Have had 16 admissions into a psychiatric facility over the years, I live in Melbourne and am on disability. I have been on risperdal for so long I am afraid I won’t be able to taper. Like I have been on it for maybe at least 10 years. What should I do? I can’t stand the psychiatric facility and do not want to end up back there AGAIN.

  16. I’m so sorry to hear you’re in this mess . . . try putting all the meds. you’re taking into the interaction checker at http://www.drugs.com , chances are there will be some dangerous interactions. You should share this information with your doctor.
    For education and support to decrease safely go to http://www.survivingantidepressants.org
    Learn about how to decrease by small increments (10% max.). The site is full of members in similar situations to yours. Sometimes part of your recovery needs to involve changing doctors – finding someone who will support you and allow you to take a more active role in your treatment. Eight medications is ridiculous – I’d be astonished if there were no contra-indications among them.

  17. I have been on anywhere from 5-8 meds at a time for the last 5 years…….. I dont know who I am. I have developed an alter-ego or something lie it that tells me horrible things but it is much worse since being on the drugs. I have gone through bouts of suicidal thoughts, planning and one attempt. I live in this weird world all the time and I can fall asleep in a snap. I really want to get off the drugs but my Dr thinks its a bad idea so isnt supportive. I am ready to insist that he titrate me… what are my rights ??

    • rights are a complicated thing. most fundamentally i believe in your human rights — to do what you feel is right for yourself and your body and your mind. i support that. however, that doesn’t mean your doctor does or the law does or the mental health system does. many people do what they feel is best for themselves and follow their human rights and end up locked up in psych wards or find their freedoms taken away in other ways. so basically, if you try coming off without your doctor’s support i hope you have a good alternative plan. much better to have doctor’s support, though many people do it without. i would look at the website http://www.psychrights.org that might help. the main thing that i think is important is to come off wisely. that can take many forms. good social support is often very important. doctor’s support can often help a lot. a stable life helps a lot. all the things people talked about in the movie. –daniel

  18. That was nice of you to make these films free, thank you. I am so glad I watched this – I was recently tested for narcolepsy and although my neurologist said yes I have it, I missed out on the diagnostic requirements by a lousy 2 minutes and one REM episode (note that the technicians were playing around and slamming doors while I was trying to sleep – hardly fair) and while this is not exactly a psychiatric condition, like the folks in the video I was given drugs – Nuvigil. Thank goodness I didn’t take it – going on forums for more information, I heard horror stories of people getting seriously hooked on amphetamines, then the insurance companies demanding they be re-tested. Like me, some people could not achieve the correct MSLT results and were denied coverage for the drugs. I’m unhappy that I don’t have at least the option of going on partial disability due to my condition, but hearing people’s stories about drugs I realize how grateful I am that I let that sample pack sit in a drawer.

    • hi emmy — hmm, i didn’t realize that narcolepsy testing was so…arbitrary….but then again i shouldn’t be surprised!!! i have known people who took nuvigil…..erg……yes……i feel ambivalent about it. if my memory is correct a few years years back there was a drug called provigil that basically was the same as nuvigil, but its patent expired so it became cheap — so they tweaked the formula a bit and renamed it nuvigil so they could sell it for bigger money. i remember some folks i knew had side effects on provigil…. and i also remember doctors suddenly prescribing less provigil and more nuvigil…..hmm……

      i actually mention provigil (modafinil) in a song for which i just made a new youtube video, if you’re interested: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTiwt042wrk

      greetings!
      daniel

      • That is a great video! Assuming you’ve read Bad Pharma by Ben Goldacre? Crucially, he’s a debunker. So a lot of pro-prescription cranks listen to him.

        And with testing well yeah, that’s the problem. Sleep studies are iffy and now I feel like I have no choice but to go for the lumbar puncture. My neurologist insisted the test is “experimental” but wouldn’t he say that anyway to protect his source of income via the elaborate sleep testing? Sigh.

  19. Very interesting film. I’ve been on Venlafaxine for more than 3 years now and it’s almost impossible to stop taking it, tried 3 times to slowly lower the dose and always end up taking the prescribed dose again. So I can totally relate to this documentary. Maybe you could have added some more in-depth interviews with people who successfully discontinued their meds and are now living happy (or even happier) lives, abut their coping strategies etc..

    • Hi Mauro , it’s possible for you to decrease venlafaxine if you do the decreases small enough (10% max.) and hold for 3-4 weeks between cuts. Lots of people are/were in your situation and are tapering safely and resuming a more regular life. I’m one of them , and have received an enormous amount of education and support at http://www.survivingantidepressants.org Loads of information about how to manage symptoms as you decrease , and you can talk to real people in real time. You can do this successfully – you need access to good information.

  20. As a holistic psychiatrist who has tried to help many people come off psych drugs, I want to express my awe and gratitude for this project. You are truly pioneers. Thank you for the important work you do. I’d also like to mention Robert Whitaker who wrote the very important book “Anatomy of An Epidemic” and is affiliated with madinamerica.com and Joanna Moncrieff, a psychiatrist, who wrote the book “The Myth of the Chemical Cure.” Keep up the good work!

  21. My 24 yo daughter is on a cocktail of antipsychotic meds which I am starting to believe are causing some (if not all) of her psychoses. I want her to come off these meds. We have started seeing a naturopath and I’ve ordered your DVD. I’m wondering if there is an organisation in Australia (Melbourne) that will support her withdrawal and provide much needed backup for me? Thank you so much, you’ve given me hope! I’m so looking forward to watching the DVD with my daughter.

    • hi wendy. greetings! i’m sorry, but i don’t know any good organizations in melbourne. and what’s sad is that i lived in melbourne for most of 1993 (studied zoology at melbourne uni) and also visited melbourne in 2013 to screen my film “open dialogue” there. met a lot of good people, but i don’t know any organizations that i think would be really helpful. hmm, i can send out some emails and see what i can find, but i think a lot of people end up having to do things on their own. meanwhile, here’s an organization that i’ve been affiliated with — maybe they have some good info?? i’m not sure — http://isps.org/index.php/local-groups/regional-isps-groups/australia . greetings from new york, and i’ll be mailing out the DVD ASAP! daniel

        • i thought about it today and i realize i also have 2 other ideas for local people i know who have had serious diagnoses and have come off psych drugs. i’ll see if i can get in touch with them and i’ll reach out to you backchannel. daniel

      • Hi Daniel , nice to meet you. I’m in Sydney and work with Dr Yolande Lucire helping people come off antidepressants safely. She is also in Sydney , and is happy to be contacted by anyone in Australia. Email: Lucire@ozemail.com.au

        The community on survivingantidepressants.org offers loads of information and suggestions to anyone needing support and advice stopping their medications.

    • As someone going through this Wendy, I can say the most important things to me are 1) a doctor who believes me and works with me; 2) a therapist who does not pathologize extreme states nor project “illness” thoughts (psychic vulnerability has been problematic for me) and 3) peers who have been through it or are going through the same thing to provide validation. No matter how much my friends who do not have similar lived experience can help or love me, it has been invaluable to be able to talk with someone who validates the experiences that may not be consensus reality, but need to get aired and heard without judgment. Does this make sense?

    • Hi Wendy , contact Dr Yolande Lucire (Sydney) , her email is Lucire@ozemail.com.au She’s been helping patients taper safely for many years. Also , check out survivingantidepressants.org It’s extremely important that your daughter decrease the meds. slowly in order to avoid withdrawal syndrome. And you’re right , they probably are causing symptoms due to toxicity.

    • hi Wendy!
      Hoping you are still around. Have you managed to find anyone in Melbourne to help with withdrawal? I am seeking someone similar and would be most interested.
      Thanks and regards –
      John

    • Hi Wendy, I thought it was only Western Australia that has a f####d up “MENTAL HEALTH SYSTEM”. Wendy your post was put up in 2015, I would love 2 here how your daughter has progressed withdrawing off antipsychotics. I sincerely hope she has withdrawn off them successfully & is functioning happily on her own. I know it’s a slow process but one that needs to be done to save our loved ones. Our very best wishes & hope everything has turned out for your girl. I am a mother who is struggling @ present w/my daughter in a lock up ward, although they have just in the last few days have given her permission to go to Occupational Therapy without supervision. She is on 2 Antipsychotic poisons, Olanzapine & Quitiapine. She is compulsive on Quitiapine & has been a nightmare last couple months. I gather that’s another drug induced diagnoses “obsessive compulsive disorder” which she now will be labelled with. I have observed these poisonous drugs 4 over 30 yrs & have found these poisons cause the diagnoses. ( drug induced ). My daughter was doing so well, had lost 26 kilos before turning manic on Thyroid Extract from a dose that was excessively high for her. So now w/2 Antipsychotics the weight has ballooned again, this is what I call abuse in the MHS. @ the moment because she doesn’t feel anything it doesn’t bother her, but one day reality will hit & I don’t know how she’ll handle it. # What I’d love to do, is 2 have control, put a handful of these sadistic Psychiatrists in a locked up ward, feed them loads of poisons, feed them twice a day, give them 12 sessions of ECT & make them suffer & humiliate them. # In Perth Western Australia the only Psychiatrist I will ever trust is Professor Assen Jablensky, an honest & true gentleman. A Psychiatrist, many have complained that he’s old school, but his tactics work. How many of these new school Psychiatrists sent their patients home & never to return back through that revolving door, they all come back through adverse reactions or withdrawal symptoms.

      I am ever so greatful to Daniel for his Bullshit Psychiatry song, I play this when I have a down moment & I sing along w/him & I know the song off by heart, it’s so catchy. I found his video’s, wild truth.net, blogs etc, by accident & am so greatful I did. I feel safe here & have a voice. I am heard, to express how I feel, the struggles we have & to receive a reply from others who are suffering @ the hands of these sadistic drug pushers & abusers that makes us feel supported.

      “AUSTRALIA”
      WAKE UP, THEY ARE KILLING OUR CHILDREN, THEY ARE KILLING OUR
      LOVED ONES. IN THE LAST FEW YEARS LOVED ONES THAT ARE ON PSYCHOTIC POISONS HAVE TURNED ON THERE OWN FAMILIES & COMMITTED MURDERS & MURDER SUICIDES. WHEN WILL THESE DRUG PUSHING PSYCHIATRISTS BE MADE ACCOUNTABLE FOR THESE CRIMES. THEY SEND PATIENTS HOME W/A CONCOCTION OF POISONS & HOPE FOR THE BEST WITH ABSOLUTELY NO SUPERVISION WHAT SO EVER. THERE SERIOUSLY NEEDS TO BE A “ROYAL COMMISSION” INTO THE ABUSES IN THESE MENTAL HEALTH INSTITUTIONS, LOCK UP WARDS ESPECIALLY.
      HOW CAN THIS BE MADE POSSIBLE?
      I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE SOME FEED BACK ESPECIALLY ON THIS LAST SEGMENT.
      I am so passionate about fighting these sadistic criminals & this is the only place I have freedom of speech. God bless you Daniel for fighting for all of us that are suffering.

  22. I just watched the movie. I’m almost off the 2nd to last (of 6) drugs. Thirteen years of it. It heartens me to see all of you who have gone through this and are doing this work.

    What a sweet gathering you had and captured well. May there be others. I would love to attend and participate in the growing movement toward recovering and reclaiming our authenticity.

    Thank you for this beautiful film.

  23. Hi Daniel,

    I’m writing to say thank you so much for your documentaries! I am so grateful to have been able to watch them and share them with others. It means so much and is so helpful to me on my own journey.. Keep up the amazing work! (Also am generally stoked with Wild Truth 🙂 )

  24. Hi Rebecca, Good to hear from you. I agree with your skepticism of the medication. There are many serious drawbacks to meds which are downplayed by the Psychiatrists. Also there is danger of relapse of gong off the medication abruptly. Fortunately, for the most part, the worst ill effects are from taking the drugs long term. So there is time to get accurate information. You probably have seen Will Hall online. I find his You Tube videos talking about his “Harm reduction Guide to going off of Psychiatric medication” to be inspiring and informative. He is gentle and courageous; he nails it. I am in the process of connecting with the survivors community so right now I can’t share any personal contacts. You know of Daniel Mackler. Other names are Hearing Voices Network , Dr. Peter Bregin, and Robert Whitaker. I offer my support as a listener. All this must be very trying. My Best to you and your son. Duncan

  25. Daniel, I just read your article on Mad In America about the components for a good neuroleptic withdrawal program. I have been looking for such a program for my daughter — and discovered there isn’t one. So, I was excited by your ideas, which are very much along the lines of what I have been thinking is needed.

    I would like to facilitate making this happen — maybe as a 3-year pilot project, pull together a team and raise the funding to support it. Would like to speak with you about this, get your recommendations about who to contact who might also be interested in advising collaborating on launching such a project.

    I’m retired, have experience with fundraising, administration, and a law degree. I’m serious and motivated, and have raised money for large projects before. You have my email address with this post. I hope to hear from you. Thank you.

    ~Carol Spponer

  26. Thanks for your message and encouragement . I hope and pray my son can stay off medication. He only took it for 27 months and stopped suddenly. He is still delusional and hears voices, Thanks for spreading the word through DVDs and CDs. His diagnosis is Paranoid Schizophrenia. He is in college and has good GPA. Thanks again and I hope for the best.

  27. Hi Greta, I’m a psychiatric survivor who years ago was diagnosed with Schizophrenia. I got off medications but it was a long process. Your son sounds like a good candidate for this, but it is vital to not take the medication lightly. He should go back on the meds. He should educate himself about the drug that has been prescribed for him. There is great community of survivors to connect with on line. The withdrawal from these meds is powerful, can take two or three months to kick in, and mimics a relapse. The first time I went off I relapsed and had to be re-hospitalized. Each individual is different, but others have reported this,too. Good Luck to you and your son. God Bless.

    • Duncan, You mentioned that their is a community of survivors that we can touch base with. Do you have any groups or contacts online of people to touch base with for support? My 22 year old son just had his first psychotic episode in June 2014 and they now have him on so many meds and none of them are working (he actually seems worse now that he’s on them) I am thinking that he should come off them (like a clean slate) and try other things. Thank you

  28. My son 29 now. He was diagnosed with paranoid Schizophrenia four years ago, Now off meds for 2 months. He was on meds for 27 months. He lives with his parents and he is in college. What advice you have for his Mom? Also the psychiatrist told us that We should watch him for symptoms. very delusional, hearing voices. No insight, thinks he has no mental illness. Thanks so much-Greta

    • hi greta — not easy to give advice…..plus i don’t give much advice anyway. maybe watching my movies (not sure if you’ve done this) might give you some more ideas. basically, if he can stay off the meds it’s probably a good thing, but i don’t want to be absolute about that, especially since he was on them for a while and they’re not easy to get off and STAY off for some people…… maybe there are some local people he can connect with — though more realistically it’s probably best if you reach out for the help yourself (for yourself–some sort of good support) because it doesn’t sound like he’s interested in it. wishing you the best! daniel

  29. Thank you for sharing this video and training. I’ve been struggling myself coming off of Celexa that was prescribed to me by my general practitioner because she felt that I was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder due to my husband being critically ill and then becoming his care provider. Although with good intentions, she was not educated about the risks that anti-depressants can cause and the horrible side effects that people encounter when deciding to discontinue their use. After seven years of taking this drug not realizing how it could negatively affect me, I’ve had to do major self study on the subject of withdrawal and after three months of hell was lucky to find a clinician who understood and supported my decision to stop taking it and felt I should have never been put on it in the first place. My PTSD was not severe enough to warrant this medication. So many more options could have been used, and unfortunately, I was uneducated about the drug and its side effects and took it unknowingly. It has been almost a year since I tapered and stopped taking it and I’m still struggling. I can only describe the bouts I have of withdrawal as relapses. I’ll do fine for a couple months and then deep depression and anxiety creeps in when least expected. Just until recently, have I realized that the withdrawal from these drugs can take years to recover from if ever. I’m angry that this drug is prescribed so freely to people who have no idea what it could bring to their future. That’s a crime. Thanks again for sharing your film It helped. Warmest Regards, Penny

  30. I am so moved and excited. I relate deeply to this movement. In 1966, I was hospitalized, diagnosed with schizophrenia, and forcibly medicated with antipsychotics. Over a number of years and several more hospitalizations, and against my families and Doctor’s will, I tried to get off the drugs. When I figured out it what I was attempting required major withdrawal, and took five years to go off the meds, then I succeeded. By then it was the middle of the 80’s. Will Hall’s videos have been a revelation for me. This meeting of the minds is a crucial next step. How can I join up. I’ll find a way. I’m a little slow on the internet. But I’m catching up. Cheers to all those at the training and to all those viewing as I am.

  31. Can you have this put on Netflix? People need to see this on a mass scale. I’ve never felt more connected to people I don’t know who are going through the same thing. (Besides my FB withdrawal group.) Thank you for making this available. I feel slightly more empowered. Thank you.

  32. Do you have written recovery stories foe people who came off psychiatric drugs on your videos. IF so can you email them to me

    • Hi Matthew,
      I don’t personally have their written stories — though some stories are available in books or on the internet.
      some places to find stories like this:
      madinamerica.com
      willhall.net
      the book “dante’s cure” (about Catherine Penney’s story, as she’s in my film “Take These Broken Wings”)
      beyondmeds.com
      mindfreedom.org

      that should be a start…..
      all the best!
      daniel

  33. I am a family member of a lovedone, who is currently/still(for 20 years), been subjected to FORCED psychotropic drugs;including being raped and assaulted in other ways, by the perpetrators of psychotropic drugs, at Chester MHC, in Chester, Illinois.
    FIRST, David has been a victim of BULLYING, since the age of (13), but now (53), he realizes that he has a RIGHT, to DEFEND himself from ALL verbal, physical(and if possible, rape), assaults!
    ALERT! After years of written COMPLAINTS(but staying persistant at filing necessary complaints), we(his family), has finally begun, to receive ‘SUBSTANTIATED’ replies to our complaints.
    The problems that still exist though, is our David’s TRANSFER OUT of CMHC, still has NOT been adherred to, because of the COVERUP of these assaults for all these years.
    This ‘2013’, we have ALSO received(in a cleaver way) news, that his LIVER, is being “monitored”;turning “green”(according to his current “LCSW”(Travis Nottmiar), who has had a complaint recently(2013), filed against him, the “hd. admin’s.” secretary, Lisa, the Unit C “director”, Joe Harper AND “Dr. MV Reddy, our David’s “psychiatrist”, who some how, has REappeared, as his “psychiatrist”, after NOT being his “psychiatrist’, for almost (18) years.
    David’s HEALTH is DETERIOATING AND his COGNITIVE abilities, are deterioating(but God is keeping him strong with his family’s love and support).
    FIRST, he was RAILROADED to CMHC(maximum), AFTER a LIE was told on him at Elgin(medium), where he was sentenced(by the way, because he was DEFENDING his family’s honor and trying to protect us, from an individual who SHOT at him).
    This was all done, with the help of the court’s psychiatrist(Dr. SAM), who has been used to railroad individuals to CMHC(maximum).
    ALERT! I have viewed (24) GRAVESITES, of patients who DIED while at CMHC;results of psychotropic drugs.
    This gravesite, is located about (5) minutes, SOUTH, of CMHC facility(on Route 3)!
    I have great knowledge of the effects of psychotropic drugs, for I AM medically inclined;Certified MT, Medical Coder AND CADC)although UNemployed) and when I expressed these skills to the “treatment” team and administrators on 02.17.2010, when I DEMANDED a Face-To-Face meeting with them to disccuss the constant assaults orchestrated on our David, these admins. and their “team”, did all but physically assault I;yet I still was THREATENED by one of the guards(complaint substantiated against;Chris Roberts), who ALSO threatened to “kill your ass if I lose my job”(words spoken to David, by Roberts), who ALSO threatened to “have my wife sister beat your sister ELois up, the next time she visits”, along with DHS secretary(Michelle Saddler), FALSELY attempting (AGAIN), to illegally stop my visits with my brother, because I have the COURAGE to file ANY necessary complaint we need to file on David’s behalf.
    I will continue to follow PSYCH RIGHTS, for I KNOW and believe in Mr. Gottstein’s works and other’s who has SURVIVED from the hanus use of psychotropic drugs.
    Mr. David OAKS, of MIndfreedom.org, is ANOTHER, that I will NEVER stop having faith in to assist individuals in gaining their minds and freedom( from these satanic drugs), back.
    ALERT! I’m PLEADING, for as MUCH suppot as possible, to SAVE my brother, from the hands of these individuals at CMHC, who has COVERED up rapes and other assualts on David (and I”m sure other patients), for YEARS!
    I can be reached at (773)622-2906, at ANY time and is PLEADING for a ‘RALLY’/news conference, to discuss the ABUSES on David (and others), at Chester MHC, in Chester, Illinois.
    I have(in my possession), PHOTOS of injuries done to him AND MEDICAL RECORDS, to PROVE, that he has been raped along with him being able(still), to IDENTIFY the culprits in these assaults on his person.
    ATTN: Statue 405 of the DISABILITIES CODE, PROHIBITS ABUSE of ANY KIND and CMHC employees(from the admin., to the STA’s), has VIOLATED this code, for YEARS and MUST be stopped and prosecuted, for these ARE criminal acts, orchestrared on patients at CMHC.
    Governor of Illinois(Pat Quinn), has tried to get Chester MHC CLOSED, but nothing has developed, but we MUST continue to fight a good fight, for the sake of our lovedones, who are DIEING from the abuses at CMHC!
    The money used to ABUSE them, is taxpayers money(medicare/Caid FRAUD) that should be used to properly care for them and this EXPOSURE, should NOT be allowed to be used to enhance CMHC story that “Changes” are being made to better treat patients who has been/are still, being abused(while, obviously, abuses are still happening, because my family has CURRENT ‘2013’ written complaints on the table (as we speak).
    The EGYPTIAN REGIONAL/GUARDIANSHIP ADVOCACY, is NOT doing all they can to help combat these abuses on David and others;complaints submitted to them, for the last (20) years, along with to Equip For Equality(EFE)!
    They are showing bits and pieces, to make it appear, that they are doing the right thing by all harmed by their ABUSES and this is only to maintain the FISCAL money($130k/patient) that CMHC receives each year to maintain their QUOTA for keeping this facility open.
    This political game, must be stopped, to save the lives of these ABUSED patients, before MORE, wound up (10 to 20 feet from the water), that nears the deceased patients BURIED at this CEMETERY!
    ALERT! This COVERUP of ABUSES on our David, is why we have been LIED to, stating that, “your complaints against the doctors/nurses, will not go forward, until you receive POA over David”. “Until you get POA, your complaints will be CLOSED”.
    ATTN: For as long as I can remember, ANY time a person is assaulted, they have the RIGHT, to press charges against the person responsible, but Chester Police Department(who refused to appear at my requested face-to-face meeting), has stated to I AND ANOTHER family member who has contacted them for help(been falsely arrested by police because SHE DEFENDED herself from being physically assaulted by guards), that, “Chester takes care of their OWN problems”, which is an indication of AIDING this COVERUP of rapes and other abuses on David (and abuses on other patients).
    PLEASE SEND HELP!
    Thank you.
    sign, Mrs. E.P.Clayton
    sis. of David P.)

  34. Hello my name is R. I have been diagnosed with schizophrenia affective disorder and I am in the process of talking to my social worker/doctor about coming off abilify. What books/DVDs would be useful to myself who is trying to come off medication and what information do you have on alternative treatments and dealing everyday without medication. Please not that I am based in the England. Thank you

    • hi R.,
      greetings. humbly speaking, i would recommend my film — but also i list many references in my film. good books and websites. like http://www.beyondmeds.com — great place to start. some of peter breggin’s books are good. also check out madinamerica.com — lots of good stuff there. wishing you the best! Daniel

      • Hello,

        To R.’s point below is there a place (sort of Healing Homes) inEngland you know and would recommend? I am definitely going to read your materials but it is going to take me some time and I am looking for help ASAP for my husband.
        Do you also know whether any of the Healing Homes you have come across in your documentaries/research would take non local residents? We are prepared for my husband (and if necessary our whole family) to go wherever he can the genuine support for recovery from psychosis – this is his 3 crisis in 5 years and he is mid-30s
        He is also a child psychiatrist who is pro non-drug treatments so as soon as he gets better we want to set up something in the UK along the lines if the institutes you bring to our attention (thank you!). We would like to contact you then – would that be OK?

        Thank you so much for all you have already done.

        • hi Sylvie,
          hmm……..there is some stuff going on in England that i know of in terms of programs, but not much. there’s the Arbours, but that is VERY expensive and i’m not 100% sure i would recommend it even if it were really cheap. the best stuff i would recommend is the “hearing voices network” — very strong in the UK, and not just for voice hearers, but for all sorts of people who have had unusual or alternative experiences or breakdowns. the healing homes program is only in sweden, though i know some people in the north of england who would like to start something along those lines. do you know the work of rufus may? he is involved in the soteria-bradford network and is a psychologist who himself was hospitalized some years back and has recovered. he’s a good one to connect with. wishing you the best, Sylvie!
          daniel

  35. Daniel has done it again, shown us the way out of the glass box. There are many paths to reclaiming our minds & our bodies without toxic CNS chemicals. We have unlimited capacity to heal from trauma & oppression with love, accurate information, support; You are. Or alone.

  36. Wonderful gentle but revolutionary film Daniel, you have added to the tools we have to change things for the better – thank you XXX Tracey

  37. Thanks Daniel for listening to those who have really been there and done that to gather support for others to follow in their footsteps. Can’t wait to see the film.

  38. Unveiling the truth about what DSM diagnoses as serious mental illness and what has been widely accepted by bio-medical psychiatry, their patients, families, all work-force, and the public as a whole is equally a scientific as it is the moral imperative of all involved in Public Mental Health

    Cheers
    Borko

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