MtheM, Songwronger's list should not be ridiculed so lightly. In the case of prozac for instance (fluoxetine), there is clear evidence that it can in some cases result in suicide ideation and actual suicide, particularly in younger patients. Plainly such a drug is not prescribed in order to achieve that effect. The typical indicator for fluoxetine is serious depression. Even in the early 1960s, when SSRIs were much less well understood (may not even have had that classification) their potential to induce a potentially manic "high" was recognised. There was much discussion then and subsequently about whether a recently prescribed anti-depressant was a factor in Sylvia Plath's suicide. The question, as always with medicinal therapy, is about the extent to which side effects outweigh benefits. There are no easy answers, but Songwronger is more than justified in stimulating debate.
|