Rating: 
Summary: Developed lip-biting for 7 months, maybe from Zoloft
Review: Bumped into this book researching on Internet compulsive lip-biting I have experienced for 7 months. Have read only PART of this book (on the Internet) and just ordered from AMAZON. Notice a lot of reviewers (I read nearly 60 Amazon reviews on this book) have not taken the drug...those that have relate very interesting comments. I have taken Zoloft for 1-1/2 years, starting with 50 mg and quickly dropping to 25 mg tablet each morning. A WONDERFUL drug that quickly cured my moderate depression--start each morning with calming, glowing feeling in left side of brain. Never made a Zoloft connection these past 7 months of lip-biting--thought I had just developed a bad habit--lots of reviewers say these tics (tardive dyskinesias) are a minor nuisance, but my minor nuisance had ripped apart the inside of cheeks and mouth--my wife says when I speak before a group, my mouth is always contorted strangly, making me look very strange. Plus, I've been on a very tiny (25 mg) dose, and I still got these biting tics. I have immediately cut my dose to half a pill daily, and will consult with a psychiatrist on where to go from here. I'll write a longer review after I read the entire book, but I have a funny feeling my Internet reading of part of the book is lots more than most of the people that reviewed the book! I agree with all the balanced comments in the other reviews--do NOT throw out these wonderful SSRI drugs which are daily keeping millions of people active and fulfilled--but one should read this book and be aware of the downside. I agree with many reviewers who do NOT think herbs are much of an alternative. But I DO think seeing a psychiatrist regularly (which I do NOT do)is a must--why do we all rely on our general doctors to prescribe powerful mind drugs--it's like asking a pianist to fix your car--are we all stupid or what. I think the 5-visit rule per year for psychiatrists has kept people from psychiatrists, plus the new disclosure rules under HIPAA are murder--it seems as if, now, anyone can get your files. But I'd rather an employer KNOW about my depression than find me dead--plus, employers and fellow employees are surprisingly loyal and understanding--depression makes you a human being who is not perfect. My New Year's resolution(late) is to immediately find and book a psychiatrist who can, say, once-every-two-months, monitor CLOSELY medications such as SSRIs--most general doctors only give you a 1-minute visit to spill your guts--why not get a full HOUR from a psychiatrist!! As a sidenote--thank you AMAZON--where else could one read 60 reviews on a book, the reviews being packed with information and data! We all must resolve to buy LOTS of Amazon books so these wonderful people STAY IN BUSINESS!!Tom Clarie
TomClarie@aol.com
Rating:
Summary: Developed lip-biting for 7 months, maybe from Zoloft
Review: Bumped into this book researching on Internet compulsive lip-biting I have experienced for 7 months. Have read only PART of this book (on the Internet) and just ordered from AMAZON. Notice a lot of reviewers (I read nearly 60 Amazon reviews on this book) have not taken the drug...those that have relate very interesting comments. I have taken Zoloft for 1-1/2 years, starting with 50 mg and quickly dropping to 25 mg tablet each morning. A WONDERFUL drug that quickly cured my moderate depression--start each morning with calming, glowing feeling in left side of brain. Never made a Zoloft connection these past 7 months of lip-biting--thought I had just developed a bad habit--lots of reviewers say these tics (tardive dyskinesias) are a minor nuisance, but my minor nuisance had ripped apart the inside of cheeks and mouth--my wife says when I speak before a group, my mouth is always contorted strangly, making me look very strange. Plus, I've been on a very tiny (25 mg) dose, and I still got these biting tics. I have immediately cut my dose to half a pill daily, and will consult with a psychiatrist on where to go from here. I'll write a longer review after I read the entire book, but I have a funny feeling my Internet reading of part of the book is lots more than most of the people that reviewed the book! I agree with all the balanced comments in the other reviews--do NOT throw out these wonderful SSRI drugs which are daily keeping millions of people active and fulfilled--but one should read this book and be aware of the downside. I agree with many reviewers who do NOT think herbs are much of an alternative. But I DO think seeing a psychiatrist regularly (which I do NOT do)is a must--why do we all rely on our general doctors to prescribe powerful mind drugs--it's like asking a pianist to fix your car--are we all stupid or what. I think the 5-visit rule per year for psychiatrists has kept people from psychiatrists, plus the new disclosure rules under HIPAA are murder--it seems as if, now, anyone can get your files. But I'd rather an employer KNOW about my depression than find me dead--plus, employers and fellow employees are surprisingly loyal and understanding--depression makes you a human being who is not perfect. My New Year's resolution(late) is to immediately find and book a psychiatrist who can, say, once-every-two-months, monitor CLOSELY medications such as SSRIs--most general doctors only give you a 1-minute visit to spill your guts--why not get a full HOUR from a psychiatrist!! As a sidenote--thank you AMAZON--where else could one read 60 reviews on a book, the reviews being packed with information and data! We all must resolve to buy LOTS of Amazon books so these wonderful people STAY IN BUSINESS!! Tom Clarie
TomClarie@aol.com
Rating: 
Summary: Superb research and enlightening patient case histories
Review: Dr. Glenmullen has wriiten a book that entertains, surprises, alarms, and educates. It is rare for a doctor of his stature to share personal case histories, and it is obvious that he listens to his patients with his heart, as well as his brain. Prozac and its SSRI cousins (Celexa, Paxil, Remeron, and Zoloft) are wonder-cures for some people, and nightmares for countless others. Dr. Glenmullen stresses that many patients should never take these powerful medications; however, he does not refute the fact that they can help the severely ill. This book shows documented research that the major drug companies fail to disclose. It also raises the question why so many primary care physicians dispense these medications for mild symptoms or other normal life events. He stresses that we may not see the true "Prozac Backlash" for many years to come, since many SSRI neurological side effects remain hidden until later in life. This is an area that should concern the FDA and the drug companies. Hopefully, long-term research about the true effects of these drugs will be disclosed to doctors and patients. For me, the highlight of this book was the patient case histories. The story about the young man with a severe phobia of elevators is enlightening and inspiring. Before you consider taking an SSRI, please read this book. Better yet, show it to your doctor. Thank you for the opportunity to review this book.
Rating:
Summary: A marginally objective criticism of antidepressants
Review: Glenmullen is not nearly as extreme as Peter Breggin ("Toxic Psychiatry", "Your Drug May Be Your Problem") in his anti-medication stance, but I still think he's far from objective. In my opinion, Glenmullen does not present an objective picture of both the pros and cons of antidepressants, and therefore this book must be taken with a heavy grain of salt. I do still think it's worth reading though. Avery Z. Conner, author of "Fevers of the Mind".
Rating: 
Summary: A totally worthless book
Review: Here we have a psychiatrist from Harvard, in the year 2004 telling us that major depression is not a disease and drugs are not required. In this ludicrous book, Glenmullen describes all sorts of side effects that will according to him, "ruin you." That is the most laughable thing Ive ever heard of. Glenmullen shouldnt even be allowed to be a psychiatrist. With his inclinations and thoughts concerning mental illness, he should have become a psychologist instead. I would discourage you from reading this piece of trash. Eric
Rating:
Summary: Yanking Away the Bandaid: Backlash to Prozac Backlash
Review: I was taken aback by the viciousness of many of the reviews here, but not really surprised. This book says what many people do not want to hear--and backs it up with research from people *not* in the drug industry's pocket.
Glenmullen knows the real value--and equally real pitfalls--of these drugs--and shares his knowledge in this valuable and disturbing book. He explains the issues in laymen's terms, and includes scientific citations for those who wish more detail.
Not anti-drug per se, Glenmullen sees SSRIs as a temporary bandaid for acute crisis. He refers to research showing therapy to be equally effective for long term solutions. I've personally observed that no matter what the problem, the majority of mental health providers use drugs as a primary and often permanent answer. Glenmullen's is a valuable second opinion, and especially useful for those who have already discovered some of these drugs' many problems.
Rating: 
Summary: a reader in Virginia
Review: I was very surprised to learn that Dr. Glenmullen has such impressive credentials since his book is complete nonsense. SSRIs are the single most brilliant discovery of the past decades. In every country where they are widely prescribed suicide rates have plummeted. Most studies suggest that more than 2/3 of patients taking SSRIs see improvement within 6 weeks. What once was an incurable disease is now treatable. Dr. Glenmullen should look past trivial and anomalous detail and examine the bigger picture. I am not saying that you shouldn't buy this book. Indeed, it is always advisable to look at other points of view. However, make sure you read this knowing that this author's point of view is completely wrong.
Rating:
Summary: My son has been taking prozac for 2 years.
Review: My son was prescribed prozac for anxiety and add along with anphetamines. I told the doctor that my son had facial tics and he prescribed these drugs anyway. When his tics got worse, the psychiatrist took him off the amphetamines. I did not know that prozac was a brain stimulant until I started reading this book. A year ago, the dr. started my son on Strattera, a new medication approved for treating ADD. The doctor also increased the dose of prozac from 10 mg to 20 mg. Now after reading this book, I wonder if these drugs will cause irreversible brain damage to my son who is 11 years old. Although the doctor who wrote this book does not treat children, and the book was written before Strattera was approved for ADD it has made me question my decision to put my young son on these powerful drugs. I want to read more about these drugs, and would like to get my son off of them because they don't seem to be helping him that much. I decided not to increase my son's dose of prozac to 20mg because it would be that much harder to taper off the medication in the future. The psychiatrist also wanted to increase the dose of strattera from 40 mg daily but I told him no. I only put my son on these drugs because his school pressured me to put him on them because of social problems he was having in school. Now I regret having put him on these drugs because I worry about permanent brain damage. Maybe if the insurance companies promoted getting psychotherapy and social skills training there would be less use of these drugs. But psychotherapy is more expensive than giving pills to children, therefore they discourage psycotherapy and limit the amount they will pay for it.
Rating:
Summary: FDA as Perfection
Review: The reader from The Upper Midwest concludes that because the FDA approved these drugs they are totally safe, and then proceeds to decry the authors use of anecdotal evidence as unscientific. He has almost stumbled on the true weakness of this book, and his own biased argument. The FDA does not provide the kind of long term studies required to determine if these drugs are overprescribed and create permanent brain-damage in a significant number of patients, and neither does this book. The book does make a good case for avoiding these drugs unless they are absolutely necessary. As for talk therapy, my anecdotal evidence shows as many people are screwed up by bad counseling as this book describes as being screwed up by drugs.
Rating:
Summary: Prozac Backlash, an astonishing expose of drug industry
Review: This book was a huge eye-opener for me. It makes me think not to trust AMA, FDA and especially not the drug companies. Anyone considering taking Prozac, Zoloft or any of the other psychiatric type drugs ought to at least get the other side of the story, that Eli Lilly apparently fought to suppress - I'd guess in the interests of making more profit. This book is a shocker. [...] Most horrible was the risk of permanent, disfiguring "tics" developed commonly after use of these types of drugs, the worst was the involuntary sticking out of tongue like a fly. After years of antidepressant use, many times these "tics", repeated involuntary (you can't stop them) movements become permanent. Also, this book gives evidence that evidence of side effect of suicidal thought process was suppressed by Eli Lilly (Sample factoid: book said in Europe they had to put this on side effects warning to get permission to sell it there). Everyone considering taking SSRI's or any other "anti-depressant" ought to read this book. I think it would save a lot of people a lot of grief, not to mention brain damage (my opinion - the book gives some pretty convincing evidence). Thanks, Amazon for oppt'y to add my 2 cents worth. Hope this helps someone out there.
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