In an era when more people are taking psychiatric drugs than ever
before, Joanna Moncrieff's explosive book challenges the claims for
their mythical powers. Drawing on extensive research, she demonstrates
that psychiatric drugs do not 'treat' or 'cure' mental illness by acting
on hypothesised chemical imbalances or other abnormalities in the brain.
There is no evidence for any of these ideas. Moreover, any relief the
drugs may offer from the distress and disturbance of a mental disorder
can come at great cost to people's physical health and their ability to
function in day-to-day life. And, once on these drugs, coming off them
can be very difficult indeed. This book is a wake-up call to the
potential damage we are doing to ourselves by relying on chemical cures
for human distress. Its clear, concise explanations will enable people
to make a fully informed decision about the benefits and harms of these
drugs and whether and how to come off them if they so choose.