Promoting awareness of the dangers of antidepressants
On November 16th last year, 32-year-old Anna McLeod (top) was found dead at her home. Anna had been head of year at Our Lady’s Catholic College (right) in Lancaster. After her death, headteacher Helen Seddon described Anna as “an Continue reading Citalopram and the Inspirational Teacher
Last week, the inquest of 17-year-old Aryan Akhgar (top) was held in Sheffield. Aryan was found hanged at home on February 18th last year. He was taken to a local hospital, but sadly died on March 8th. Aryan was Continue reading Aryan, aged 17
“A decision was made to double her dosage of Fluoxetine“ On December 10th 2017, 15-year-old schoolgirl Ellie Long was found hanged in her bedroom at home in Wymondham in Norfolk. She was taken to the hospital at Norwich, but died Continue reading Ellie, aged 15
For the six years since I began researching self-inflicted deaths in England and Wales linked to antidepressants, the drug featured most often has been Citalopram. Until this year, that is, when this dubious accolade passed to Mirtazapine, which was mentioned Continue reading Why Mirtazapine?
This is the fifth in the annual series of Lost Children posts, in which I recall the children who lost their lives after being prescribed antidepressants, and whose inquests have been reported during the past year. I also include links Continue reading The Lost Children (2018)
Last month, Blackpool Safeguarding published a Serious Case Review (SCR) following the death of an unnamed 17-year-old boy, who suffered fatal injuries after jumping from the roof of a building in the early hours of December 22nd 2017. In Continue reading Child CB, aged 17
17-year-old Morgan Murray (top) was described by her family as “a quiet and shy girl with a heart of pure gold.” On July 17th this year, she took an overdose of prescribed drugs Fluoxetine and Propranolol at her home in Continue reading Morgan, aged 17
On Christmas Eve last year, 17-year-old Tiegan O’Rourke (top) took her life in the room she occupied in a children’s home in Clayton-le-Moors, Lancashire. This week, an inquest in Preston heard that, although she was looking forward to the festive Continue reading Tiegan, aged 17
“At every point she was given drugs rather than treatment and care” Several of today’s newspapers, including the Daily Mail and the Croydon Advertiser, reported that the family of a woman who jumped to her death from the roof of Continue reading “Care is a Magic Medicine”
“She overdosed on antidepressants, because she couldn’t afford to pay the prescription charges” On June 14th this year, 54-year-old Penny Oliver (top) was found in her flat in Whitstable, Kent. She had died after taking an overdose of Continue reading Antidepressants and Austerity (Penny)
On June 14th 2017, 39-year-old Rebecca Kruza (top) took her 7-month-old son Henry with her to visit her mother at her home in Alkham, near Dover. She arrived around noon, ahead of an appointment to discuss her medication later that Continue reading The New Mother and the Psychiatrist
“Jane struggled to obtain support and assistance in her care of her elder daughter” 33-year-old Jane Kavanagh (top) was a full-time carer for her 15-year-old wheelchair-bound daughter. But despite living on her own with her two daughters, Jane had Continue reading Antidepressants and Austerity (Jane)
An inquest at Preston Coroner’s Court (right) heard last week that 17-year-old Ellie-Jaye Sumner (top) died at Buckshaw House, a private care facility located in Buckshaw Village, near Chorley. On the morning of November 30th last year, Ellie was Continue reading Ellie-Jaye, aged 17
An article by Jonathan Gornall (right) in today’s Daily Mail featured a study carried out on behalf of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Prescribed Drug Dependence, and published in the journal Addictive Behaviors. The review, one of the largest Continue reading Hooked
Wilful blindness is defined as “a term used in law to describe a situation in which a person seeks to avoid civil or criminal liability for a wrongful act by intentionally keeping himself or herself unaware of facts that would Continue reading Citalopram: Ten Years of Wilful Blindness
An in-depth investigation into the links between antidepressants and self-inflicted deaths in England’s prisons between 2004 and 2016 The website of the Prisons & Probations Ombudsman contains an archive of reports of investigations carried out by the PPO into Continue reading Suicide in Women’s Prisons
On the morning of Wednesday November 29th last year, Diane Brown (top) arrived at her home in Royton, Greater Manchester, following a night-shift at Rochdale Infirmary where she worked as a nurse. After taking the children to school, Diane took Continue reading Diane: Death by Polypharmacy
In April this year, 17-year-old Charlie Harris (top) took his life. On Wednesday, an inquest at Avon Coroner’s Court heard that Charlie had grown up in a stable family home and was close to his parents and brother. He loved Continue reading Charlie, aged 17
On February 18th this year, 16-year-old schoolgirl Sian Waterhouse (top) was found by her stepfather Phillip at their home in Morecambe, Lancashire. She had hanged herself after “bouts of anxiety”, due to her being bullied online. Phillip told her inquest Continue reading Sian, aged 16
On December 14th last year, 14-year-old schoolboy Matthew Humphreys (top) lost his life when he was struck by a train at Leighton Buzzard Station (right). Matthew had been a pupil at Cedars Upper School, where he was described by an Continue reading Matthew, aged 14
Margaret River is a small town, situated in Western Australia, about 250 km south of Perth and about 10 km from the Indian Ocean. It is known for its craft breweries, boutiques and surrounding wineries. But, from now on, Continue reading Margaret River Massacre
On September 23rd 2014, 43-year-old Rubina Khan held her 10-year-old son Amaar as they clambered down from the platform on to the tracks at Slough Station (top), and lay down with him before they were struck by a London-bound train. Continue reading Rubina and her Son
On May 13th last year, 16-year-old student Amelia Willis (top) was found hanged in the garden of her home in North Curry, Somerset. Earlier this week, almost a year after Amelia’s death, those present at her inquest heard her described Continue reading Amelia, aged 16
The inquest of gifted 16-year-old schoolboy George Lomas (top) began at Chesterfield Coroners’ Court (right) on March 6th this year. George had died by hanging at his father’s home in Pinxton, Derbyshire, on August 2nd last year. At the Continue reading George, aged 16
On April 8th 2017, 16-year-old schoolgirl Karen Edgar (top) was found by her mother in her bedroom at home in the village of Little Clifton in Cumbria. She was taken to West Cumberland Hospital in Whitehaven, but was pronounced dead Continue reading Karen, aged 16
A large proportion of the articles on this website in the past few years were written following inquests of children who took their lives as a consequence of the reckless and inappropriate prescription of psychotropic medications such as SSRI antidepressants Continue reading A Reflective Checklist
Ten days ago, on February 14th, a mass shooting occurred at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. 17 people were killed and 14 more were hospitalised. The perpetrator, 19-year-old ex-pupil Nikolas Cruz, was subsequently arrested and charged. What Continue reading From Columbine to Parkland
As in the other countries that make up the United Kingdom, Scotland has seen a large rise in the number of antidepressants prescribed in the past decade, along with a similar rise in the number of suicides. During this period, Continue reading Scotland in the News
Shortly after 4 o’clock on the afternoon of Sunday July 25th last year, a 20-year-old apprentice engineer died when he was struck by a train at Bramhall Station (top) in Greater Manchester. An inquest this week at Stockport Coroner’s Court Continue reading A Sunday Afternoon in Summer
Earlier this week, the online version of 9News in Australia published an interview with the father of an 8-year-old boy from New South Wales who tried twice to take his life while on antidepressants. The intellectually-gifted boy, given the pseudonym Continue reading “Mental Health in Crisis”
When 20-year-old maths student James Thomson (left) was found hanged at his house in Bristol on October 25th last year, it was reported that he was he was the sixth student from the University of Bristol (top) to have Continue reading Bristol University: the antidepressant connection
This is the fourth in the annual series of Lost Children posts, in which I recall the children who lost their lives after being prescribed antidepressants, and whose inquests have been reported during the past year. I also include links Continue reading The Lost Children (2017)
“She had just been prescribed a new drug, Fluoxetine, which could cause increased agitation and increased risk of self-harm.” On July 19th this year, 15-year-old Becky Romero (top) was found by her father Tony at her home in Bristol. She Continue reading Becky, aged 15
The first antidepressant ruined Faye’s life. The second antidepressant took her life. On June 29th this year, 23-year-old Faye Howard (top) sent a text to her boyfriend Billy, telling him that she was “feeling like a burden”. Billy contacted the Continue reading A Tragic Tale of Two Antidepressants
Over the past few years, I have written several pieces about the tragic Prozac-induced death of Jake McGill Lynch, and the courage of their parents Stephanie and John as they have taken on Irish Psychiatry and the Irish Parliamentary System Continue reading Jake, aged 14 (Part Three)
I am old enough to be familiar with a humorous children’s song by Burl Ives (top), recorded in 1953, which was played every now and then on what was known at the time as the wireless. I Know an Continue reading “I Know an Old Lady”
16-year-old Daisy French (top) lost her life at around 8pm on April 19th this year, when she was struck by a train at the station which serves Meadowhall Shopping Centre in Sheffield. Last week’s two-day inquest at the Medico-Legal Continue reading Daisy, aged 16
Chloe Hillier was 17 years old, and was the mother of a young son. On the morning of March 30th this year, she was found hanged in Boundary Park, Blackpool. At her inquest yesterday, Chloe’s mother Louise Hiller described her Continue reading Chloe, aged 17
On Wednesday July 26th, BBC showed a thoughtful, well-researched Panorama documentary called A Prescription for Murder?. The programme was directed and introduced by Shelley Jofre (left), who, several years ago, exposed The Secrets of Seroxat. Most of the recent Continue reading The Great Myth Buster
On January 9th this year, 16-year-old Rachel (top) left her school in Stoke Newington, London, at lunchtime and took her life in a nearby park. Rachel’s mother Sarah (left) wrote to me in May, to tell me that, five Continue reading Losing Rachel