Busting 11 pernicious lies about mental illnessDr. Aruna Tummala, a board-certified psychiatrist, breaks down some common and harmful misconceptions about mental illness and how to treat it.
Fact 1: This is the most common myth about the roots of mental illness and is most likely perpetuated by Big Pharma. In fact, mental illness is a breakdown in the larger physiological functioning within a person. In other words, it is a "hardware" failure of the body (aka the mind-body-spirit system) that manifests in the "software" of our systems as mental illness.
Fact 2: This is a blatant falsehood. No one needs to think their mental illness can't be treated – the key is to find and resolve the root cause. As one of my patients noted, "I feel empowered and no longer a 'victim' of a faulty chemical imbalance in my brain. I now know that the solution to my ailments is bringing my mind, body, and spirit back into balance. I feel a bit like Dorothy at the end of The Wizard of Oz when Glinda The Good Witch tells her 'You always had the power, you just had to learn it for yourself.'"
Fact 3: See fact 2 above. 😊 The same can be said for anyone receiving traditional care in the "sick care system" we know as mainstream medicine.
Fact 4: They are as much of a lifesaver as a BandAid is to a fracture! Or, for that matter, an antacid for acid reflux!! (Yep, this can be a post in itself. 😊) Psych meds can lead to symptomatic improvements in the short term, but invariably they cause further deterioration in the root causes, which are never addressed. In addition, most psychiatric medications cause dependence that is very hard to overcome without holistic treatment. Long-term studies for things like depression, schizophrenia, or ADHD, which are typically not funded by industry, have consistently shown short-term gains but long-term harms, including more severe episodes and more risk for permanent disability.
Fact 5: This is another blatant falsehood. Antidepressants are neither safe nor effective. Population-based studies have repeatedly shown that they carry the risk of impulsivity, especially when attempting rapid dose changes, titrations, withdrawals, or switching from one med to another. Patients can experience severe forms of adverse reactions, like akathisia, which can lead to suicidality, homicidality, and such. Here's a link to my Substack article on this subject:
Fact 6: I give this myth a 'Pinocchio rating' of 10 out of 10. All the psychiatric meds currently being used (antidepressants, antipsychotics, benzodiazepines, stimulants, etc.) cause dependence at the nervous system level. Most people are unable to come off these meds, even when they become well. For a long time, Big Pharma blamed the withdrawal symptoms on the patients as "discontinuation syndrome" and urged doctors and patients to never stop taking them (a perfect revenue generation model, eh?). But journalists like Robert Whitaker (Anatomy of an Epidemic) and physician researchers like Dr. David Healy, Dr. Peter Breggin, Dr. Peter Gøtzsche, Dr. Joanna Moncrieff and I have raised the alarm about this serious issue and tried to educate the public. At my practice, we know how to safely help patients come off medications that they do not need or that are causing them harm.
Fact 7: There are no long-term studies that have looked at the effects of psychiatric meds on the developing brains of children. What we see is the same scenario as in adults. Psychiatric meds do not help and carry the risk of significant harm.
Fact 8: It can only be considered a mystery because we are barking up the wrong tree – believing that mental illness is just a disease of the brain. It is a disease of the whole mind-body-spirit system. When we address the root causes in the gut-brain axis, in the immune system, in the hormonal system, and so on, we can offer meaningful pathways toward recovery. The causes of mental illnesses, or for that matter any illness, are not a mystery. As I explain in my soon-to-be-published book, the three main root causes are 1) bad diet, 2) trauma or stress in life, and 3) toxins in our environment.
Fact 9: Studies have consistently shown that antidepressant exposure during pregnancy affects the neurodevelopmental trajectory of the developing baby and has been linked to conditions like autism, ADHD, anxiety, depression, etc., by the time the child is 8 years old. Paternal use of antidepressants around the time of conception is also linked to autism in the offspring.
Myth 10: If the environment is not to blame, how come we are seeing a tremendous increase in rates of all mental illnesses over the last few decades? Do genes change so quickly, within a matter of decades? No, they do not. In fact, gene defects account for only a small percentage of mental illnesses like autism, schizophrenia, bipolar, major depression, etc. Even here is the epigenetic effect – which is the complex interplay between environment and genes that decides how, when, and what genes are expressed. We are in constant "play" or "dance" with our environment. When genes are involved, the main genetic mechanism involves a group of genes known as methylation genes – MTHFR is the main one among them. Even here, the expression of these genes can be changed for the better with targeted nutritional supplements.
Fact 11: Cross-country studies consistently show more mental illness and higher rates of worse outcomes like suicide in countries where there is a high availability of psychiatrists, therapists, and mental health care systems. We need a better way. Dr. Aruna Tummala, MD, ABIHM, is a board-certified adult/geriatric psychiatrist/integrative and holistic medicine doctor. She is the founder of Trinergy Health & Psychiatry 2.0 in WI, which offers holistic psychiatry.References: Burgess P, Pirkis J, Jolley D, Whiteford H, Saxena S. Do nations' mental health policies, programs and legislation influence their suicide rates? An ecological study of 100 countries. Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 2004 Nov-Dec;38(11-12):933-9. doi: 10.1080/j.1440-1614.2004.01484.x. PMID: 15555028. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15555028/Chaste, P., & Leboyer, M. (2012). Autism risk factors: genes, environment, and gene-environment interactions. Dialogues in clinical neuroscience, 14(3), 281–292. https://doi.org/10.31887/DCNS.2012.14.3/pchasteCohen D, Recalt A. Withdrawal effects confounding in clinical trials: another sign of a needed paradigm shift in psychopharmacology research. Ther Adv Psychopharmacol. 2020 Nov 6;10:2045125320964097. doi: 10.1177/2045125320964097. PMID: 33224467; PMCID: PMC7656873.Cosci F, Chouinard G. Acute and Persistent Withdrawal Syndromes Following Discontinuation of Psychotropic Medications. Psychother Psychosom. 2020;89(5):283-306. doi: 10.1159/000506868. Epub 2020 Apr 7. PMID: 32259826.Davies J, Read J. A systematic review into the incidence, severity and duration of antidepressant withdrawal effects: Are guidelines evidence-based? Addictive Behaviors. 2019; 97: 111-121. ISSN 0306-4603. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2018.08.027.Framer A. What I have learnt from helping thousands of people taper off antidepressants and other psychotropic medications. Ther Adv Psychopharmacol. 2021 Mar 16;11:2045125321991274. doi: 10.1177/2045125321991274. PMID: 33796265; PMCID: PMC7970174.Gøtzsche PC. Why I think antidepressants cause more harm than good. Lancet Psychiatry. 2014 Jul;1(2):104-6. doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(14)70280-9. Epub 2014 Jul 9. PMID: 26360561.Gøtzsche PC. Long-Term Use of Benzodiazepines, Stimulants and Lithium is Not Evidence-Based. Clin Neuropsychiatry. 2020 Oct;17(5):281-283. doi: 10.36131/cnfioritieditore20200503. PMID: 34909004; PMCID: PMC8629043.Hazell L, Shakir SA. Under-reporting of adverse drug reactions : a systematic review. Drug Saf. 2006;29(5):385-96. doi: 10.2165/00002018-200629050-00003. PMID: 16689555.Henssler J, Heinz A, Brandt L, Bschor T. Antidepressant Withdrawal and Rebound Phenomena. Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2019;116(20):355-361. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2019.0355Hengartner MP, Schulthess L, Sorensen A, Framer A. Protracted withdrawal syndrome after stopping antidepressants: a descriptive quantitative analysis of consumer narratives from a large internet forum. Ther Adv Psychopharmacol. 2020 Dec 24;10:2045125320980573. doi: 10.1177/2045125320980573. PMID: 33489088; PMCID: PMC7768871.Horowitz MA, Jauhar S, et al. A Method for Tapering Antipsychotic Treatment That May Minimize the Risk of Relapse. Schiz Bull. 2021 July; 47(4): 1116–1129, https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbab017Horowitz M, Wilcock M. Newer generation antidepressants and withdrawal effects: reconsidering the role of antidepressants and helping patients to stop. Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin 2022;60:7-12https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2011/07/non-genetic-factors-play-surprisingly-large-role-in-determining-autism-says-study-by-group.htmlhttps://www.survivingantidepressants.org/https://pointofreturn.com/https://www.madinamerica.com/2021/06/boy-interrupted-a-story-of-akathisia/https://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/19/health/fda-panel-recommends-keeping-sleeping-pill-on-market.htmlInsel TR. Translating Scientific Opportunity Into Public Health Impact: A Strategic Plan for Research on Mental Illness. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2009;66(2):128–133. doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2008.540Johnny Andoh-Arthur & Samuel Adjorlolo (2021) Macro-level mental health system indicators and cross-national suicide rates, Global Health Action, 14:1, DOI: 10.1080/16549716.2020.1839999Kendrick T, Geraghty AWA, et al. REDUCE (Reviewing long-term antidepressant use by careful monitoring in everyday practice) internet and telephone support to people coming off long-term antidepressants: protocol for a randomised controlled trial. Trials. 2020 May 24;21(1):419. doi: 10.1186/s13063-020-04338-7. PMID: 32448374; PMCID: PMC7245840.Middleton H, Moncrieff J. 'They won't do any harm and might do some good': time to think again on the use of antidepressants? Br J Gen Pract. 2011 Jan;61(582):47-9. doi: 10.3399/bjgp11X548983. PMID: 21401992; PMCID: PMC3020050.Nielsen M, Hansen EH, Gøtzsche PC. What is the difference between dependence and withdrawal reactions? A comparison of benzodiazepines and selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors. Addiction. 2012 May;107(5):900-8. doi: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2011.03686.x. Epub 2012 Jan 23. PMID: 21992148.Nielsen M, Hansen EH, Gøtzsche PC. Dependence and withdrawal reactions to benzodiazepines and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. How did the health authorities react? Int J Risk Saf Med. 2013;25(3):155-68. doi: 10.3233/JRS-130594. PMID: 24047687.Rajkumar AP, Brinda EM, Duba AS, Thangadurai P, Jacob KS. National suicide rates and mental health system indicators: an ecological study of 191 countries. Int J Law Psychiatry. 2013 Sep-Dec;36(5-6):339-42. doi: 10.1016/j.ijlp.2013.06.004. Epub 2013 Jul 17. PMID: 23870280. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23870280/Schafer A. Biomedical conflicts of interest: a defence of the sequestration thesis-learning from the cases of Nancy Olivieri and David Healy. J Med Ethics. 2004 Feb;30(1):8-24. doi: 10.1136/jme.2003.005702. PMID: 14872066; PMCID: PMC1757130.Sharma T, Guski LS, Freund N, Gøtzsche PC. Suicidality and aggression during antidepressant treatment: systematic review and meta-analyses based on clinical study reports. BMJ. 2016 Jan 27;352:i65. doi: 10.1136/bmj.i65. PMID: 26819231; PMCID: PMC4729837.Sørensen A, Juhl Jørgensen K, Munkholm K. Clinical practice guideline recommendations on tapering and discontinuing antidepressants for depression: a systematic review. Ther Adv Psychopharmacol. 2022 Feb 11;12:20451253211067656. doi: 10.1177/20451253211067656. PMID: 35173954; PMCID: PMC8841913.Spence D. Bad Medicine: The rise and rise of antidepressants. Br J Gen Pract. 2016 Nov;66(652):573. doi: 10.3399/bjgp16X687793. PMID: 27789499; PMCID: PMC5072904.This post was originally published at the author's Substack and is reprinted here with permission. We're so glad you found us here on Substack! In this era, it is vitally important that we're able to stay connected. Censorship is alive and well, and although we are still currently on social media, we may not be for long. |
Saturday, June 17, 2023
11 pernicious lies about mental illness
Thursday, June 15, 2023
CAFO Animal Waste the Dirty Secret of Organic Foods?
How to Find Toxin-Free Food
Foods grown on soil treated with concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) waste or biosolids are not labeled as such, so your best bet for avoiding them is to support sustainable agriculture movements in your area. Make it a point to only buy food from a source you know and trust, one using safe, nontoxic growing methods.
Remember, small regenerative farmers commonly use rotational grazing of multiple species to mimic natural cycles. This keeps pastures — and the animals that live on them — healthy.
This method also depends on animal manure to fertilize the soil, but the manure is not contaminated like CAFO waste — and it exists on a manageable scale that supports the farm’s overall health instead of harming it. This is not the same as the industrially sourced CAFO waste that’s sprayed over farm fields.
Growing your own food is another way to ensure what you’re eating isn’t exposed to CAFO waste. But be careful when purchasing potting soil and compost, as companies do not have to disclose when biosolids are used. If you see "Milorganite" on the label, however, it contains biosolids from the city of Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District — a national distributor.32
- 1 University of Nebraska-Lincoln March 15, 2016
- 2 Farm Progress February 11, 2010
- 3 Permaculture Research Institute
- 4 Pasture Bird, Why Chicken Poop is the Sh*t
- 5 National Center for Appropriate Technology, Tipsheet: Manure in Organic Production Systems
- 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15 Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Oct; 16(19): 3521., Abstract
- 11 Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Oct; 16(19): 3521., 3.3 Heavy Metals
- 12 Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Oct; 16(19): 3521., 3.4 Growth Hormones
- 13 Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Oct; 16(19): 3521., Conclusions
- 14 Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019 Oct; 16(19): 3521., 3.2 Antibiotics and Pesticides
- 16, 23 Washington State University January 18, 2017
- 17 Pew Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production
- 18 NRDC, Cesspools of Shame July 2001
- 19 NRDC, Cesspools of Shame July 2001, Page 1
- 20 The New Yorker September 21, 2018
- 21 WRAL September 18, 2018
- 22 Vice September 18, 2018
- 24, 25, 26 Civil Eats May 3, 2023
- 27 U.S. EPA, Estimated Animal Agriculture Nitrogen and Phosphorus From Manure
- 28 University of Michigan, Center for Sustainable Systems, U.S. Wastewater Treatment Factsheet
- 29 The Guardian October 5, 2019
- 30 U.S. EPA, Chemicals in biosolids (2022)
- 31 USDA, Organic 101 December 16, 2011
- 32 Milorganite.com, What is Milorganite?
Tuesday, June 13, 2023
vacc!nated suffering higher infection rates than the unvacc!nated
The implementation of a vaccine passport system — which the WHO claimed it did not support when concerns were initially raised about it in 20217 — is a clear sign that the WHO fully expects to take the reins on global health, and that public health is not the primary incentive behind this power grab.
WHO Takeover Moves Full Speed Ahead
Already, WHO members have approved a $6.83 billion budget for the next two years (2024 through 2025), which will require a 20% hike in mandatory member fees.8,9 “Strategic priorities” that will receive large chunks of this funding include:10
- Expanding universal health coverage to at least 1 billion people who do not currently have it
- Ensuring 1 billion more people are “better protected from health emergencies”
- Ensuring 1 billion more people can enjoy “better health and well-being”
- Developing more effective and efficient WHO support to member countries
- Eradicating polio (most likely through expanded vaccination programs)
That budget increase is also needed because the WHO is being set up as the sole decisionmaker over public health globally through the proposed pandemic treaty and International Health Regulation (IHR) amendments, each of which reinforces the WHO’s authority and power through different avenues while erasing national sovereignty and human rights.
If the WHO gets its way, it will no longer be a body that makes recommendations that countries can choose to follow. Rather, its “advice” will be akin to declarations of international law. Member states will be required to follow the WHO’s “recommendations” or face costly consequences.
Once the pandemic treaty and the IHR amendments are implemented, the WHO will have the authority to impose everything from climate lockdowns and border closures to mandatory vaccinations of all kinds. We’ve also warned that the WHO would implement a mandatory vaccine passport system for population control purposes, and with the announcement above, we can consider that a done deal.
The WHO will even have the authority to dictate what is truth and what is misinformation that must be censored. The WHO will essentially outlaw democracy worldwide because democracy cannot exist unless there is freedom of speech in public discourse.
Member states will have no choice but to censor what the WHO wants censored, because each country is also required to set up an enforcement agency to ensure the WHO’s edicts are followed nationwide, and that includes censorship activities.
Understand Where We’re Headed
For a further review of the WHO’s new Global Digital Health Certification Network, see John Campbell’s video review above.
It’s now beyond imperative that people understand where we’re headed, and that the COVID measures weren’t just responses to a given pandemic, but rather were the foundation for a totalitarian one world government where human rights and freedoms will no longer exist.
Indeed, the pandemic treaty redefines human rights as “health equity” and nothing else. The IHR amendments also eliminate individual rights and freedoms specifically. IHR Article 3 is being amended as follows (strikethroughs in the text indicate that the text is to be deleted, and the additions or revisions are underlined in bold):
“The implementation of these Regulations shall be
with full respect for the dignity, human rights and fundamental freedoms of personsbased on the principles of equity, inclusivity, coherence and in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities of the States Parties, taking into consideration their social and economic development.”
In other words, bodily autonomy and personal choice are being replaced by one-size-fits-all medicine that has no regard for human dignity, human rights or fundamental freedoms. The right to opinions that differ from the WHO’s is also being removed on the national level.
IHR Article 2 is also being amended in such a way that the WHO will have the authority to take action on ANYTHING that has the “potential to impact public health,” and this includes everything from climate and pollution to agricultural land use and the food industry, as specified under the One Health agenda,11,12 which is baked into the pandemic treaty.
To understand what’s at stake, please review the article-by-article compilation of the proposed IHR amendments,13 found here, and then compare that to the proposed treaty. A “Zero Draft” dated February 1, 2023, can be found here.14
As explained by the WHO back in 2021, the treaty is the “framework that recognizes the central role of the IHR.”15 So, these two instruments are designed and intended to work as a unit, with the treaty giving recognition to the IHR, and the IHR amendments stripping nations of their sovereignty.
But that’s not all. Baked into the pandemic treaty we also have One Health, which perfectly dovetails with The Great Reset narrative. When you add these three things together — the treaty, the IHR amendments and One Health — it becomes clear that the WHO is being set up as the de facto power center of the deep state, and this One World Government will rule everything.
Treaty Expands WHO’s Power Beyond Pandemics
Call on Congress to Withdraw US From the WHO
While the U.S. House and Senate have introduced identical bills to thwart the WHO’s power grab through the proposed pandemic treaty, that still might not protect us, because the treaty is specifically written to circumvent the Senate-approval process.23
A far more effective strategy would be for Congress to withhold its annual contributions to the WHO, and then withdraw the U.S. from the WHO altogether. I believe it may be worth supporting all these strategies. So, please, contact your representatives and urge them to:
- Support the No WHO Pandemic Preparedness Treaty Without Senate Approval Act24,25,26,27,28
- Withhold funding for the WHO
- Support U.S. withdrawal from the WHO
We also need to protect our nation against the IHR amendments. To that end, the World Council for Health has launched a global #StopTheWHO campaign. Here’s how you can get involved:29
Speak — Raise awareness on the ground and online. Use articles, posters, videos |
Act — Campaign through rallies, political mobilization, legal notices and cases and similar campaigns |
Collaborate with health freedom coalitions such as the World Council for Health |
Explore activist toolboxes such as the World Council for Health Stop the Who Campaign and stopthewho.com |
Engage global indigenous leadership to take a united stand against the WHO’s IHR |
Activate people’s parliaments, legislatures or referendums to oppose the amendments |
- 1, 4, 6 Daily Sceptic June 6, 2023
- 2 The Counter Signal June 5, 2023
- 3, 5 European Commission June 5, 2023
- 7 The Hill April 6, 2021
- 8, 10 WHO May 22, 2023
- 9 Fox News May 22, 2023
- 11 WHO One Health September 21, 2017
- 12 CDC One Health
- 13 WHO Article by Article Compilation of Proposed Amendments to the 2005 IHR
- 14 WHO Zero Draft of the WHO CA+ February 1, 2023
- 15 Potential Framework Convention for Pandemic Preparedness and Response March 18, 2021
- 16 Twitter Shiraz Akram BDS April 15, 2023
- 17 Stop Vax Passports Task Force webinar on One Health, 52:20
- 18, 19 Brownstone Institute June 4, 2023
- 20 James Roguski Substack March 9, 2023
- 21, 22 The Defender March 6, 2023
- 23 Epoch Times February 21, 2023
- 24 Tiffany.house.gov March 7, 2023
- 25 No WHO Pandemic Preparedness Treaty Without Senate Approval Act House Bill Full Text
- 26 Congress.gov S.4343 — No WHO Pandemic Preparedness Treaty Without Senate Approval Act
- 27 Congress.gov S.444 — No WHO Pandemic Preparedness Treaty Without Senate Approval Act
- 28 Govtrack.us S.4343 — No WHO Pandemic Preparedness Treaty Without Senate Approval Act
- 29 RW Malone Substack May 17, 2022