short notes:
will brady's ruminations
will brady's ruminations
2009-08-30
separate realities
part of an ongoing series
"I was at that time living like many atheists; in a whirl of contradictions.
I maintained that God did not exist. I was also very angry with God for not existing.
I was equally angry with him for creating a world.
Why should creatures have the burden of existence forced on them without their consent?"
CS Lewis
Hearing Voices || In and of itself, hearing voices is not an unusual phenomenon. Alexandra Lupu, Health News Editor at Softpedia.com notes that "...as many 1 of every 25 people here voices on a regular basis, therefore it is a rather common symptom among people. Researchers also added that a person who hears voices is not a crazy person, despite the common misconception.
"Some who hear voices do not seek medical help, because they feel this is natural and a positive thing to happen. They may even engage in conversation with the voices inside their heads and state they benefit from the open conversation." But such is not the case for all who here voices.
goodly number of the people with whom I work, as well as a couple of my dearest friends, find that hearing voices can be very disturbing. Oft-times, I am sought upon to translate, or at the very least, to provide some counterpoint to the reality they live with and that of my own.
This is not an easy task, for I do not personally know what the other person(s) hears. Furthermore, when each person gives narrative to what they hear [and, on occasion, sees] each reality is quite unique; thus any attempt I would have made to translate would serve for naught.
Yet even though I don't experience the voices myself, I recognize the realness of the experience. Perhaps because of this, some whom I know who live with hearing voices feel free to speak with me about the phenomena. Sometimes hearing disturbing voices is a common and understandable reaction to troublesome life events.
In Western cultures, particularly in North America, the lived experience of voice hearers is typically invalidated, dismissed as a delusional disorder that can only be treated with massive amounts of psychiatric drugs. Voice hearers are quick to be labeled "Schizo," "Psycho" "" and placed in a locked facility, often in conditions [such as solitary confinement] which only make the voice hearing experience worse.
One critic to the western disdain towards people who hear voices is clinical psychologist Pat Deegan. A voice hearer herself, she notes that
"I was at that time living like many atheists; in a whirl of contradictions.
I maintained that God did not exist. I was also very angry with God for not existing.
I was equally angry with him for creating a world.
Why should creatures have the burden of existence forced on them without their consent?"
CS Lewis
Hearing Voices || In and of itself, hearing voices is not an unusual phenomenon. Alexandra Lupu, Health News Editor at Softpedia.com notes that "...as many 1 of every 25 people here voices on a regular basis, therefore it is a rather common symptom among people. Researchers also added that a person who hears voices is not a crazy person, despite the common misconception.
"Some who hear voices do not seek medical help, because they feel this is natural and a positive thing to happen. They may even engage in conversation with the voices inside their heads and state they benefit from the open conversation." But such is not the case for all who here voices.
goodly number of the people with whom I work, as well as a couple of my dearest friends, find that hearing voices can be very disturbing. Oft-times, I am sought upon to translate, or at the very least, to provide some counterpoint to the reality they live with and that of my own. 
This is not an easy task, for I do not personally know what the other person(s) hears. Furthermore, when each person gives narrative to what they hear [and, on occasion, sees] each reality is quite unique; thus any attempt I would have made to translate would serve for naught. Yet even though I don't experience the voices myself, I recognize the realness of the experience. Perhaps because of this, some whom I know who live with hearing voices feel free to speak with me about the phenomena. Sometimes hearing disturbing voices is a common and understandable reaction to troublesome life events.
In Western cultures, particularly in North America, the lived experience of voice hearers is typically invalidated, dismissed as a delusional disorder that can only be treated with massive amounts of psychiatric drugs. Voice hearers are quick to be labeled "Schizo," "Psycho" "" and placed in a locked facility, often in conditions [such as solitary confinement] which only make the voice hearing experience worse.
One critic to the western disdain towards people who hear voices is clinical psychologist Pat Deegan. A voice hearer herself, she notes that
"...as a general rule, most mental health staff feel it is taboo to inquire into the voice hearer's experience... Of course such stigma and taboo only serve to further isolate those of us who hear voices that are distressing".In truth, we don't have to accept the so-called clinical biases against hearing voices. Indeed, in other cultures [as noted by author and psychologist Richard Lakeman] voices are "...a valued and sought after experience... For example, the ‘matakite’, or visionary in New Zealand Maori society is held in high regard, and prophets as described in sacred texts such as the bible are often credited with hearing voices or experiencing visions."
FOR MORE INFO: I hear voices; Famous people that hear [or heard] voices; William James' Varieties of Religious Experience; Richard Lakeman Making sense of the voices || SUPPORT: Are support groups effective?; Patricia Deegan Self-Help Strategies - Part I and Self-Help Strategies - Part 2; Sussex Hearing Voices [UK] || ABOUT THE ART: William Blake - Ancient of Days; Edward Munch - The Scream; Will Brady - Man is a Spiritual Being
Labels: hearing voices, mysticism, parallel dimensions, psychosis, schizophrenia, separate realities, spirit realms, spirituality, William Blake
¶ 00:52 0 comments
2007-11-21
drug wars / big pharma
I predict that Pfizer Corporation will have more problems with its experimental stop-smoking drug Chantix [Varenicline], especially as docs use it while trying to get psychiatric patients to quit.
Although clinical practitioners minimize the potential negative impact, The American Journal of Psychiatry, in its August 2007 edition, has already published two reports of problems with using Chantix for people with long-term mental disorders. Here are the links to the recent case reports: Exacerbation of Schizophrenia by Varenicline by Robert Freedman, M.D., and Varenicline-Induced Manic Episode in a Patient With Bipolar Disorder submitted by Izachak Kohen, M.D., and Neil Kremen, M.D.
The USA Food and Drug Administration, only this week, warns that healthcare professionals should monitor patients taking Chantix for behavior and mood changes. The FDA watch site also notes that "...There are also reports of patients experiencing drowsiness that affected their ability to drive or operate machinery. A preliminary assessment reveals that many of the cases reflect new-onset of depressed mood, suicidal ideation, and changes in emotion and behavior within days to weeks of initiating Chantix treatment."
My own personal observations occurred with a close friend long diagnosed with schizophrenia. My friend has smoked for a few decades and, for economic reasons, really wanted to quit. He began taking Chantix as prescribed. Within a couple of days reported disorienting phenomena such as double vision and blanking out. He asked a lot more reality-testing questions ["can you hear my thoughts?"] than usual. It bothered him. In less than a month he was admitted into the psyche ward of one of Connecticut's general hospitals. I reported my observations to the clinical staff there. Although I've known the man since the 1980s, the Chief clinical psychiatrist [who, incidentally, prides himself as a researcher] and who had observed my friend less than two weeks, completely discounted my observations as total bunkus, and began to rant at me comments about Chantix that made me wonder if he were on Pfizer's payroll.
I'm not saying that he is, mind you, but he was clearly more inclined to listen to the drug company's PR propaganda than observed reality. Frankly, I suspect that his point of view is typical. Testing my newfound suspicions with pharmacists and docs where I work I found the same Pollyanna-like faith expressed in Pfizer that the community psychiatrist exhibited.
It is important to note that Pfizer's clinical studies involved less than 5,000 individuals. I doubt that any were people with long-term psychiatric disabilities or any other medical problems. The American Heart Association estimates that 25.6 million men (25.2 percent) and 22.6 million women (20.7 percent) are smokers in the USA alone. That's a mighty tempting market for Pfizer to court. But it also means the control studies population was less than 1/1,000th of a percent of that population.
Pfizer is aggressively targeting that market, both with TV adverts and easy to navigate websites like Chantix Home. They don't care about adverse impacts at all, except maybe to the company's bottom line. Even the Wall Street Journal has reported on the profit potential, yet acknowledges there seems to be a dark side.
Let's insist that the FDA, and other watchdogs, work harder at keeping this aggressive marketer [and pill pusher] in line.
For a thoughful ongoing discussion about the risks of Chantix check out Furious Seasons and the thread Pills, booze and Chantix. A German site, Boocompany, also has posts from readers who report adverse reactions including depression, psychosis and suicidal acts.
Although clinical practitioners minimize the potential negative impact, The American Journal of Psychiatry, in its August 2007 edition, has already published two reports of problems with using Chantix for people with long-term mental disorders. Here are the links to the recent case reports: Exacerbation of Schizophrenia by Varenicline by Robert Freedman, M.D., and Varenicline-Induced Manic Episode in a Patient With Bipolar Disorder submitted by Izachak Kohen, M.D., and Neil Kremen, M.D.The USA Food and Drug Administration, only this week, warns that healthcare professionals should monitor patients taking Chantix for behavior and mood changes. The FDA watch site also notes that "...There are also reports of patients experiencing drowsiness that affected their ability to drive or operate machinery. A preliminary assessment reveals that many of the cases reflect new-onset of depressed mood, suicidal ideation, and changes in emotion and behavior within days to weeks of initiating Chantix treatment."
My own personal observations occurred with a close friend long diagnosed with schizophrenia. My friend has smoked for a few decades and, for economic reasons, really wanted to quit. He began taking Chantix as prescribed. Within a couple of days reported disorienting phenomena such as double vision and blanking out. He asked a lot more reality-testing questions ["can you hear my thoughts?"] than usual. It bothered him. In less than a month he was admitted into the psyche ward of one of Connecticut's general hospitals. I reported my observations to the clinical staff there. Although I've known the man since the 1980s, the Chief clinical psychiatrist [who, incidentally, prides himself as a researcher] and who had observed my friend less than two weeks, completely discounted my observations as total bunkus, and began to rant at me comments about Chantix that made me wonder if he were on Pfizer's payroll.I'm not saying that he is, mind you, but he was clearly more inclined to listen to the drug company's PR propaganda than observed reality. Frankly, I suspect that his point of view is typical. Testing my newfound suspicions with pharmacists and docs where I work I found the same Pollyanna-like faith expressed in Pfizer that the community psychiatrist exhibited.
It is important to note that Pfizer's clinical studies involved less than 5,000 individuals. I doubt that any were people with long-term psychiatric disabilities or any other medical problems. The American Heart Association estimates that 25.6 million men (25.2 percent) and 22.6 million women (20.7 percent) are smokers in the USA alone. That's a mighty tempting market for Pfizer to court. But it also means the control studies population was less than 1/1,000th of a percent of that population.
Pfizer is aggressively targeting that market, both with TV adverts and easy to navigate websites like Chantix Home. They don't care about adverse impacts at all, except maybe to the company's bottom line. Even the Wall Street Journal has reported on the profit potential, yet acknowledges there seems to be a dark side.
Let's insist that the FDA, and other watchdogs, work harder at keeping this aggressive marketer [and pill pusher] in line.
For a thoughful ongoing discussion about the risks of Chantix check out Furious Seasons and the thread Pills, booze and Chantix. A German site, Boocompany, also has posts from readers who report adverse reactions including depression, psychosis and suicidal acts.
Labels: big pharma, Chantix, drug profits, drug risks, Pfizer, psychosis
¶ 06:39 0 comments
