Mental health help for young

These are the types of messages that have been repeated many times, indicating that whatever passes for children’s mental health isn’t working.

Children and adolescents do experience problems in life that can result in mental troubles, sometimes very serious. The ‘solution’ however can be deadly. Psychiatrists will brazenly proclaim that “brain diseases” or a “chemical imbalance of the brain” cause the problems, and that they can only be alleviated with dangerous pills.

Some parents who have listened to and taken on board this supposed ‘expert psychiatric advice’ have been left bereaved. A growing list of young people who have taken their own lives after being prescribed a particular antidepressant licensed for use in children and adolescents, has been passed to the UK drug regulator in the hope that changes can be made to protect them from the dangers associated with the drug.

With so many unnecessary deaths, there must be cause for regulatory concern, which would hopefully lead to consequent investigations and the prospect of action to prevent further premature deaths.

Antidepressants have been shrouded in controversy for decades. They have also generated huge amounts of revenue for pharmaceutical companies.

Humanitarian integrity would hopefully see commercial enterprise set aside in favour of product safety which, based on the testimonies of an increasing number of parents, has been severely compromised.

Brian Daniels

by email