MISSD

09/02/2025

💛 Life-saving awareness now on display in Chicago! Thanks to Wintrust Bank’s generous initiative, our digital billboard is reaching millions during Su***de Prevention Month.

Every view, share, and conversation can reduce avoidable harm and save lives.

08/28/2025

The truth is clear: GSK concealed Paxil risks and, like other pharma companies, promoted SSRIs off-label -- including to kids, despite no FDA approval.

Now a medical journal is considering a retraction of the 2001 "study" it published that falsely said Paxil was safe and effective for adolescents. The data were manipulated, and serious side effects—like suicidal thoughts—were buried.

We can’t change the past, but we can protect the future. Please share MISSD’s resources to help others recognize the warning signs of akathisia and prevent avoidable harm.

The full STAT article is subscription-only, but this knowledge is now (belatedly) well established.

Amid demand for retraction, a leading medical journal is reviewing a discredited study published in 2001 that touted the benefits of a depression pill for adolescents.

08/26/2025

New Podcast Episode: In this gripping conversation, MISSD founder Wendy Dolin discusses akathisia with Katinka Blackford Newman, founder of Antidepressant Risks.

Wendy opens up about her personal loss and why it's critical to know about akathisia prior to starting new medications or making any medication changes.

MISSD has spent more than a decade working to educate both the public and medical professionals about medication-induced suicidality and su***de. Help save lives—share, comment, and subscribe for more educational content.

Watch the full interview at

Antidepressant Risks shares stories of people who have been harmed by antidepressants and aims to raise awareness of potential antidepressant side effects and dangers.

08/20/2025

These avoidable losses highlight hidden dangers of a common antibiotic. Alana’s parents said it was “tragic” that her death was “essentially caused by the side effects of doxycycline.” Severe side effects like suicidal thoughts are often undocumented, leaving families devastated.

A 2019 BMJ case report also found young people with no history of mental illness developed suicidal ideation after taking doxycycline. https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/36005831/alana-cutland-doxycycline-drug-su***de/

"If you claim a problem has happened on a drug they gave you, they are now more likely to throw you out through the open door for spreading misinformation than take your side and insist drug labels mention this problem." ~ Dr David Healy

6 years on and still no warnings.

Read in full here: https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/36005831/alana-cutland-doxycycline-drug-su***de/

08/15/2025

The FDA’s 2023 data is alarming: over 1.4 million adverse events reported, including violence, su***de, and life-threatening reactions.
This isn’t just numbers — these are lives affected by dangerous medication side effects that too often go unacknowledged.
MISSD advocates for awareness, transparency, and safer prescribing practices to protect healthcare consumers.

A new commission will investigate the prevalence of SSRI antidepressants as adverse event reports document hundreds of cases of homicidal ideation and homicide. A newly released analysis of FDA adverse event reports is raising alarms about the potential for SSRI antidepressants to be linked to viole...

08/13/2025

Since 2001, more than 155,000 U.S. veterans have died by su***de. Two of them — Hunter Whitley (23) and Connor Brumfield (22) — were attending college after military service when they died. Neither were informed of the FDA’s strongest “black box” su***de warning all SSRIs carry. The VA’s own investigators concluded that this lack of warning likely contributed to their deaths.

Veterans deserve better. Informed consent saves lives. Vets deserve clear communication about drug risks to better ensure they get the care they deserve.

The bill will require prescribers to obtain written informed consent including the risks of taking psychiatric drugs like antidepressants.

08/07/2025

A new case study reveals how SSRIs, benzos, and antipsychotics interacted to cause medication-induced su***de. This is a stark reminder of the dangers of polypharmacy and underrecognized adverse drug effects. Risks tied to psychiatric drugs and polypharmacy often go unrecognized. MISSD urges informed prescribing, clear risk communication and appropriate education to prevent avoidable harm.

In a recent groundbreaking forensic investigation published in the International Journal of Legal Medicine, researchers have scrutinized a tragic case of su***de induced by the combined toxicity of

08/01/2025

Veterans are being prescribed risky drug combinations that can cause self harm, violence and su***de. Many vets report in lieu of talk therapy and healing trauma, they were given meds to just dull their emotions.

Overmedication isn’t just a policy failure—it’s a public health crisis.

Read this powerful WSJ investigation and help raise awareness of akathisia, polypharmacy harms, and the need for change. https://www.wsj.com/health/healthcare/veterans-affairs-ptsd-polypharmacy-3c9673ac

07/29/2025

On Prescribed Harm Awareness Day, we’re highlighting Side Effects May Include…, Lisa Loomer’s new play that sparks urgent conversations about hidden risks that can affect us all.

Medication-Induced Akathisia Can Cause Suicidality

07/21/2025

Akathisia Takes Center Stage in Lisa Loomer’s Bold New Play

MISSD applauds award-winning playwright Lisa Loomer for her powerful and deeply personal play, Side Effects May Include…, now running at the Contemporary American Theater Festival. The festival is recognized as one of the top theater festivals in the world by publications such as The New York Times and American Theater.

Inspired by her own son’s heartbreaking experience, Loomer adeptly brings akathisia and related iatrogenic harm into the spotlight. Akathisia is a devastating, medication-induced disorder that can lead to self-harm, violence, and su***de. Yet most sufferers report they were never warned about the risk, nor given fully informed consent before being prescribed medications associated with akathisia. Most sufferers also report their akathisia symptoms were missed, dismissed or misdiagnosed as signs of DSM-labeled disorders.

Critics are praising Side Effects May Include… for its emotional impact, gripping storytelling, and steadfast look at a global public health crisis.

“Like being burned alive in a locked coffin.”
“Living in a scream.”
These are the words used to describe akathisia in the play—and for many, they are all too real.

MISSD is honored to be listed as a resource in this critically acclaimed production. We are deeply grateful to Lisa Loomer for using her voice to raise awareness about a condition that affects millions, demands informed consent, and deserves urgent attention.

What happens when the trust we place in our medical system actually makes us sicker? After a series of diagnoses, a mother leads us through her son’s search for wellness, a Kafkaesque journey through the world of psychiatry. Written with humor and fury, the story explores the side effects of fight...

07/20/2025

We stand with Stephanie McGill-Lynch and her courageous fight for Jake’s Amendment in Ireland.

After losing her 14-year-old son in 2013, she's been calling for essential reforms to the Coroner’s Act—so that iatrogenic harm (medically induced harm) can be properly recorded as a contributing cause of death when warranted.

When healthcare contributes to a tragedy, families deserve truth—not silence. Blaming victims of iatrogenesis for their own prescribed deaths is not only morally wrong—it perpetuates stigma and leads to further medical harm.

Stephanie’s advocacy is a powerful step toward honesty, healing, and accountability. Listen to her story and learn more about Jake’s Amendment on Newstalk Daily:

Content Warning: This episode contains references to mental health and the loss of life. Listener discretion is advised. On today’s episode of Newstalk Daily, Ciara Doherty explores how the death of one young boy who took his own life was recorded, and why Sinn Féin is calling for a change to the...

07/17/2025

Akathisia is often one of many symptoms of SSRI withdrawal. "What most prescribers and consumers don't understand is that depression pills can cause "symptoms that persist for long periods after you stop them," said British psychiatrist Mark Horowitz.

The symptoms can include nerve pain, emotional numbness and sexual dysfunction and can last for years after stopping the drugs. Patients are pushing for recognition and more research.