The new HHS secretary has made baseless claims that the drugs are addictive and cause violent behavior.

Summary

Newly confirmed HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is pushing an investigation into antidepressants, claiming they are overprescribed, addictive, and linked to violent behavior—despite scientific evidence disproving these claims.

His past remarks include falsely linking selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) to school shootings and suggesting withdrawal treatment via “wellness farms.”

Medical experts widely reject his views, with 15,000 physicians opposing his appointment.

Critics warn his rhetoric could stigmatize mental health treatment and undermine public trust in proven medications.

  • RobotToasterEnglish
    17·
    6 days ago

    I feel like there’s potentially a disconnect here between the common and technical usage of “addictive”, because SSRIs definitely have a pretty bad withdrawal syndrome.

    • WxFisch@lemmy.worldEnglish
      16·
      6 days ago

      Sure, but not wanting to go through withdrawal is different than being unable to stop taking a substance. In this case it’s doubled because for most people SSRIs help them feel and function better and can have strong withdrawal symptoms, so most people wouldn’t want to stop taking them because they are helpful and stopping sucks, not because they have a chemical dependency on them.

      As someone on an SNRI for ADHD, I don’t want to go back to how things were before I started on medication, and stopping taking it can be unpleasant to a degree (not to the same degree as an SSRI, but they work in similar ways in your brain).

      Junior here is just being malicious misinformed and cruelly telling folks with metal health struggles that they just need to work harder to be happy, ignoring settled science showing that the vast majority of mental health dusorders (and neurodivergent disorders for that matter) are tied to physical and chemical differences in the brain compared to typical individuals.

    • fadingembers@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
      9·
      6 days ago

      Physical dependence is different than addiction. An addiction is actively detrimental to your ability to live your life and causes you harm. Yes, your body becomes dependent on SSRIs and getting off of them is a journey, but they allow the people that need them to function in everyday life. Addiction does not do that.