Letter to New York City Voices' Editors
New York City Voices reserves the right to print whichever letters it deems pertinent to its journalistic purposes and to edit those letters for brevity and clarity. Publication of a letter is not an endorsement of the letter writer's views.
To the Editors:
RE: "My Skeptical View on Meds Has Changed" by David Adams (November-December 2002 issue) I am always dismayed when someone comes out with an article praising the wonderful healing powers of psychotropic medications as David Adams does in his article [in favor of the Abilify he is taking]…what can be good for one person can be poison to another... To say that today's anti-psychotics are much improved from the old neuroleptics is a fabrication created by the pharmaceutical companies. The truth is…they still carry the same serious side effects of their predecessors....
I'm glad that Mr. Adams has found something that works for him but I wonder if he is aware of the successful work being done in Europe to treat schizophrenia without the use of medications....
Before I am accused of being "anti-med," let me inform you that I take Klonopin to combat symptoms associated with bi-polar disorder. I am, however, against pharmaceutical companies that are grossly irresponsible in promoting their products, that place profit before the health and well-being of the public, and that go so far as to slant research results on medications to favor the benefits, while attempting to downplay the risks.
Medications can and do help people, but they do not represent a cure. People should be well informed about the risks involved before deciding to take meds. Above all, people should understand that there is no one answer for the roughly two million people in America who are diagnosed with schizophrenia.... Steve Periard via the Internet