Discussing the film, Medicating Normal on The Mikhaila Peterson Podcast on May 21st
A special thank you to Mikhaila Peterson for hosting a conversation including the documentary film, Medicating Normal. Featured podcast guests include:
David Cohen, PhD, Professor & Associate Dean of Research, Luskin School of Social Work, UCLA, expert featured in Medicating Normal
Jim Wright, M.D., Ph.D., FRCPC, Professor Emeritus at University of BC, Vancouver, Clinical Pharmacologist, former Co-Managing Director of the Therapeutics Initiative, Medical Advisory Board Member at Benzodiazepine Information Coalition
The podcast discussion encompasses issues raised in the film involving the efficacy and safety of commonly prescribed psychotropic drugs. The podcast aired on May 21st. To see the film, buy a ticket above for $6 for streaming access from May 12th - June 30th (one week prior to the podcast and approximately six weeks after).
Medicating Normal Synopsis:
Millions of people worldwide are physically dependent not on illicit drugs, but on commonly prescribed psychiatric medications. Medicating Normal follows the stories of a newly married couple, a female combat veteran, a waitress and a teenager who are harmed by the very medications they believed would help them. While these drugs can provide effective short-term relief, pharmaceutical companies have hidden -- from both doctors and patients -- their dangerous adverse effects. For significant numbers, debilitating withdrawal and neurological injury can last years. Medicating Normal unveils a corrupted evidence base and a mental health paradigm in which uninformed patients are too often overdiagnosed and overmedicated. It is the untold story of the disastrous consequences that can occur when profit-driven medicine intersects with human beings in distress. This story is rarely reported in the mainstream, and it is an epidemic of harm done.
Awards:
- Best Documentary - People's Film Festival
- Audience Award - People's Film Festival
- Best Documentary Jury Award - Woods Hole Film Festival
- Best of the Fest - Woods Hole Film Festival
- Virtual Audience Award - The Magnolia Independent Film Festival
Reviews:
"Medicating Normal dares to challenge prevailing myths about how psychotropic medications work, or fail to, in our ongoing struggle to treat mental illness. It promises to spark a long-overdue national conversation on the growing problem of overprescribing." -Anna Lembke, Associate Professor, Stanford University Medical School
“Anyone who prescribes psychotropic drugs should watch Medicating Normal, not once but twice. Then think about whether your patients really ‘need’ drug therapy. What are the chances it will help more than harm? A little knowledge may be a dangerous thing, but this film should cause many to wonder whether patients know more about the drugs than most prescribers.” -Thomas L. Perry MD, FRCPC, General internist/clinical pharmacologist, University of British Columbia, Vancouver
Support The Film and/or Support Mikhaila Peterson's Work:
If you'd like to make a tax-deductible donation to Medicating Normal's outreach efforts, you can do so via the 'Store' tab above or by clicking here. You can also support by sharing the film's website, trailer and/or YouTube outtakes with your networks.
If you value Mikhaila's work, consider donating to support her work by clicking here.
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