I spoke to Billy Cortice who was labelled “acute, chronic schizophrenic” by psychiatrists working under the context of the New Labour Government in the UK in 2001. Here is his testimony, and evidence against what he considers to be his life-diminishing treatment.
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Users of anti-psychotic medications have their life expectancy lowered by 15-20 years, primarily caused by the medication itself. “Yet despite this, several studies indicate that patients taking antipsychotics aren’t always told about the side-effects by their doctors.”
“Both first-generation and second-generation antipsychotics cause adverse effects that are known to increase the risk of dying from cardiac, respiratory, and endocrine diseases. Psychiatric users of antipsychotics die at high rates from these somatic illnesses.”
Billy says “Because I was intuitively aware of the dangers of anti-psychotic medication, I came to fear psychiatry, and the society that was indifferent to its power. So I became a little withdrawn and insular, which was ironically not seen as a social process by the shrinks caused by themselves, but was “Negative Schizophrenia”, so ironically the quantity of anti-psychotics got jacked up and I was also put on anti-depressants, despite not being actually depressed but only ‘highly anxious’, i.e. requiring super-strength valium to see my psychiatrist. This wasn’t seen in its social context, but was a case of my apparently ‘diseased brain'”.
But then, Billy says he read:
“The study found that antidepressant users had a 33% higher chance of death than non-users. Antidepressant users also had a 14% higher risk of cardiovascular events, such as strokes and heart attacks.”
https://www.managedhealthcareexecutive.com/view/do-antidepressants-take-more-lives-they-save
“All I’ve ever wanted to do is enjoy life to the maximum. Go anywhere near psychiatry and they will throw you into the Delta Quadrant”, claims Billy.
“Yes”, says Billy, “I had a psychotic episode back in 2001 that probably lasted over 6 months, all things considered. But it was understandable socially. I was only 24 years old and had bitten off more than I could chew by attempting a PhD in Ethics which I intended to be ground-shaking. But poverty meant I could not live among the academic community and had to move back with my parents, living somewhere there were no philosophers to talk to. Meanwhile, my supervisor was fairly hands-off because he said I was already competent to work on my own given my success at undergraduate level. Co-existing with this academic alienation, was relationship breakdown, and also the collapse of a political group I had invested hope with. I will also admit I was an above-moderate cannabis user at this point in time. Whilst I accept I did need to be ‘treated’ and that this did need to include ‘being Sectioned under the Mental Health Act’, it was never explained after the psychotic episode dwindled what had taken place. Psychiatrists were incredibly secretive, and showed no interest whatsoever in reducing medication, or, preferably stopping it altogether. Their jobs prospered by keeping me on a high rate of medication and advertising me as a success story. I am 46 now, but if I am dead at 50, it is unclear how many people will regard their intervention as truly successful or indeed benign.”
From my perspective, says Billy, letters from psychiatrists were a gateway to freedom from wage-labour in the form of sickness benefits. Billy thought the capitalist division of labour whereby workers do one mundane task repeatedly ad nauseum for 45 years of their life, and it is hardly varied at all but becomes quickly boring and soul-destroying, was worth escaping from, even if it meant shortening his own life.
Billy is now reducing his medication down now fairly rapidly to ultimately zero by 6 months time, to keep it smooth. He thinks the dangers of psychiatry need to be more clearly known about. Although Billy has tried to find work, his terrible track record on employment history over the past 22 years means it is unlikely anyone will hire him. So he is worried the ruse will have to go on, and just flush the pills down the loo.
Names have been changed to protect privacy.
barryessex 