Modern Myths

The recent US Supreme Court approval process for Brett Kavanaugh opened the lid of an earthenware vase marked Trust, when Christine Blasey-Ford stepped forward and said she had been abused by him.  The hearings were dramatic.  Other dramas never came into the frame.  Dr Blasey-Ford had previously been engaged in medical research linked to figures like Alan Schatzberg and … [Read more...] about Pandora: Dos Centavos

By most accounts Jose Mario Bergolio is a remarkable person. It came as a shock to his fans then a few months ago when he visiting Chile he came out against victims of child abuse.  The issue centered on one bishop whom survivors of abuse fingered as complicit with what had happened.  JMB obviously liked the man and took the position he was innocent until proven guilty. When … [Read more...] about The Horrific Effects of Not Being Believed

From: Zach Schleien <zach.s@18percent.org> Date: 19 March 2018 at 04:00 Subject: I Started a Slack Group for Mental Illness To: David Healy Hi David, Here’s a story I think would be perfect for David Healy: When one of my closest friends took his own life after his battle with schizophrenia, I resolved to do something constructive for people living with … [Read more...] about 18 percent

  It's doubtful there was much that was unusual going on in Sodom and Gomorrah.  Natural disasters and plagues were taken as signs that communities had sinned. But there is drama to the idea of Abraham asking God to spare the cities if he can find 50 just men, and then 40, and then 20 and then 10 - to no avail. It feels a bit the same with the RxISK Map.  The … [Read more...] about If I find you ten just doctors…

Editorial Note:  This is the fourth and final post in the Trick or Treat series that started with Vampire Medicines. These posts need to be read linked to the RxISK MAP posts. These are the theoretical background.  The MAP posts are the practical - what needs to be done posts. Access to Medicines In the 1980, we faced one of the greatest medical crises of any century – … [Read more...] about A Call to H*ARMS

Editorial Note:  This post follows from Vampire Medicines and Cisparency and Transparency and links to Relationship Based Medicine on Rxisk.  The painting is of Joshua crossing the Jordan with the Arc of the Covenant - an image that catches the essential features of climactic scene of Raiders of the Lost Arc with Joshua in the Indiana Jones position. In every generation, … [Read more...] about Raiders of the Lost Drug Wreck

Editorial Note: This post continues Vampire Medicine and links to Reformation Day on RxISK and forthcoming posts - Here We Stand. Between 2002 and 2004, giving antidepressants to teenagers and the risks of triggering suicidality became one of the most high profile issues in medicine.  Raising a profile should be the way to put things right but things are getting much worse.  … [Read more...] about Cisparency and Transparency

Editorial Note:  This is the first of four Trick or Treat posts.  They make most sense when read in conjunction with the RxISK Prize posts especially the series of 3 posts starting tomorrow. In 1962 RCTs were added to the regulatory requirement for marketing medicines.  This looked like a definitive stake through the heart of hucksterism. No longer would we have to carry … [Read more...] about Vampire Medicines

Editorial note:  This post follows up on Leonie Fennell's post earlier this week - Dogs and Serotonin.  The follow up comes from a celebrated event that happened over a decade ago, reported as follows in the WSJ with follow-up comments. What to Say in the TV Ads ---- By Chris Adams, The Wall Street Journal You might call it a made-for-TV drug. Approved for human use in the … [Read more...] about Drug Bites Man

Editorial Note: This post by Leonie Fennell is the first of two on related themes. We would love to hear any observations you or your veterinarian have on drugs in animals in general. Depression, once a disease deemed too rare to merit study, has become so common that it is now a booming business. More and more people are asking: “When we stop at the pharmacy to pick up our … [Read more...] about Dogs and Serotonin