The need for specialised withdrawal services

Learning objectives: At the end of this presentation, delegates will be able to:

  • List the prevalence and severity of withdrawal symptoms in psychiatric drugs
  • Explain the implications of prescribers being misinformed about these issues
  • Explore and consider joining efforts to instigate specialised services.

Some research references from the presenter:

READ, J., MONCRIEFF, J., HOROWITZ, M. (2023). Designing withdrawal support services for antidepressant users: Patients’ views on existing services and what they really need. Journal of Psychiatric Research, 161, 298-306.

READ, J. (2022). The experiences of 585 people when they tried to come off antipsychotic drugs. Addictive Behaviors Reportsdoi.org/10.1016/j.abrep.2022.100421

WHITE, E., READ, J., JULO, S. (2021). The role of Facebook Groups in the management, and raising of awareness, of antidepressant withdrawal: Is social media filling the void left by health services? Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology, 11, 1-18.

READ, J. (2020). How common and severe are six withdrawal effects from, and addiction to, antidepressants? The experiences of a large international sample of patients. Addictive Behaviors, 102, 106157.

HENGARTNER, M., DAVIES, J., READ, J. (2019). Antidepressant withdrawal – the tide is turning. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, 29, e52.

DAVIES, J., READ, J. (2019). A systematic review into the incidence, severity and duration of

antidepressant withdrawal effects: Are guidelines evidence-based? Addictive Behaviours, 97, 111-121.

Speakers