Hot Flashes? Take psych drugs!
A nonhormonal drug, paroxetine mesylate (brand name Brisdelle), was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) June 28, 2013 for hot flashes associated with menopause, despite an agency advisory committee having rejected it as too much risk for minimal benefit.
Paroxetine is a serotonin reuptake inhibitor, the active ingredient in two drugs for depression and other psychiatric disorders, Paxil and Pexeva. Brisdelle’s label features a boxed warning about the increased risk for suicidality.
While Brisdelle and related antidepressant medicines may increase suicidal thoughts or actions, there are many additional potential side effects such as nervousness, hallucinations, coma, or other changes in mental status; coordination problems or small movements of the muscles that you cannot control; racing heartbeat; high or low blood pressure; sweating or fever; nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea; muscle rigidity; dizziness; flushing; tremors; seizures or convulsions; may increase your risk of bleeding or bruising; headache; weakness or feeling unsteady; confusion, problems concentrating or thinking or memory problems; higher risk of bone fractures; manic episodes; reckless behavior; unable to sit still or stand still.
So now menapause is a psychiatric disorder? We think we’d rather just suffer the hot flashes. Oh, and did you notice that hot flashes (“flushing”) are also one of the side effects of this concoction you’re supposed to take to suppress hot flashes!
What’s the point? Did you say greed? Ya think?
By the way, this thing about “side effects” … You do realize that these are the body’s natural response to having a chemical disrupt its normal functioning. One could also say that there are no drug side effects, these adverse reactions are actually the drug’s real effects; some of these effects just happen to be unwanted.
Psychotropic drugs may relieve the pressure that an underlying physical problem could be causing but they do not treat, correct or cure any physical disease or condition. The drugs break into, in most cases, the routine rhythmic flows and activities of the nervous system; the nerves and other body systems are forced to do things they normally would not do. Once the drug has worn off, the original problem remains. As a solution or cure to life’s problems, psychotropic drugs do not work.
Embrace the hot flashes! Contact your government representatives and suggest they stop funding psychiatric drugs.