Peter Breggin

Peter R. Breggin, M.D. (born 1936) is an American psychiatrist, best known as a leader of the reform movement in the field of psychiatry, psychology and mental health. In his many books, including Brain-Disabling Treatments in Psychiatry (2008), he advocates replacing psychiatry's reliance on drugs and electroshock with a humanistic, caring reliance on psychotherapy, education and broader human services . Professor of Psychology Bertram Karon of Michigan State University has called Dr. Breggin "the conscience of American Psychiatry."

Dr. Breggin is a critic of biological psychiatry and psychiatric medication, and the author of books such as Toxic Psychiatry, Talking Back to Prozac, Talking Back to Ritalin, The Ritalin Fact Book, and The Heart of Being Helpful. His most recent book, the second edition of Brain-Disabling Treatments in Psychiatry, presents extensive research on subjects such as the brain-disabling principle of psychiatric treatment, medication spellbinding, the adverse effects of drugs and electroshock (ECT), the hazards of diagnosing and medicating children, the psychopharmaceutical complex, and guidelines for psychotherapy and counseling.

Dr. Breggin now lives in the Finger Lakes Region of Central New York and practices psychiatry in Ithaca, New York, where he treats adults, families and children with their families.

Early career and background

Breggin's background includes Harvard College from which he graduated with honors and Case Western Reserve Medical School. His postgraduate training in psychiatry began with an internship year of mixed medicine and psychiatry at the State University of New York (SUNY) Upstate Medical Center in Syracuse, a first year of psychiatric residency at Harvard's Massachusettes Mental Health Center in Boston where he was a teaching fellow at Harvard Medical School, followed by another two years of psychiatric residency at SUNY. This was followed by a two-year staff appointment to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) where he worked in building and staffing mental health centers and then in mental health in education. He has taught at several universities, including faculty appointments to the Washington School of Psychiatry, theJohns Hopkins University Department of Counseling and the George Mason University Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution. Dr. Breggin has been in private practice since 1968.

Dr. Breggin is a Life Member of the American Psychiatric Association and an editor for several scientific journals. He has been a consultant to the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) on the hazards of antidepressants for airplane pilots. His opinions have been widely discussed in the media, including the New York Times, Washington Post, Time and Newsweek. He has appeared as an expert on many radio and television shows, including 60 Minutes, 20/20, Nightline and numerous network news reports.

Founder of Psychiatric Journal and Organization

In 1971, Dr. Breggin founded the International Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology (ICSPP), a nonprofit research and educational network. The Center is dedicated to shedding light upon the impact of mental health theory and practices upon individual well-being, personal freedom, and family and community values. It consists of himself and a few part-time employees, and has a very modest annual income.

In 1999 he also founded the peer-review journal, Ethical Human Sciences and Services, renamed ''Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry''. The peer-reviewed journal is published by Springer Publishing Company and "is the official journal of the International Center for the Study of Psychiatry". The stated goal of the publication is to, "raise the level of scientific knowledge and ethical discourse, while empowering professionals who are devoted to principled human sciences and services unsullied by professional and economic interests".

In 2002 Dr. Breggin encouraged younger professionals to take over leadership of ICSPP and Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry. He continues to speak at annual meetings and to contribute to the journal on a regular basis.

Critic of conventional psychiatry

A large portion of Dr. Breggin's work concentrates on the iatrogenic effects (negative side effects) of psychiatric medications, arguing that the harmful side effects typically outweigh any benefit. Breggin also argues that psychosocial interventions are almost always superior in treating mental illness. He stated; "I don't believe in the psychiatric drugs myself. I've been in practice since 1968, and I've never started anyone on psychiatric drugs". For over three decades, he has campaigned against psychoactive drugs, electroshock, psychosurgery, coercive involuntary treatment, and biological theories of psychiatry.

According to Dr. Breggin, the pharmaceutical industry propagates disinformation which is accepted by unsuspecting doctors, "The psychiatrist accepts the bad science that establishes the existence of all these mental diseases in the first place. From there it’s just a walk down the street to all the drugs as remedies". He points out problems with conflicts-of-interest (such as the financial relationships between drug companies, researchers, and the American Psychiatric Association). Breggin states psychiatric drugs, "...are all, every class of them, highly dangerous". He asserts: "If neuroleptics were used to treat anyone other than mental patients, they would have been banned a long time ago. If their use wasn't supported by powerful interest groups, such as the pharmaceutical industry and organized psychiatry, they would be rarely used at all. Meanwhile, the neuroleptics have produced the worst epidemic of neurological disease in history. At the least, their use should be severely curtailed."

In his book, Reclaiming Our Children, he calls for the ethical treatment of children and argues that our society's mistreatment of children is a national tragedy including including the psychiatric diagnosing and drugging of children whose needs we have otherwise failed to meet. He especially objects to prescribing psychiatric medications to children, because it distracts from their real needs in the family and schools, and is potentially harmful to their developing brains and nervous systems.

Criticism of ADHD and Ritalin

The New York Times has labeled Dr. Breggin as the nation's best-known ADHD critic. As early as 1991 he coined the acronym DADD, stating, "...most so-called ADHD children are not receiving sufficient attention from their fathers who are separated from the family, too preoccupied with work and other things, or otherwise impaired in their ability to parent. In many cases the appropriate diagnosis is Dad Attention Deficit Disorder (DADD)". Breggin has written two books specifically on the topic entitled, Talking Back to Ritalin and The Ritalin Factbook. In these books he has made some controversial claims such as, "Ritalin "works" by producing malfunctions in the brain rather than by improving brain function. This is the only way it works". Forbes credited Breggin with "almost single-handedly reenergizing the anti-Ritalin contingent", which lead to a "flurry of lawsuits and news stories".Breggin also testified to Congress with Fred Baughman. In Congress Dr. Breggin claimed "that there were no scientific studies validating ADHD, that all these kids needed was "discipline and better instruction", and that therapeutic stimulants "are the most addictive drugs known in medicine today"ref>Peter Breggin. "Ritalin Class Action Suits". Breggin.com. Retrieved 2008-04-06.</ref>. PBS Frontline also did a five part TV series entitled 'Medicating Kids', which was specifically about ADHD. Fred Baughman and Dr. Breggin were the major critics used in this series. In an interview during this time period he referred to ADHD as a "fiction". This increased critical attention to Ritalin culminated with the Ritalin class action lawsuits against Novartis, the American Psychiatric Association (APA), and CHADD in which the plaintiffs sued for fraud. Specifically, they charged that the defendants had conspired to invent and promote the disorder ADHD to create a highly profitable market for the drug Ritalin. At the time, these cases were considered "the next tobacco" and garnered national media attention. Breggin was a medical expert for only one of these cases, although he claimed to be a medical expert in three of them. All five lawsuits were dismissed or withdrawn before they went to trial.

Criticism of SSRI antidepressants

In the early 1990s, Dr. Breggin suggested there were problems with research methodology in the research of SSRI antidepressants. As early as 1991 in Talking Back to Prozac he warned that Prozac was causing violence, suicide and mania, and he elaborated on this theme in many subsequent books and articles in regard to all of the newer antidepressants. In 2005, the FDA began requiring black box warnings on SSRIs, warning of an association between SSRI use and suicidal behavior in children., and later extended it to young adults. New general warnngs were added along with the aforementioned black box warnings. These confirmed many of the other adverse effects first emphasized by Dr. Breggin in Toxic Psychiatry with specific mentions by the FDA of drug-induced "hostility," "irritability," and "mania". In 2006, the FDA expanded the warnings to include adults taking Paxil (which is associated with a higher risk of suicidal behavior as compared to placebo). These policy actions were taken approximately 15 years after Dr. Breggin first wrote about the subject.

Although Talking Back to Prozac was widely read at the time with over 40,000 sales in hardback and several hundred thousand in paperback , his pioneering efforts were largely ignored by the media when the FDA confirmed his original research. Prozac Backlash, a critique of SSRIs by Harvard psychiatrist Joseph Glenmullen was widely praised by high-profile media sources. This was addressed by Dr.Breggin in a subsequent book, The Antidepressant Fact Book:

"Glenmullen's (2000) scientific analysis of how SSRIs can cause suicide, violence, and other behavioral aberrations is essentially the same as my earlier detailed analyses...my hundreds of media appearances, and my testimony in court cases that Glenmullen also had available. Glenmullen also interviewed my wife and coauthor Ginger Breggin for his book and was sent research documents from our files that he was otherwise unable to obtain. Disappointingly, in his book, Glenmullen literally expurgates our contribution, never mentioning my origination of the ideas he was espousing and never acknowledging my efforts...Nonetheless, his book provides a service..."

Glenmullen has never countered Breggin's assertion and they both presented at the annual conference (in Queens, NY in 2004) of the International Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology. Dr. Breggin continues to voice his respect for Glenmullen's work.

Criticism of ECT

Dr. Breggin has written several books and scientific articles critical of electroconvulsive therapy. He is quoted by Time Magazine as stating, "...the damage produces delirium so severe that patients can't fully experience depression or other higher mental functions during the several weeks after electroshock". He was selected by the National Institute of Health (NIH) to be the expert on brain injury caused by ECT at the 1985 NIH Consensus Development Conference on ECT.

Controversial commentary

Due to his outspoken criticisms of many aspects of psychiatry, Dr. Breggin has become a controversial figure regularly at odds with the mainstream mental health establishment. He uses terms like "fraud" to describe the biological and genetic theories of mental disorders. He is critical of the medications used to treat these disorders, and the political process that determines the labels used for diagnosing mental disorders. He has also consistently warned about conflict of interest problems. These claims often challenge accepted standards of care within the mental health field and have led to highly critical rebuttals. In 1994, the president of the American Psychiatric Association called Breggin a "flat-earther" (suggesting he embraced outdated theories); the head of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) called Breggin "ignorant"; and the former head of the National Institute of Mental Health called him an "outlaw."

Dr. Breggin points out that the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and NAMI first began criticizing him after he conducted a successful campaign to stop the return of lobotomy and psychosurgery in the early 1970s. Among other actions, Dr. Breggin wrote scientific critques of psychosurgery, participated in court cases against psychosurgery, and worked with the U. S. Congress to form the psychosurgery commission that declared the treatment experimental and unfit for routine clinical use. Both the APA and NAMI supported lobotomy as a legitimate medical treatment. Their criticism of Dr. Breggin escalated after he disclosed in Toxic Psychiatry that both organizations had substantial financial support from the pharmaceutical industry. Fredrick Goodwin is the "former head" of the National Institute of Mental Health who called Dr. Breggin an "outlaw." Before he criticized Dr. Breggin, Dr. Goodwin lost his job as a result of a national campaign conducted by Dr. Breggin and his wife Ginger against Dr. Goodwin's "violence initiative," a giant federal program aimed at unearthing genetic and biological defects in "inner city" children that supposedly made them violent. In their book, The War Against Children of Color, the Breggin's called Goodwin's programs "racist" and their campaign caused Dr. Goodwin to leave the federal government. Funding for the "violence initiative" was stopped.

Although he regularly critiques and has written reviews of the scientific literature, Dr. Breggin has not published controlled clinical trials. He has, however, published numerous theoretical papers, reviews and analyses in peer-reviewed journals such as Primary Psychiatry, Brain and Cognition, Mind and Behavior and the Archives of General Psychiatry to substantiate his claims. He has been accused, by critics, of cherry picking information from the research of others to draw unrelated conclusions. Stephen Barrett of Quackwatch, a retired psychiatrist and critic of Breggin, has stated; "he would like you to believe that his clinical experiences and investigations have enabled him to reach a level of insight that is greater than that of the majority of mental health professionals". Russell Barkley, an expert in ADHD, has also expressed reservations about Breggin's ideas. "...the flaws of both his research methods and his arguments are evident to any scientist even slightly familiar with the scientific literature". Dr. Breggin has been very critical of psychologist Barkley's work on the grounds that he exaggerates the benefits of stimulants and minimizes their hazards. In Brain-Disabling Treatments in Psychiatry and other books and articles he rejects the idea that a scientist must participate in controlled clinical trials in order to justify his expertise.

In 1987, NAMI brought a complaint against Dr. Breggin with licensure board of the State of Maryland. NAMI was upset about remarks he made on the Oprah Winfrey Show on April 2, 1987. On the TV show, Dr. Breggin stated that mental health clients should judge their clinicians in terms of their empathy and support; if they failed to show interest in them and tried to prescribe drugs during the first session, he advised such clients to seek assistance elsewhere. He also pointed out the iatrogenic effects of neuroleptic drugs. He was defended by a diverse group of psychiatrists and others who defended his right to publicly state his critical opinion. Breggin was cleared of any wrongdoing by the Maryland medical board, which thanked him for his contribution to mental health in Maryland. Time magazine has noted that other mental health professionals worry that "Breggin reinforces the myth that mental illness is not real, that you wouldn't be ill if you'd pull yourself up by the bootstraps...his views stop people from getting treatment. They could cost a life."

He has also been prone to making claims which he cannot back up and later withdraws from, including that it can be okay for children to have sexual relationships and that the vast majority of women have been sexually abused in childhood.

Expert witness

Over the past forty years, Dr. Breggin has testified in more than seventy trials involving tardive dyskinesia induced by neuroleptics, brain damage from electroconvulsive therapy, violence and suicide caused by psychiatric drugs, and other issues related to patient rights. His work has included criminal cases, malpractice suits and product liability suits. He has helped many parents prevent the drugging of their children. Although he continues to testify in court a few times a year, the great majority of cases in which he acts as a medical expert are settled before going to trial.

Breggin testified as an expert witness in the Wesbecker case (Fentress et al., 1994), a lawsuit against Eli Lilly, makers of Prozac. Ultimately, the jury found for Eli Lilly. It was later revealed that the plaintiffs and defendants had secretly settled behind closed doors. Breggin alleges that pharmaceutical manufacturers have committed ad hominem attacks upon him in the form of linking him to Scientology campaigns against psychiatric drugs. In particular, Breggin levels this accusation against Eli Lilly. Breggin acknowledges that he did work with Scientology starting in 1972, but states that by 1974 he "found [himself] opposed to Scientology's values, agenda, and tactics", and in consequence "stopped all cooperative efforts in 1974 and publicly declared [his] criticism of the group in a letter published in Reason." Breggin has also stated that he has personal reasons to dislike Scientology since his wife, Ginger, was once a member.

Some judges have questioned Breggin's credibility as an expert witness. For example, a Maryland judge in a medical malpractice case in 1995 said, "I believe that his bias in this case is blinding. . . he was mistaken in a lot of the factual basis for which he expressed his opinion". In that same year a Virginia judge excluded Breggin's testimony stating, "This court finds that the evidence of Peter Breggin, as a purported expert, fails nearly all particulars under the standard set forth in Daubert and its progeny. . . Simply put, the Court believes that Dr. Breggin's opinions do not rise to the level of an opinion based on 'good science'".

In 2002, Dr. Breggin was hired as an expert witness by a survivor of the Columbine High School massacre in a case against the makers of an anti-depressant drug. In his report, Dr. Breggin failed to mention the Columbine incident or one of the killers, instead focusing on the medication taken by the other, "...Eric Harris was suffering from a substance induced (Luvox-induced) mood disorder with depressive and manic features that had reached a psychotic level of violence and suicide. Absent persistent exposure to Luvox, Eric Harris probably would not have committed violence and suicide". However, according to The Denver Post, the judge of the case..."was visibly angry that the experts failed to view evidence prior to their depositions" even though they had months to do so. The evidence would have included hundreds of documents including a significant amount of video and audio tape that the killers had recorded. The judge stated,"..lawyers will be free to attack them on the basis of the evidence they haven't seen and haven't factored into their opinions". . The lawsuit was eventually dropped with the stipulation that the makers of Luvox donate $10,000 to the American Cancer Society.

In 2005, a court disqualified the testimony of Breggin because it did not meet the scientific rigor established by the Frye Standard. The judge stated "...Breggin spends 14 pages critiquing the treatment provided not because it ran counter to the acceptable standards of care, but because it ran counter to Breggin’s personal ideas and ideologies of what the standards ought to be.”

Publishing and research

Since 1964 he has published on his major topic of interest, clinical psychopharmacology, and has authored dozens of other articles, several book chapters, and more than twenty books. Many of Breggin's more recent articles are published in the peer-reviewed journal he founded, Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry, and in the International Journal of Risk and Safety in Medicine as well as in other scientific journals such as Primary Psychiatry (2006) ,and the Journal of Humanistic Psychology (2000) . Dr. Breggin wrote his first peer-reviewed articles in the arena of psychopharmacology in 1964 and 1965 . Many of his published articles deal with psychiatric medication, the FDA drug approval process, the evaluation of clinical trials, and the ethics of psychiatric practice.

Bibliography

• Breggin, P.R. (2008). Brain-Disabling Treatments in Psychiatry: Drugs, Electroshock and the Psychopharmaceutical Complex, Second Edition. New York: Springer Publishing Company.
• Breggin, P.R. and Cohen, D. (2007). Your Drug May Be Your Problem: How and Why to Stop Taking Psychiatric Medications, Second Edition. Cambridge: Perseus Books.
• Breggin, P.R. (2006). Court filing makes public my previously suppressed analysis of Paxil's effects. Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry, 8, 77-84. PMID 16862720
• Breggin, P.R. (2006). How GlaxoSmithKline suppressed data on Paxil-induced akathisia: Implications for suicide and violence. Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry, 8, 91-100, 2006.
• Breggin, P.R. (2006). Drug company suppressed data on paroxetine-induced stimulation: Implications for violence and suicide.” Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry, 8, 255-263.
• Breggin, P.R. (2006). Intoxication anosognosia: The spellbinding effect of psychiatric drugs. Ethical Human Psychology and Psychiatry, 8, 201-215. Simultaneously published in the International Journal of Risk and Safety and Medicine, 19, 3-15, 2007.
• Breggin, P.R. (2006). Recent regulatory changes in antidepressant labels: Implications of activation (stimulation) for clinical practice. Primary Psychiatry, 13(1), 57-60.
• Breggin, P.R. (2004). Recent U.S., Canadian and British regulatory agency actions concerning antidepressant-induced harm to self and others: A review and analysis. International Journal of Risk and Safety in Medicine,16, 247-259.
• Breggin, P.R. (2003). Suicidality, violence and mania caused by selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs): A review and analysis. International Journal of Risk and Safety in Medicine, 16, 31-49.
• Breggin, P. R., Breggin, G.R., and Bemak, F. (Editors) (2002). Dimensions of Empathic Therapy. New York: Springer Publishing Company.
• Breggin, P. R. (2002). The Ritalin Fact Book: What Your Doctor Won't Tell You. Cambridge: Perseus Books.
• Breggin, P.R. (2001). The Anti-Depressant Fact Book: What Your Doctor Won't Tell You About Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, Celexa, and Luvox. Cambridge: Perseus Books.
• Breggin, P.R. (2001). Talking Back to Ritalin: What Doctors Aren't Telling You About Stimulants and ADHD. Revised. Cambridge: Perseus Books.
• Breggin, P.R. (2001). From Prozac to Ecstasy: The implications of new evidence for drug-induced brain damage. Ethical Human Sciences and Services, 3(1), 3-5.
• Breggin, P. R. (2000). Reclaiming Our Children: A Healing Solution for a Nation in Crisis. Cambridge: Perseus Books.
• Breggin, P.R. (2000). Psychopharmacology and human values. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 43, 34-49.
• Breggin, P.R. (2000). The psychiatric drugging of toddlers. Ethical Human Sciences and Services, 2(2), 83-86.
• Breggin, P.R. (2000). The NIMH multimodal study of treatment for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A critical analysis. International Journal of Risk and Safety in Medicine, 13,15-22.
• Breggin, P.R. (2000). What psychologists and psychotherapists need to know about ADHD and stimulants. Changes: An International Journal of Psychology and Psychotherapy,18,13-23.
• Breggin, P.R. (1999). Psychostimulants in the treatment of children diagnosed with ADHD: Risks and mechanism of action. International Journal of Risk and Safety in Medicine, 12, 3-35.
• Breggin, P.R. and Ginger, G.R. (1998). The war against children of color. Psychiatry Targets Inner City Youth. Monroe, Maine: Common Courage Press.
• Breggin, P.R. (1998). Psychotherapy in emotional crises without resort to psychiatric medication. The Humanistic Psychologist, 25, 2-14.
• Breggin, P.R. (1998). Analysis of adverse behavioral effects of benzodiazepines with a discussion on drawing scientific conclusions from the FDA's spontaneous reporting system. Journal of Mind and Behavior, 19(1), 21-50.
• Breggin, P.R. (1997). The Heart of Being Helpful: Empathy And the Creation of a Healing Presence. New York: Spinger Publishing Company.
• Breggin, P.R. and Breggin, G. R. (1994). Talking Back To Prozac: What Doctors Aren't Telling You About Today's Most Controversial Drug. New York: St. Martin's Press.
• Breggin, P.R. (1994). Should the use of neuroleptics be severely limited? Controversial Issues in Mental Health, edited by S.A. Kirk and S.D. Einbinder, pp. 146-152.
• Breggin, P.R. (1992).Beyond Conflict: From Self-Help and Psychotherapy to Peacemaking. New York: St. Martin's Press.
• Breggin, P. R. (1991). Toxic Psychiatry: Why Therapy, Empathy and Love Must Replace the Drugs, Electroshock, and Biochemical Theories of the "New Psychiatry" New York: St. Martin's Press.
• Breggin, P.R. (1990). Brain damage, dementia and persistent cognitive dysfunction associated with neuroleptic drugs: Evidence, etiology, implications. Journal of Mind and Behavior, 11, 425-464.
• Breggin, P.R. (1986). Neuropathology and cognitive dysfunction From ECT (Electroconvulsive/"shock" therapy). Psychopharmacology Bulletin , 22, 476-479.
• Breggin, P.R. (1982). The return of lobotomy and psychosurgery. Reprinted in R.B. Edwards (ed.): Psychiatry and Ethics. Buffalo, Prometheus Books, 1982. Published earlier in Quality of Health Care-Human Experimentation: Hearings Before Senator Edward Kennedy's Subcommittee on Health, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C., US Government Printing Office, 1973.
• Breggin, P.R. (1982). Coercion of voluntary patients in an open hospital. In R.B. Edwards(ed): Psychiatry and Ethics. Prometheus Books, 1982. Reprinted from Breggin, P.R. (1964). Archives of General Psychiatry, 10, 173-181. PMID 14081584
• Breggin, P.R. (1980). Brain-disabling therapies. In E. Valenstein (ed.), The Psychosurgery Debate, W.H. Freeman, San Francisco, CA, 1980.
• Breggin, P.R. (1975). Psychosurgery for the Control of violence: A critical review. In W. Fields and W. Sweet (eds.), Neural Bases of Violence and Aggression, Warren H. Green, Inc., St. Louis, MO, 350-378, 1975.
• Breggin, P.R. (1971). Psychotherapy as applied ethics. Psychiatry, 34, 59-75. PMID 5541631
• Breggin, P.R. (1965). The sedative-like effect of epinephrine. Archives of General Psychiatry 12:255-259. PMID 14246173
• Breggin, P.R. (1964). The psychophysiology of anxiety. Journal of Nervous Mental Diseases 139:558-568. PMID 14243200

External links

• Breggin.com - Dr. Breggin's homepage
• ICSPP.org - International Center for the Study of Psychiatry and Psychology, founded by Dr. Breggin
• Psychrights.org - Law Project for Psychiatric Rights
• Psychtruth.org - The Truth About Psychiatry
• AntiPsychiatry.org - The Antipsychiatry Coalition
• Faegre.com - 'Lessons From the Ritalin Class Action Victories' (Interview of James O'Neal, former defense counsel for Ritalin manufacturer)
• FoxNews.com - 'Activist Attention Disorder', Steven Milloy (August 25, 2001)
• FoxNews.com - 'What Makes an 'Expert' an Expert?' Steven Milloy (September 13, 2002)
• MedKB.com - 'Breggin Revealed' (Medical Knowledgebase forum thread)
• TheAdvocates.org - 'Peter Breggin - Libertarian', Bill Winter