Stephen Fry: "An Uppy-Downy, Mood-Swingy Kind of Guy" | Big Think
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- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
- Stephen Fry: "An Uppy-Downy, Mood-Swingy Kind of Guy"
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Stephen Fry’s own experience with manic depression lead him to create a documentary about the condition.
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STEPHEN FRY:
Comedian, actor and writer Stephen Fry was born in 1957 in London and brought up in Norfolk. He attended Queen’s College Cambridge from 1979, joining the Cambridge Footlights Dramatic Club where he met Hugh Laurie, with whom he forged a highly successful writing partnership. His first play, Latin! or Tobacco and Boys, written for Footlights, won a Fringe First at Edinburgh Festival in 1980. He wrote again for theatre in 1984 when he rewrote Noel Gay’s musical Me and My Girl (1990). This was nominated for a Tony Award in 1987.
He has written for television and screen, and as a newspaper columnist - for the Literary Review, Daily Telegraph and The Listener. Stephen Fry's four novels are The Liar (1991), The Hippopotamus (1994), Making History (1996) and The Stars' Tennis Balls (2000). He has also published a collection of work entitled Paperweight (1992); Moab is My Washpot (1997) - an autobiography; and Rescuing the Spectacled Bear: A Peruvian Journey (2002) - his diary of the making of a documentary on the plight of the spectacled bears of Peru.
His book, Stephen Fry's Incomplete History of Classical Music (2004), written with Tim Lihoreau, is based on his award-winning series on Classic FM and is an irreverent romp through the history of classical music. The Ode Less Travelled - a book about poetry - was published in 2005. His latest book is Stephen Fry in America (Harper Collins 2008).
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TRANSCRIPT:
Question: Can you discuss your experience with bipolar disease?
Stephen Fry: Yes. I was first diagnosed actually not to my knowledge as being possibly bipolar when I was about fifteen. I didn’t know this until much later when I made a documentary about my life as a manic depressive or someone with bipolar disorder, whatever you choose to call it, an uppy-downy, mood-swingy kind of guy. In fact, technically I believe the correct diagnosis for my condition is psychothymic, which is like also known as bipolar light in America, which is rather nice and makes it sound like a variety of cola, but bipolar disorder is a mood disorder rather than a personality disorder such as that might mean to anybody, but I think we all kind of get what that is. To me mood is the equivalent of weather. Weather is real. That’s the important thing to remember about weather. It is absolutely real. When it rains it rains. It is wet. You get wet. There is no question about it. It’s also true about weather that you can’t control it. You can’t say if I wish hard enough it won’t rain and it’s equally true that if the weather is bad one day it will get better and what I had to learn was to treat my moods like the weather. On the one hand denying that they were there and saying I can’t… I’m not really depressed. Why should I be depressed? I’ve got enough money. I’ve got a job. People like me. There is no to be depressed. That’s at stupid as saying there is no reason to have asthma or there is no reason to have the measles. You know you’ve got it. It’s there. It’s not about reason. You don’t get depressed because bad things happen to you. That’s getting pissed off and annoyed. That’s reasonable. Someone hits you in the face you go ow, you know that’s… but depression is something that happens like weather to you inside you and it’s not about… It could be triggered by something unfortunate, but it isn’t… You know it’s not enough to talk yourself out of it by saying but I shouldn’t be depressed because I’ve got people who are nice to me, which is frustrating for people outside. They go, “Don’t be depressed.” “Everyone loves you.” “You’re really happy.” “You’ve got a good life.” I know. That is what is so depressing. I can’t help it. So but once youo take a lot of alcohol with it as well, so for many years really I never went out without at least four or five grams of cocaine powder on my person and I would ingest it intranasally as was the fashion through the use of some sort of straw or rolled up currency note and managed to get by on it. I never did that when I was working. I didn’t do it onstage or on while filming or anything. It was a way of ending…
Read the full transcript on bigthink.com/v... 
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Calling Stephen Fry a "Comedian" is absurdly understating his career
It's like calling hitler a vegetarian... It's true, but it's hardly the whole story.
@Sam Raffield How is he a polymath? His career is as a comedian, as well as acting and writing of course. A polymath would be if he was, say, also an accomplished architect and economist or something. Just because he's intelligent or "gives off the vibe of a polymath" isn't what polymath means.
@Sam Raffield I don't think just being smart what makes someone a polymath. Would you say Stephen Hawking is a polymath then? I've never heard him described as one, despite the fact that he was one of the most intelligent people in the world. Polymath generally means someone who is highly qualified in a particularly wide range of disciplines.
If you look up famous polymaths- Leonardo, Benjamin Franklin, al-Biruni, Francis Bacon- they're all particularly known for the fact that they made contributions to an unusually wide number of different academic or artistic fields. As much as I like Stephen Fry, the fact that he's well-spoken and generally knowledgeable doesn't really fit the definition of the word, according to the way it's always been used.
@Sam Raffield Well you just said in your last comment that just being intelligent makes someone a polymath, so that's what I was responding to. Glad we can agree on that now.
I mean "comedy to drama to filmmaking" isn't a particularly wide range. Half of comedians are also actors, most prominent actors have also written films. By that standard Steve Carell is a polymath.
Again my point here isn't to demean him, it's just not what the meaning of the word polymath is. Being an actor who also does comedy and writes films is relatively typical.
@Sam Raffield But again it's a range that's not particularly notable. Most great actors end up doing some directing or filmmaking, it's within the same field. I don't see how he's unusual in his range really. Is Steve Carell a polymath? He's been hugely successful as a comedian, as well as an actor in both comedy and drama and in directing and producing.
It made me cry when he started talking about looking outside for medication. It's so true and so sad and so confusing for everyone else
Cameron Churchill yeah I knew exactly what he meant sadly
The comparison he did with the mood and weather is spot on. Mine actually changes drastically with the weather, e.g. depressed in autumn and winter.
I have bipolar 2 disorder, and watching this really helps when I am depressed, he really is an idol of mine
Suddenly have a lot more respect for this guy.
Thank you for explaining this in a way I can remember for my exam. I enjoyed your humour too.
He didn't say there was. He said that Stephen makes it /sound/ so.
It is possible for words to make things seem not as they are, and it is also possible to be moved by words without being persuaded by them.
I am glad that Steven said that it is a MOOD disorder and not that one is crazy. There are such misconceptions. I have it, I believe as so much of what he said describes ME. but...I think that many that have it are creative.
I know right? I suggest you to watch "A bit of Fry and Laurie" and also, all the "QI" episodes :)
The problem with medicating kids is that no one really knows how the drugs affect a young, growing brain. There hasn't been done enough studies. However, I do agree that catching bipolar kids and treating them (not necessarily with medication) is a good thing. It can help them not wreck their lives and obtain some sort of balanse earlier than they otherwise would have.
Genuine question: I have treatment resistant unipolar depression. I’ve always wondered with bi polar sufferers is once a patient is in a manic phase of the disease, does that mean that a drop into a horrific depressive is inevitable/unstoppable? (Apologies for stating that question so ineloquently)
I would seriously recommend reading Kay Redfield Jamison's "An Unquiet mind". She is a professor of psychiatry and is also suffering from manic depression. I'm afraid that one day your despair will be bigger than you could've ever imagined.Many manic depressive people think they have everything under control,until suddenly the illness gets significantly worse. I hope you're still doing well and consider seeing a psychiatrist,getting medication.Stephen Fry tried to kill himself in 2012.Take care.
Anyone else notice he started picking a bogey?
I totally agree.
yes it can but its usually short lived, depending on the "turn of events" it could put them in a mixed episode where they experience both sets of symptoms i.e they cant keep still, cant stop talking but yet are utterly black with depression or switch from a high to low, low to high these event are usually set off by triggers.
love that early reference to "internal cognitive dissonance" lol
Dick Cavett's such a cool guy!
"I despise your opinion, but I am prepared to die in order for you to be able to express it." -Voltaire (i hope:)
I agree with you, though
What they said is true, but that doesn't make it the right course of action. True you'll have a diagnosis, but that doesn't elevate the depression, people still got diabetes before doctors could correctly identify it. True there'll be stigma, but at least the depression itself will be tackled =)
@kaddieization Oh I know there are stories of anti-depressants working, and they can actually causing profound changes in brain morphology/chemistry when people are no longer depressed, but these changes are exactly the same as those seen in people who take a placebo who are made to be no longer depressed.
i took zoloft for 3 years and lexapro for 2 let me just say i feel exatly the same with out it now and i flet the same before i started antidepressants, they might work for you but all they did for my was give me horrible withdraws when i could not afford the zoloft then when i chose to quit the lexapro (i actualy switched to some antidepressant i dont remember the name, after the lexapro and got verry sick then decided to quit antidepressants all togeaher, ps i still fucking hate my life and on top of that i verry verry angry now i litrey hate evryone i see, exept when im high but yea i shouldent have to break the law to not hate myslef and evryone, not saying leaglize weed but how bout if i work 50 hours a week i can at least aford a shitty apartment and if you cant give me that than yea at least legalize weed or sucide whatever i fucking hate you anyway
+Nick bensongton what's going on here
look up Qi its one of the best shows on tv
To say that someone lacks intellect for an emotional response may be incorrect. It was not an intellectual response.
Only Stephen Fry can talk about doing cocaine and still sound classy as fuck.
My Mother respects no one more than Stephen, and when she found out I did Coke once, she called me a loser. I will show her this.
The key is to say "cocaine powder"
@@woden5132 it's been 7 years. If you are still out there, how did it go?
“...on my person”
@@ingridaholmes He didn’t survive. She started doing coke with her son copiously.
he makes coke sound so British and classy
Coke sucks. Snifff!!! I feel great!!!...
(3 minutes later) let's do more!! Coke should be called "Diminishing Returns". Feels good at first but then you're doing your 20th line of the hour and your heart is about to explode. Ugggh!!! Horrendous drug imo.
@@SS-et4kz Only stupid self-centred arseholes take cocaine. There's a trail of blood all the way from Columbia so that wankers like you can get high for twenty minutes.
ikr, then there’s me with a couple of my friends huddled up in the school bathroom sharing a partly bloody dollar bill cause we spent all out money on blow but we didn’t give a fuck
@@andrewmartin6445
So you do not use cocaine?
But you are still acting like a stupid self-centered arsehole.
It is classy it's a posh dinner party drug.
I love that Stephen describes it like weather inside your head, that's so beautiful. It reminds me of Charles Dicken's Bleak house and the character of John Jarndyce. He always did strike me as the kind of fellow which might have bipolar. One of the things I remember most about that character was when he used to say 'the wind is in the East today', meaning he was in a bad mood. Yes, I am very taken with the idea of inclement weather as an allegory for mood disorders. Why would I expect any less from somebody like Stephen Fry?
Many people in death are named the Great for no good reason at all. Why not do it right for a change?
Stephen the Great.
RzzRBladez I'm with you!
RzzRBladez yeap! I'm with you, too!
+akshade93 yessss
Aren't you getting a bit ahead of yourself?
Uhhhh did he die???
I love that he calls it "cocaine powder."
That could be what Sherlock Holmes called it.
i have a house full of junk right now that i bought in a mania that im kicking myself in the ass for now and im broke....but soon im gonna love that shit again and get some new shit too..... its the cycle that sucks and you can see it happening but u cant control it
Well sir.... You aren't alone.
Just try to find the why of if you want to get better... Why you want to get better. What is better.
When you find the why... It's like a strong pole. So when you feel down or have urges... You can stick to that why.
Its like a pole you hold on to in a bad storm
I love the way he describes it. He's spot on. I can relate a lot despite being only chronically depressed.
I'd be a millionaire if I could put my life into words
john wadsworth 60% of bipolars are writers
"When it rains, it rains". God I love this guy! Such wise analogies, I'll definitely use this to explain mental illness next time someone says to "just think positive! :)"
ive started a cyclothymia support group on facebook if people want to join. its called cyclothymia support
For my family, they enjoy the manic phase... Im fun to be around, Ive got all these good ideas, I feel good, I call them to talk and have all these good things to say, I have all these wonderful experiences. But in my depressive moods Im absolutely terrible, suicidal, irritated, angry, I cant function. They have no idea what to do or what to say.
He is just an incredibly charming man :)
I love Stephen. Watching his documentary, The Secret Life of a Manic Depressive, was a revelation to me. For a long time, I thought that I was "just a fucked-up person"; that the whole world was as it should be and I am a defective puzzle piece. I hope to one day meet Stephen and thank him for making the film. Thank you, Mr. Fry.
I myself suffer from Cyclothimia and Stephen here has described my condition better than i ever could, go stephen
Hounest and smart man . All bipolar people is kind and smart
Glad to know I am not the only one suffering with these mood swings.
Not at all man, you're not alone
Me too...
I myself suffer from cyclotyhmia and when im feeling like crap i watch this and it reminds me, im i have an illness and its not my fault
I wish I had known about Stephen Fry when I was depressed; he is a wonderful example of a human being
Stephen Fry: "An Uppy-Downy, Mood-Swingy Kind of Guy"
Henry Stradford
i personally love the manic phase. It's the ultimate drug, the feeling to me is so much better than any kind of drug can offer.
Who wouldn't want to wake up some days to find himself extra smart and energetic?
dsahgkg I love my manic phase too. Most bipolar people like us love it. It’s a natural high. But also hate the apologies which are many times in order after those episodes. Also why we tend to get off our medicine so often.
D.Meyod I'm off my meds now because of a recent manic phase which was highly spiritual/religious. Then came the inevitable crash/levelling off and I'm like "uh oh...what have I done?"
I enjoy hypomania. But I have psychotic manic episodes and it's very disorienting and scary. It's not fun.
I hate it
My mother doesn't accept me because she simply doesn't understand me she moans if I'm depressed and hates when I'm overly happy.. Nice to feel understood
What a relief for people who are experiencing these symptons. How brave of him to open up and I am sure he has helped many people. Well done to him.
I'm so glad he said the depression was more manageable. For me the mania is the worse.
It's the conflict of making yourself feel freaked out or everyone around you feel freaked out, which is really better? The teeth-grinding on-edge impulsive mania side or the horribly suicidal lazy depressive side. Both have their perks but only in comparison to the other
I myself suffer from cyclothimia and the points he is making are so real
Wow. I've been living with depression for a while, but his description of cyclothymia sounds pretty accurate for me. Perhaps I need to go talk with my doctor and get re-evaluated.
If I had to spend eternity with one person, Stephen Fry would be my first choice.
Damn this helped me as a bipolar man
It's vitally important to be completely honest with an employer at the medical interview. I had two hospitalisations for very extreme depression including being treated with a course of ECT when nothing else worked.
I went on to go back to University and finish my degree and have now worked for the same Fortune 100 company for about 12 years. I've had 3 depressive episodes during my time working there and my employer has been very supportive and worked with me to get through each one.
His analogy of moods to weather is amazing!! Love love love it because it is so incredibly true!
I used to say,how am I so depressed when I have a beautiful little boy considering I had always wanted to be a mummy. I was diagnosed with emotional instability disorder around 3 years ago,but have just found out that it is in fact cyclothymia coupled with autism. The unfortunate thing with this disorder is how often it is undiagnosed or misdiagnosed. Stephen Fry is one of my favourite people,I'm so glad he has talked about a bit of his experience with this disorder 😊
You know I may be bipolar, we all have highs and lows though so I hope it's just depression. Regardless I am confident I can make the life I want for myself without turning to these drugs that do more harm than good. Meditation and deep breathes and focused intention can go a long way.
For certain people you are right, ever try to meditate or use deep breathes on a panic attack so intense it starts to effect you physically, both my arms went numb and completely useless, started to hyper ventilate, heart rate around 130 at rest, I completely freaked out, and this happens to me several times a week if I do not take my medication(less frequent with), I have tried your methods, then went to booze, then the doctor gave me xanax, which I do not understand how people get high on this though(I get told by people I am lucky and ask me to sell them some, I tell them to fuck off naturally.), I have been high, xanax just. . .prevents my panic attacks, no high period. I do hope one day I can learn to cope without meds, until then I prefer being called a "pill popper" than having constant panic attacks.
Yass! Think they can solve the problems of the world. Just an example, when I was younger I tried to figure out how feelings are and how they are products of primary feelings. Wtf was I thinking?
"Cocaine Powder".... You adorable man :D
Life is beautiful! Another day above the dirt, is another beautiful day.
I'd have thought his depressions were rated too severely for cyclothymic disorder
He records it anyway. I remember a quote where he talks about filming QI and being all hunky dory on the outside and on the inside thinking "I want to fucking die." Quite startling and sad.
I used to love my MaNiA... should've recorded more of it. But friends being annoyed and killjoys pretty much ruined all the fun; now it's just frantic, desperate, frustrating. Gotta try Belgiuming.
It is phenomenally strange hearing Stephen Fry describing his drug use, with all the glory of a proper British accent of a gentleman scholar.
"So for many years really I never went out without at least four or five grams of cocaine powder on my person. And I would ingest it intra-nasally, as was the fashion, through the use of some sort of straw or rolled up currency note."
Just used this to explain my condition to my girlfriends parents! so easy! plus the fact they adore Mr Fry!
@PalulukanMakto Also, you should look into efficacy studies on anti-depressants. They are rarely statistically significantly better than placebo. But they carry way more side effects than placebo. Also they're very addictive (I've seen first hand what happens when people try to get off them, not a fun experience at all).
Poor guy. He didn't know what else to turn to other than recreational street drugs to put of his "crashes" longer.
Yes, i'm also of the opinion that psychedelic substances have great potential (sorted out my once-crippling anxiety completely, basically gives you new perspective on your life) and given that they are safe (the well-studied ones at least) and are only a few-time thing (definitely not everyday like like what pharmaceutical companies push)
Psychedelics really aren't a good thing for bipolar disorder, as a good trip can turn catastrophically bad in a split second due to the over release of mood related hormones by the brain.
I'm talking from experience.
How great it is to hear someone in the ublic spotlight be so open and honest about his personal challenges...I have much respect for this man. Famous or not. Thanks for sharing Stephen.
I have cyclothymia, and whatever fancy language the psychs dress it up in, it's basically manic-depression lite. As for "treating" it, it's probably better to be aware of it, and learn to live with it, maybe adjust your life to take it into account, not so very differently from the way perfectly healthy young women take account of their menstrual cycle.
I can't imagine how a human being can function without some level of mood swings. What would make them embark on new, audacious projects, or reflect soberly and regretfully on the ones that failed? Oh-but-right, petre! Vast swathes of humanity apparently do neither. You wanna be like them?
I don't mean to trivialize our condition. There are days when I book a plane ticket to the other end of Europe, just because I think it would be fun to go there, and the next day I find it challenging just to walk to the end of my street. My mood swings have caused me a lot of pain, but have also brought me many opportunities and much joy. True hell for me would be the "flat mood" which seems to be the goal of anti-bipolar medication.
I don't understand any of this (including my own experience) better than anybody else, these are just random thoughts which could be either sagacious reflections on the human condition, or the expression of my own illness, take your pick.
A word for those whose job is in any way creative: I write music, and a bit of (controlled) hyper (and obsessive) is kind of essential to that. I take the inevitable "down" when I've penned that final note as "part of the job".
For the record, I'm on my way up at the moment, just passed Midmood Central. One of these days, I must get off the train there (maybe when I retire).
Wonderful bloke. Speaks very honestly, with a great deal of common sense. The more i see of him in interviews, the more i admire him.
He's right that the up or manic state is usually worse for people to deal with than the down/depressed state. When I was manic people I met would often think I was arrogant or loved my own voice. Sometimes, it would work in small doses and I'd come off as the life of the party and I'd pick up girls at the club but in a normal environment it wore people out.
And then when the depressive crash brings you down You start self-effacingly mulling over every stupid thing you did or said for two weeks
respect this man for just being open and out there , it encourages me at least for the moment wile we do struggle at times, ill keep it short
Hey it's that Little Big Planet guy
Oh he's really famous! He's in V for Vendetta, and was a psychologist in Bones for a while. He's got a talk show thing on BBC too, I think.
Is this one of the actors from V for vendetta?
Yes!
Stephen fry talks about both bipolar disorder (manic depression) but apparently he was diagnosed has cyclothymia. They are two separate conditions. Possibly on the bipolar spectrum. But they are different
The exact position of cyclothymia on the bipolar spectrum is in constant flux; but it is most widely considered to be a mild form of bipolar II, not a separate condition. It has the same symptoms, save the severity of the episodes - mostly hypomania instead of full-blown mania. And is treated with the same medication, usually in lower doses.
For example, I am diagnosed with cyclothymia/cyclothymic bipolar; but most of my psychiatric documentation just says bipolar disorder type II. Weird but true. And I was treated with the same atypical antipsychotics used in both bipolar and schizophrenia; but in a lower dose.
I’m so envious of people who are bipolar and can still be normal. Everyone thinks I’m normal except that I cannot hold a job, my wife left me and I avoid confrontation. Thank heavens for my children. Bipolar sucks.
After hearing so many people talk about how mental health carries a stigma and how it is never anyone's fault that they suffer from mental illness, I have to say that this might be the first time I am truly convinced of this hypothesis. Especially when he gets into the weather part.
Are you really that thick?
I like Stephen fry and I also watch Q.I I find very instesting panel show.
Thank you for telling me. It's really hard to find the details of what goes on with bipolar moods as many accounts talk more about the bigger picture.
Depression without suicide is still very dangerous. Suicide is only the most violent end. I have a person with depression in my family. Their give up attitude is contagious, dragging their whole household down.
The DSM isn't taken very seriously in the psychiatric community. Psychology is about treating different thoughts and behaviours that hinder an individual's ability to function in day to day life. When you walk in to a councilor's office they will in fact diagnose you according to the DSM; however, that diagnosis is simply there so insurance companies will cover your therapy. I've never met a therapist that employs the DSM as some sort of bible, and most loathe it.
I love how he reflects back to to his days of coping with BPD with the use of narcotics and alcohol goes "I can't believe how I was able do all that, how extraordinary." I do the same reflect reaction 😂 hes amazing
I haven't heard/seen anyone describe what I go through more accurately! Just another side of this man's brilliance :)
I think I agree with his psychiatrist friend. If I or someone else had noticed the patterns in my behavior that indicated that I was developing depressing and anxiety, and absent mindedly sustaining these states for longer periods, and relapsing back into them more quickly, I would gladly take strong psychiatric meds to prevent that, in retrospect. I totally understand the concerns about giving children strong drugs, don't get me wrong. I just think that the reward for early treatment heavily outweighs the risk. What is the risk anyway? That the child will become dependant on those meds, whatever they may be? I'd ask, what percentage of those children with severe depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder... etc, will develope drug and alcohol addictions if they aren't treated? I'd have to see statistics obviously, but I'm willing to bet that an unreasonably high proportion of us are or were drug/alcohol users. Which brings me back to my point. Which is more risky; A chance of a child becoming dependant on FDA approved medications that are prescribed by, and taken under the supervision of a doctor. Or that same child becoming a heroin addict, unable to treat his or her illness by other means? I think the latter is less risky.
I am so grateful and relieved to come upon this!. For one, I have a great admiration Steven Fry, and also it is the first time that I have heard such elocuent clear and guild removing words about manic depression. Thank you ever so much for posting this
Global treasure I would say :)
@cincofone I must say that my mother had a lot of bipolar symptoms before she was on any drugs at all. She had trouble focusing when she was manic and started driving recklessly. And when she was depressed, with no anti-depressants, she couldn't even bring herself to get out of bed. Now that she is on medicine she can function as a human being again. So maybe you are right about some symptoms of bipolar coming from medication, but I know that bipolar is a real mental illness and needs treatment.
He basically described my highs and then the horrific crash that happens afterwards. The longer the high the longer the crash.
I'm not diagnosed because I've never bothered to get myself diagnosed but I'm feeling like I must have bipolar. For me it's unaffordable amounts of cannabis that keep the horrible feelings at bay.
I watched Midsomer Murders earlier this week, and yet, Stephen Fry talking about nasally ingesting cocaine powder is the most British thing I've heard all week.
I really hate how fucking loud the intro/outro for these big think videos are. the content is great but HOLY HELL get rid of that loud ass intro/outro, the speaker is like half the volume of the music :(
there is a brasilian song named "Por onde andara Stephen Fry?" (roughly translates as "Where may Stephen Fry be?") I wonder if he is aware of it
www.letras.mus.br/zeca-baleiro/707872/
He's such a kind guy.
I saw Stephen Fry at the airport in Wellington earlier this year. I wish I went and approached him and thanks him for his doco, watching that really meant alot to me.
Every thing he just described feels like my life exactly! No one else has ever been able to put it into words so accurately before. Another reason I think Stephen is just brilliant.
thank you Stephen fry for talking about bi polar....I'm also a bi polar sufferer....and it's really a dreadful illness.... let's end the stigma to this illness...
"a result"chemical brain damage" and "genetic inferiority""
I've never met a psychiatrist who'd use those terms; you've either misunderstood or you're blatantly lying.
"Chemical imbalance" certainly, but "chemical brain damage" is brain damage caused by exposure to chemical agents; that's neurotoxicology.
And as for "genetic inferiority", that's a blatant lie. No trained psychiatrist would ever use such a term; it's preposterous.
"Psychiatry makes the presuppositional the error that "non-criminal non-conformist behavior is wrong""
No, it doesn't; you've clearly misunderstood. Your conclusions based on erroneous understanding are therefore suspect.
Firstly, psychiatry doesn't automatically say all "non-conformist" behaviour is a result of mental illness.
Secondly, psychiatry never says any behaviour is "wrong" - it says "harmful" either to the patient (most often) or others (far less common).
Culturally biased fascism isn't as science.
The fact you think abuse of power is just "mean" is actually pretty insensitive and highly irrational.
Psychiatry makes the presuppositional the error that "non-criminal non-conformist behavior is wrong", and then declares any act that leans from the status quo is therefore a result"chemical brain damage" and "genetic inferiority"... thereby declaring all progress ever made as "wrong."
It exists solely to attack/control people.
So, you moved on to personal attacks and irrational ramblings.
My English and rhetoric are both perfect.
Your personal attacks resulting from a rational rebuttal however prove than it is indeed you, that are pompous.
Fascism is not a "social phenomenon" it is a "political phenomenon"... stop trying to twist things and sugar coat them.
Psychiatry was used by the Nazis and Stalinists, so you are objectively incorrect on that account.
Fascism is not just about killing, it is about forced conformity
Look up: O.D.D., A.D.D., and any number of DSM diagnosis.
Psychiatry is an example of politically motivated pseudoscience.
Culturally biased fascism centered around the way "people are supposed to be" is nonsense & not science.
The leader editor for the DSM quit his job for this reason.
Also, you used a disjunct fallacy when you equated "social" and "fascism" via calling the term redundant... fascism may be social, but not all things social are fascism.
The study you point out highlights that antidepressant withdrawal leads to increased suicide risk. They compare time on the drug to time off the drugs (although I have no idea what drugs they are using in that study, perhaps you could enlighten me - not all antidepressants are equal). You could do the same study with pretty much any addictive drug and depressed patients and you'd get the same results.
In controlled studies (unlike the one you cited) increased suicide is the norm for these drugs.
I wouldn't say he doesn't try to offend anyone. He has his views and he isn't afraid to offend people in expressing them.
"'It's now very common to hear people say, "I'm rather offended by that", as if that gives them certain rights. It's no more than a whine. It has no meaning, it has no purpose, it has no reason to be respected as a phrase. "I'm offended by that." Well, so fucking what?'" - Stephen fry