Current Anti-Stigma Campaigns Hinder Withdrawal from Psychotropic Medication
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Advocates must seek to shift the discussion regarding withdrawal from psychotropic medication into the world of mainstream mental health care. One barrier to these efforts is bias that stigmatizes people with mental health issues. Stigma contributes to patients’ decisions to move conversations about withdrawal to anonymous online forums. This hampers efforts to incorporate patient experiences into psychiatric practice.
Unfortunately, public health anti-stigma campaigns may make the problem worse, by reinforcing a belief that people with mental health issues must have treatment. We should reframe this anti-stigma work to validate the experiences of people who decline treatment, particularly medications, or who are pursuing withdrawal.