Posted on 02/20/2008 2:37:25 PM PST by dynachrome
Steven P. Kazmierczak stopped taking Prozac before he shot to death five Northern Illinois University students and himself, his girlfriend said Sunday in a remark likely to fuel the debate over the risks and benefits of drug treatment for emotional problems.
A funeral on Monday in Cicero, Ill., for Catalina Garcia, 20, who was one of five students killed in a shooting Thursday in a lecture hall at Northern Illinois University.
Over the years, the antidepressant Prozac and its cousins, including Paxil and Zoloft, have been linked to suicide and violence in hundreds of patients. Tens of millions of people have taken them, and doctors say it is almost impossible to tell whether the spasms of violence stem in part from drug reactions or the underlying illnesses
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
I don’t know, but the article says he STOPPED taking it. It may have been the withdrawal of it toppling his chemistry, especially if he didn’t withdraw properly.
Either way, and regardless of the mechanism behind it, he still murdered several people and in my opinion, he should face the music. He could just as easlily called a shrink for help for feeling out of control. He chose not to do that.
“he should face the music”
Yup, but I think Illinois stopped using the death penalty.
Too bad.
I asked that question last week on the original thread to this story. It seems to me more than a few such incidents have been tied to the perp going off his meds.
One other theory is that the antidepressants lift the depressive fog enough for a suicidal person to take action for the first time. People who are severely depressed are often immobile and can't muster the energy to do much of anything - which may in part be a defense mechanism. Getting off the drugs may allow the homicidal/suicidal thoughts to resurface while there's still enough energy to accomplish the deed.
The guy's dead.
>>Was the underlying mental derangement made worse by the Prozac?<<
After the article saying a new story analisys showed 2000 stories of about murder that mentioned Prozac I checked the Google news archive.
There are indeed 2100 stories that mention prozac and murder but that’s out of 2 million stories about murder.
Some people cannot properly metabolize SSRIs. Statistically, we can see it is a miniscule subset of the total population.
Instead of comparing to national stitistics on murder, a more realistic comparison would be between the total prozac community, and those on prozac who've committed murder/suicide.
Yea but he should still be killed for his crime. Death should not excuse you from the death penalty; dig him up and put him in the electric chair. ;)
Why do they seem to go for the mass murders? Or is it just a subset of the subset?
So, what's the percentage of those 10's of millions who commit these horrific acts of violence? Is it possible that the mental illness is the reason for his actions, and not the medication? As to the question of whether Prozac made his mental illness worse, it would not seem so given the information in the article. But, who knows for sure. Different people have different reactions from the same medications others take. I guess I'd want to know whether any recent incidents might have set him off - such as any arguments with friends or family, a loss of some type, a poor grade in a course or on an assignment, someone rejecting him, etc, etc. Too many variables in these cases to know sometimes what the reasons are.
I take Prozac. There are countless warnings about stopping your medication without consulting your doctor. Prozac like the others mentioned, are seratonin uptake inhibitors. If you suddenly stop taking it, your seratonin levels will gradually drop and you again become subject to the chemical imbalance which caused your depression. The result can be catastrophic...as you can see.
we report, you decide:
www.drugawareness.org
The guy had rejection in life as well as success. His parents put him in special care during high school. He was successful during college but apparently had emotional problems dealing with a girlfriend. IIRC they’d just broken up recently.
I don’t think anyone knows the answer to that yet.
Okay, I just can’t take it any more. What in the heck does IIRC stand for? Knowing would make reading some of the pings I get a bit easier.
With respect to your ping, I’m not surprised to learn this.
IIRC = if I recall correctly.
I know, I keep forgetting that one, too!
Thanks. I’m not sure I’ve ever learned that one before, but have seen it many times. I just ignored it for the longest time, but it just keeps cropping up. His ping makes more sense now.
Since the buggar is already dead, by his own hand, the trial will not be lengthy.
Yeah. Forgot he offed himself.
Should not the prescribing physician then be testing/monitoring for that?
People taking Prozac, Paxil, and Zoloft have clinical depression in the first place. It seems odd to blame the violent or suicidal tendencies on the medicine.
But this system suffers the inherent and unavoidable fault of relying on the patient to follow the instructions AND to interpret the situation correctly.
In a way, it's like schizophrenia: CNN doesn't cover the patients who continue to take their medication even when they're feeling well . . . they're just well.
Not according to her. She was the one that encouraged him to stop taking one of the three meds he was on. He choose the wrong one to quit, or so it appears.
from the link above:
Jessica Baty said Tuesday that her boyfriend of two years had been taking Xanax, used to treat anxiety, and Ambien, a sleep agent, as well as the antidepressant Prozac.
Probably it was the Xanax that was making him feel like azombi. The Prozac was probably causing the sleep problems being treated with the Ambien.
But since he was "interested in 'peace and social justice'", I guess it's all OK. Maybe that's why he picked a Geology class, rather than a psych, sociology or "peace studies".
Evil geologists rape the environment, don't you know. Even female ones, as four of the five he killed were.
Of course the real reason was that he was under the evil influence of the holster and magazines he bought from the same source as the Va Tech killer had used, and been enthralled by.
Weren't these the same combination of meds Heath Ledger OD'd on?
Probably it was the Xanax that was making him feel like azombi. The Prozac was probably causing the sleep problems being treated with the Ambien.
Xanax...a wonder drug for many, but one should not stop it suddenly (obviously). Depending on the dosage, it may takes weeks to step it down to avoid side effects.
“three drugs”
That Ambien seems to mess people up. I have only seen two that were prescribed it, however. Too small a sample, obviously.
NIU Law Professor to Participate in Nationwide Teach-In on Guantanamo Bay Professor Marc D. Falkoff, counsel for 17 Yemeni men at Guantánamo Bay,to read poetry written by Guantánamo Bay detainees September 27, 2006
Falkoff will return to NIU ... to present a lecture at 4 p.m. in Altgeld Room 100. He will share his personal experiences as counsel for 17 Yemeni men unlawfully detained at Guantánamo Bay and read more of the detainees’ poetry.As one of the first American citizens to travel to the camp and meet directly with the detainees, Falkoff has heard firsthand their stories of torture, abuse, disrespect, and other “disturbing” incidents. Since his first visit in November 2004, he has returned to the camp on eight occasions. During these visits, Falkoff took a special interest in the poetry written by detainees and was able to collect the “declassified” poems, which will be published in a volume by the University of Iowa Press.
The teach-in will explore two overriding themes: 1) whether Guantánamo can exist in a democracy committed to the rule of law, and 2) whether and how various communities should respond to this unprecedented governmental action. Specific issues to be addressed include not only a review of the court cases, but also topics relating to medical care, torture, abuse, and religious insults to the detainees.
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