The Antidepressants Industry: Science or Marketing? | Dr Joanna Moncrieff Full Episode

This podcast honours the NHS: its people, its purpose, its power.The Visionary Podcast is Sponsored by Dietapplements – Your Pure, Clean-label Supplements: https://www.dietapplements.com/Dr Joanna Moncrieff - Psychiatrist & Professor of Critical & Social Psychiatry at University College LondonDr Joanna Moncrieff is a practising psychiatrist, author, and academic at University College London. As a founding member of the Critical Psychiatry Network, her work challenges the widely accepted "disease-centred" view of mental health, the idea that psychiatric drugs simply fix chemical imbalances. Instead, she advocates for a "drug-centred" approach to better understand how these medications actually alter the brain and behaviour. With decades of clinical experience across London, she aims to radically re-evaluate how society conceptualises and manages emotional distress.Host/Podcaster: Hala AliChapters:00:00 – The Serotonin Theory Questioned01:19 – Why the “Chemical Imbalance” Story Took Hold03:05 – What Serotonin Actually Does (and Doesn’t)05:03 – Is There Any Evidence for Low Serotonin?08:21 – Why Doctors Don’t Test Serotonin Levels11:33 – Antidepressants Prescribed Without Proof?14:05 – Emotional Numbing & Sexual Side Effects17:10 – Do Antidepressants Actually Work?18:40 – Is There Any Biological Cause of Depression?20:27 – Depression as a Reaction to Life Events23:32 – Why Psychiatry Clung to the Biological Model25:07 – Placebo Effect & Why People Feel Better31:24 – How Many People Take Antidepressants in the UK34:32 – Medicalising Normal Human Suffering57:18 – Disease-Centred vs Drug-Centred Model Explained01:07:21 – Do Psychiatric Drugs Ever Help?01:16:00 – Withdrawal, Dependency & “Brain Zaps”01:22:37 – How to Safely Come Off Antidepressants01:30:23 – Clinical Trial Scandals & Misleading Data01:50:22 – Is Mental Health Being Over-Medicalised?01:55:45 – Real Solutions Beyond MedicationFollow Joanna:Website - https://joannamoncrieff.com/X - https://x.com/joannamoncrieff/Useful Links:Chemically Imbalanced: The Making and Unmaking of the Serotonin Myth Book link - https://lnk.to/chemicallyimbalancedExplore the podcast: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeFXRuOQ6z8r12D9L8f0lyOYAxdOZRWzYMusic: Chopin - Piano Concerto no. 1 in E minor, Op. 11 - III. Rondo – Vivace (String Quintet arr.)Disclaimer: The Visionary Podcast features conversations with health professionals purely for educational and informational purposes. There is no financial exchange between the podcast and its guests. All views expressed are those of the health professionals and do not constitute medical advice.