Angie Peacock

In this conversation, Angela Peacock and Anders Sørensen delve into the complexities of deprescribing psychiatric drugs, the emotional challenges faced during withdrawal, and the healing process that follows. They discuss the importance of understanding the withdrawal mind, the role of acceptance, and the significance of emotional work during recovery. Anders shares insights from his book, emphasizing the need for gradual tapering and the holistic approach to healing. The conversation highlights the journey of reconnecting with one's emotions and body after long-term medication use, ultimately offering hope for recovery and a return to a fulfilling life.

I loved spending time with a fellow combat veteran and WashU alumni, my friend Will Wisner. I hope you enjoy our conversation as much as I did.

Matt is a board certified psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. He received his Bachelors of Science in Nursing from Mount Mercy University in 2009 and his advanced practice degree from Allen College in 2020. He worked for five years as a dialysis RN, followed by eight years as a nurse at a local behavioral health unit. During that time, Matt discovered his passion for helping others with their mental health and was inspired to advance his career in the field.

Alicia Martin BPharm MPS is a community pharmacist practicing in Canberra, Australia. Her passion for harm minimisation and improving consumer health literacy led to the idea for TaperMate, a mobile app and clinic service to help people safely stop medications that can cause withdrawal symptoms, such as antidepressants and benzodiazepines.

With a background in education, digital production and activism, Morgan was called to this work after enduring a traumatic withdrawal from an SSRI in 2022. Originally from the Tampa Bay area, she now lives in Idaho with her husband, and biggest supporter, Will, and their two children. She founded ACE (Antidepressant Coalition for Education) in response to the clear demand for an organization dedicated to awareness, education, and research around antidepressant adverse effects. She believes in informed consent, scientific integrity, and liberation for all.

Stacey D'Angelo, BScPharm, RPh is a pharmacist and founder of Your Simple Health, an independent practice focused on deprescribing and medication optimization. She began her career as a clinical consultant in long-term care, where she specialized in deprescribing for polypharmacy and geriatrics, often recommending dose reductions or stopping medications to better align with patients’ evolving needs.

Laura is a mental health nurse in the UK with nearly two decades of experience in healthcare. After personally navigating the challenges of antidepressant withdrawal throughout 2023 and 2024, her perspective on psychiatry shifted dramatically. What was once professional knowledge became lived experience—leading her to critically question the overdiagnosis of natural human emotions and the potential harms of psychiatric interventions. Now, Laura is passionate about raising awareness around the risks and benefits of psychiatric medications, the long-term impact of diagnostic labels, and the stigma that can follow. She brings both professional insight and personal truth to the conversation, advocating for more informed, compassionate, and transparent approaches to mental health care.

Meet Dr. Teralyn Sell and Jenn Schmitz, co-hosts of the nationally acclaimed podcast The Gaslit Truth. Together, they are redefining the conversation around mental health, psychiatric medication, and brain health.
Jenn, a licensed therapist with a Master’s in Clinical Psychology, combines her professional expertise and personal experience of tapering off psychiatric medication to guide others through the process safely. As a Holistic Deprescribing Consultant, she integrates psychological, nutritional, and wellness practices to help individuals rethink traditional mental health treatments.

Dr. Teralyn, a Ph.D. in Psychology and brain health expert, brings a unique perspective by blending traditional mental healthcare with integrative approaches, including holistic nutrition. As an author and sought-after media expert, Dr. Teralyn advocates for informed consent in psychiatric medication and promotes a paradigm shift in mental health care—prioritizing brain health over symptom management.

Together on The Gaslit Truth Podcast, they challenge conventional narratives, empower listeners with critical insights, and offer a fresh approach to mental health care grounded in curiosity and informed choices.

Stephanie was a hard-working, energetic mother, wife, and career woman who began experiencing insomnia during menopause. Her doctor prescribed Ambien, which worked well for several years—until she began waking up with nighttime panic attacks. Suspecting Ambien as the cause, she abruptly stopped taking it, unaware that this could lead to severe withdrawal. The result was devastating anxiety.

What is HeartCore Collective?
We are a healing community committed to creating spaces that foster honest dialogues about our modern mental health care systems, and we are working to empower individuals on their healing journeys with education, resources, and support so they can make informed choices about their mental health. https://www.heartcorecollective.com/

In 2000, Brandalyn was a 27-year-old mother of two young sons. Struggling with a divorce and trying to support her family alone on $8.50/hr., she arrived at psychiatry and was diagnosed as having Major Depressive Disorder.

Brandalyn was prescribed the antidepressant drug, Paxil and had an immediate and profoundly adverse reaction. Less than 90 days later, she was hospitalized for the first time and diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. By that year’s end, she was considered totally and permanently disabled.
Over the next 20 years, Brandalyn was prescribed chemical cocktails involving more than 40 different psychiatric drugs at various dosages and in varying combinations. In 2020, she peered beneath the veil and departed psychiatry.

The following year, while in the throes of withdrawal, Brandalyn enrolled in community college. She graduated in 2023 with an AA in STEM disciplines. Last September, she transferred to a 4-year university and studied Cellular and Molecular Biology. She is now broadening her the scope of her focus to Behavioral Neuroscience. It is Brandalyn’s hope that others will observe the trajectory of her healing and know it is possible for them as well.

Katharine is a 37 year old military spouse that has worked in animal rescue and is a hobby photographer and artist. She was first introduced to psychiatric drugs 17 years ago for treatment of PTSD. Over those 17 years she was polydrugged for multiple traumas, health issues and grief. In that time frame she was also de-prescribed without proper tapers and some stopped abruptly. In 2020 she was injured by benzodiazepines and antidepressants and was abruptly taken off all of them. What followed felt like something from another world.

Now at over four years off, having survived through severe acute withdrawal and akathisia, she is getting back to life. Although she is in protracted withdrawal, things are much improved. She feels passionately about raising awareness of prescribed harm and advocating for safer practices and has shared some of her story on social media over the past four years.

Amy was 42 when she journeyed into the pits of withdrawal. Her story includes going from being a mother, a wife, and an avid athlete, to not being able to walk, in a wheelchair, and suffering from all the symptoms withdrawal has to offer. This left Amy with zero hope.

After a full recovery and being able to live life to its fullest, physically and mentally stronger than she has ever been, people often ask her: How did you make it?

Four years later and knowing what it means to have no hope of recovery, she shares how it is actually okay to not have any.

Tessa Turner is a 32-year-old stay-at-home Mum of 2 from Perth, Australia. Her journey with pharmaceutical injury started in 2020 after a routine surgery and anesthetic, where she immediately developed Akathisia but was misdiagnosed and subsequently poly drugged in a psychiatric hospital setting. After doing her own research she embarked on a journey to taper off the medications which has led her down a path of deep discovery and awakening in the midst of her suffering.

She is passionate about raising awareness and educating others about the risks and dangers of Pharmaceuticals and the Mental Health care system. You can find her on YouTube @beautifullybroken, where she shares her story and hopes to let others going through Pharmaceutical harm know they are not alone.

Ewa describes herself as a citizen of Earth. She was born in Biały Dunajec near Zakopane, Poland in 1973. In 1997 she immigrated to the USA. In 1999 she started to see a therapist and very quickly was “educated” about chemical imbalance and the drug that can remedy it like insulin does to diabetic. Her therapist sent her to the General Practitioner and after 15 minutes she walked out with a prescription for Prozac. Little did she know that in the next 20 years, she would spend in the bubble of illusion, comfortably numb and docile.

Dr. Jennifer Giordano, widely recognized as Dr. G, is a psychiatrist who uses a holistic approach to help those who want to take an active role in their own health and avoid, decrease, or stop using psychiatric medications.

She saw the major gap in the medical community in the understanding of psych med tapering and wanted to help fill it, which grew into working one-on-one with hundreds of people navigating the tapering terrain.

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Dr. Horowitz’s website: https://markhorowitz.org/

Jezel is a psychiatric nurse practitioner who has been a nurse for over 23 years (since 1999). She obtained her Advanced Practice Degree 3 years ago and became certified in integrative mental health practices in October of 2022 and is currently enrolled in a Fellowship Program with Dr. Greenblatt at Psychiatry Redefined, the leader and pioneer of integrative psychiatry.

She shifted her practice from conventional psychiatry to taking an integrative/holistic approach when she saw a need to reduce harm and help patients taper off benzodiazepines.

She has now dedicated her practice to limiting patient harm by searching for root causes of mental illness, putting skills before pills, and helping patients to safely deprescribe.

Coach Dan Landauer is a psychiatric drug withdrawal coach who has first-hand experience with the destruction these drugs inflict and is dedicated to helping others heal and recover from their damaging effects. In 2015, Dan entered a treatment center and survived a rapid 9-day taper from a cocktail of prescription drugs. His health was devastated, his mental faculties were severely damaged, and he suffered from a barrage of horrifying symptoms. After spending years recovering, Dan has found a new drive and passion in helping others who are suffering the same as he was and works to help pull them up from the trenches of psych drug damage.

Meghann is a recovering fitness and food addict, as well as a survivor of psychiatric drug withdrawal, a traumatic brain injury, and chronic illness. She's a mother, a business owner, health and lifestyle coach and a certified personal trainer. She's also a medically retired certified firefighter and advanced Emergency Medical Technician.

Through her journey of disordered eating, the struggles of anxiety, OCD, and depression, and overcoming the only available treatment method presented to her at the time - prescribed medications - she was able to heal and transform her life with the proper human diet and other holistic interventions.

Ziza Kirk is a caregiver of someone in psychiatric drug withdrawal. She has seen firsthand how life-altering and devastating the effects of these medications can be.

Dr. Peter Gøtzsche co-founded the Cochrane Collaboration, which is considered the world’s preeminent independent medical research organization. In 2010 Gøtzsche was named Professor of Clinical Research Design and Analysis at the University of Copenhagen.

Gøtzsche has published more than 100 papers in the “big five” medical journals (JAMA, Lancet, New England Journal of Medicine, British Medical Journal, and Annals of Internal Medicine). Gøtzsche has also authored four books on medical issues including Deadly Medicines and Organized Crime. Following many years of being an outspoken critic of the corruption of science by pharmaceutical companies, Gøtzsche’s membership on the governing board of Cochrane was terminated by its Board of Trustees in September, 2018. Half of the board resigned in protest.

Brooke Siem (@brookesiem) is a writer, chef, and speaker whose work on antidepressant withdrawal has appeared in The Washington Post, New York Post, Psychology Today, and more. Her memoir, MAY CAUSE SIDE EFFECTS is the first book on antidepressant withdrawal to hit the mass-market. She is also a Food Network "Chopped" Champion, founder of the newsletter Happiness Is A Skill, and creator of the F*ckit Bucket™.

Amy Barnett is a Chicago based hairstylist that has survived benzodiazepine and flouroquinolone injuries. She’s in recovery from CPTSD resulting from developmental aged trauma while also navigating the road to healing from PANS with her 11 year old son. To say there’s been a lot on her plate is a huge understatement but she uses levity and humor every day. Constantly applying the golden rule of improv “yes and” helps her with acceptance and keeps her on the bright side of her paradigm.

I was prescribed an SSRI antidepressant in 2011 after I lost my job and felt depressed. I never needed it. I could have never imagined that taking it would become the biggest regret of my life. The drug "worked" for the first couple of years in that I did not experience depressive feelings anymore or any anxiety either, really. I felt invincible, although I developed side effects like weight gain, sexual dysfunction, and further down the road, a severe drinking problem, which I didn't find out until much later can be a side effect of these drugs.

Drew is the creator and host of The Anxious Truth podcast, which boasts 3 million downloads and a thriving, engaged social media community. Drew is a graduate student in clinical mental health counseling, a therapist-in-training and a bestselling author, educator, and advocate in the anxiety disorder community. A former sufferer of panic disorder, agoraphobia, and clinical depression for more than 25 years before fully recovering, he has lived the experiences he speaks and writes about.

Adele Framer is a patient advocate and lay expert in psychiatric drug tapering and withdrawal, having studied it since her own experience with antidepressant withdrawal syndrome, in 2004. She founded a leading peer support website, SurvivingAntidepressants.org, in 2011 offering peer support for tapering.

After practicing for five years as a Neurologist and three years as a Neurosurgeon, she started a family and moved to the UK. It was during this time that Dr. Campbell-McBride developed her theories on the relationship between neurological disorders and nutrition, and completed a second Postgraduate Degree in Human Nutrition at Sheffield University, UK. She has specialized in using nutritional approach as a treatment, and has become recognized as one of the world’s leading experts in treating children and adults with learning disabilities and other mental disorders, as well as children and adults with digestive and immune disorders.

Michelle has spent the last 7.5 years recovering from Antidepressant and Benzodiazepine induced neurological injury. She is finally ready to share her story in hopes of raising awareness and helping others understand and navigate this incredibly difficult journey.

Emma Saunders is 36 years old, from London, and is a creative with main sources of work as an actor/ photographer. She was prescribed Ativan for tinnitus during the pandemic for 6 months, and was subsequently cold turkey’d off under a doctor’s advice. She experienced a severe withdrawal that got her sectioned three times, two of them by force.

Dr. Josef Witt-Doerring, is a board-certified psychiatrist with a specialization in identifying and treating psychiatric adverse drug reactions. In 2020, he co-founded a private practice dedicated to assessing and treating patients suffering from these reactions, and has since become a trusted expert in the field, particularly when it comes to severe withdrawal injuries.

Matt Marín is a Los Angeles based hypnotherapist, artist, and activist. His psychiatric journey began at the age of 17, and he is currently healing from protracted withdrawal.

Matt is passionate about helping people injured by psychiatric medications, and aims to help shift society’s understanding of mental wellness through his hypnotherapy practice, YouTube channel, and artistry. He plans on opening a coaching practice when healed from protracted withdrawal.

As a child and teen, Ciara felt depressed, anxious, was self-harming and suicidal. She went to countless therapists, took over a dozen medications, and was sent to a hospital, wilderness therapy, and a therapeutic boarding school. While she had some healing experiences, she largely felt that the psychiatric and residential health care systems failed to address the root causes, and acknowledge the humanity and innate wisdom of teens.

After leaving treatment, Ciara committed to recovery on a different path. She came off all her medications, repaired her relationships with family, and graduated college with honors. She worked in different therapeutic settings and at a couple large tech companies, before deciding to devote her life to guiding teens. She now uses her experiences and insight to support teens in their healing. She also works with parents, and shares writing on mental health and wellbeing. You can learn more about Ciara Fanlo on Instagram @ciarafanlo or her website: www.hominginstinct.org

Matt Marín is a Los Angeles based hypnotherapist, artist, and activist. His psychiatric journey began at the age of 17, and he is currently healing from protracted withdrawal. Matt is passionate about helping people injured by psychiatric medications, and aims to help shift society’s understanding of mental wellness through his hypnotherapy practice, YouTube channel, and artistry. He plans on opening a coaching practice when healed from protracted withdrawal.

Dr. Jolene Bressi PharmD, PMP completed her degree at St. Joseph’s University in 2003. She has a diverse practice background with over 20 years of experience in community, hospital, industry, and managed care pharmacy practice, working with groups at McNeil Consumer Healthcare, CVS, Rite Aid, Benecard PBF, and Appriss Health. She has worked on controlled substance management programs over the previous decade to ensure best practice utilization for large patient groups.

In 2000, Brandalyn was a 27-year-old mother of two young sons. Struggling with a divorce and trying to support her family alone on $8.50/hr., she arrived at psychiatry where she was diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder and given the prescription drug, Paxil. She had an immediate and profound adverse reaction. In less than 90 days, she was hospitalized for the first time and diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. By that year’s end, she was considered totally and permanently disabled.

For 20 years she was prescribed more than 40 discrete psychiatric drugs at various dosages and in varying combinations. In 2020, she peered beneath the veil and departed psychiatry. On March 23, 2022, she completed her final taper.

Paul is a West Point grad and an army veteran. After getting out of the military in 2002, he hit his worst health - 275 pounds, high blood pressure, pre-diabetic, major digestive issues, and extremely inflamed. After going vegan for 2 years, and seeing minimal improvements and additional problems, he found what he calls ancestral health, and has never looked back.

For over 10 years he's been coaching people on animal based nutrition, ancestral based health, self reliance, and simplified living, among many other things. His dream for his clients is for them to experience freedom and happiness that comes from being healthy, being prepared, and simplifying life. His clients experience fat loss, improved performance, increased energy, improved hormonal profile, stronger digestion, better mental and emotional health.

Dr. Rani Bora helps people overcome stress, depression, anxiety and overwhelm, reconnect to their mental health, and lead their best life. She understands that when people fully commit to coaching and taking action, they often find that they do not need to embark on a path of psychiatric diagnosis or commence on medication.

Dr. Rani is aware of the risks (referred to sometimes as ‘prescribed harm’) associated with taking psychiatric drugs. Over several years, she has gained experience and expertise in helping individuals discontinue psychiatric medications gradually and safely.

Travis is the loving caregiver for his beautiful wife Shelly who was injured by the benzodiazepine Ativan taken as prescribed. His wife is protracted, and Travis has learned many things including what it means to truly love and be there for someone that is suffering through one of the hardest challenges of their life.

Practitioner who helps individuals see mental health symptoms as a meaningful response to concerns they have about their life and themselves.

Crash: A Memoir of Overmedication and Recovery is the story of Helen Dempsey and her daughter Ann who both fall victim to the same regimen of overmedication at the hands of the mental health system.