Fears Facebook is filling mental health void
PEOPLE coming off antidepressants are increasingly turning to inadequate Facebook support groups to “fill the void” of professional mental health support, a new study warns.
Patients are seeking out help from social media due to “failed clinician-led tapers”, an analysis by the University of East London has shown. Researchers analysed 16 Facebook support groups with more than 67,000 members who were raising awareness of, and supporting individuals, tapering off antidepressants.
Membership was found to be growing at about 28 per cent annually, and was more than 80 per cent female.
Dr Ed White, report lead author, said: “I was alarmed when I found tens of thousands of people online seeking help with stopping antidepressants, many of whom are in a perilous state after being tapered too fast by their prescriber. Online peer support has become such an important avenue of care for people suffering antidepressant withdrawal and needing guidance to safely taper off these medications in the absence of medical backup from doctors.”
The pandemic has added to the problem with the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies reporting a 10 to 15 per cent rise in antidepressant prescriptions across the country.
Dr John Reed, co-author of the paper, said he feared there would be a further rise in the social media group memberships if action was not taken to give patients the care they needed. Charities have also expressed their concern over the unregulated groups “filling the void” of professional care.
Stephen Buckley, head of information at Mind, which offers the peer support platform Side by Side, stressed that it was important to “not follow the advice of someone just because they are taking the same medication as you”.
Instead, he said, patients should talk to a health professional, such as a GP, pharmacist or psychiatrist.
Laura Peters, head of advice and information at Rethink Mental Illness, said: “Social media can be a useful tool for people looking for peer support when managing mental illness, but it should never take the place of professional medical advice.”
Prof Martin Marshall, chairman of the Royal College of GPS, said that the effects of withdrawal from antidepressants could be serious and “need to be managed properly”.
He added “Withdrawing from taking antidepressants can be a big adjustment for patients, and whilst social media can be a good source of support, we’d urge patients to be wary about unverified sites or groups as a source of medical advice.”
In a recent inquiry, Public Health
England established that antidepressant withdrawal was experienced by about half of people who tried to reduce or come off their medication. Symptoms may include dizziness or vertigo, flu-like symptoms and stomach cramps.
There are no NHS services specifically designed to assist people to safely withdraw from antidepressants or other psychiatric drugs.
The report, published in the journal Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology, has called on PHE to ensure the recommendations in its report to have withdrawal services embedded in the NHS are “implemented rapidly”.