Mass school shootings have tragically become a recurring trend in American society. They are usually performed by an individual who strides into a school and proceeds to unleash violence upon the unsuspecting students and teachers within it. Of course, there are some notable exceptions where more than one person is involved, including the Columbine shootings. One of the most regular criticisms of these shootings is that gun laws are not strict enough. However, there is all strong argument to be made that the overreliance on antidepressants in US society is having a detrimental effect on isolated individuals. This is a problem which certainly needs to be resolved.
It can be emphatically concluded that a dependency on anti-depressants can have a detrimental effect on already damaged individuals. Eric Harris, one of the Columbine shooters, was on Luvox. Kip Kinkel shot twenty-two classmates while withdrawing from Prozac. Meanwhile, the Virginia Tech shooter killed thirty-two people while on anti-depressants. According to Dr. Peter Breggin, mass shootings have only taken place since SSRIs have come onto the market (Web). These are startling statistics and convincingly convey that they are a stimulant for both suicidal thoughts and extreme violence. While guns may be the mechanism through which the violence is delivered, they are not the root cause of the problem. The entire attitude towards mental health and the blasé manner in which antidepressants are prescribed shows just how much reform is required to solve this deadly epidemic in the society of the United States. Nikolas Cruz, the Parkland killer, was known to have been taking medication for depression and A.D.H.D. Having suffered from mental illness throughout his life, it could be argued that the system failed him by not recognizing that he had a severe mental disorder, and providing appropriate treatment. This is not irrational sympathy for a coldblooded killer. It is a pragmatic analysis of the way mental health and the mass prescription of antidepressants can have devastating consequences.
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It is alarming how frequently prescription drugs are used by teens and adults in the US. The National Center for Health Statistics reports that the rate of antidepressant drugs amongst adults and teenagers increased by about 400% between 1988-1994 and 2005-2008 (Web). International drug regulators warn that the inappropriate use of this type of medication can cause psychosis and hallucinations, as well as suicide and homicidal intentions. This is observed too frequently in American society and is strikingly at odds with other western countries. In particular, Prozac is known to be one of the most potent of these antidepressants. It is 18 times more likely to be linked with violence compared to other drugs and is known to have been a factor affecting the behavior of a number of mass shooters (Web). The chemical side effects of these drugs are proven to create imbalances, that can cause the mental state of individuals to deteriorate.
Clearly, there needs to be federal reform regarding the mass prescription of antidepressants because it is a national problem. Guns may be the most commonly used tool used by these people to kill people, but they are not the catalyst for their actions. The prescription drug culture in the United States must be changed, and the influence of the pharmaceutical industry should be regulated so that ordinary civilians do not become swayed by their fear-mongering. Increased legislation and a broad review are required if mass killings are to stop. While increased gun control may remove the most readily available means of killing people, it will not remove the homicidal and suicidal thoughts of these individuals. They will only seek to channel it in a different way, through the creation of bombs, or mass stabbings.
- “Antidepressants are a prescription for mass shootings,” Citizen’s Commission on Human Rights, Florida, available at http://www.cchrflorida.org/antidepressants-are-a-prescription-for-mass-shootings/, Web. 2/4/2018.
- Cass, Hyle, “Is it drugs not guns that cause violence?” Huffington Post, available at https://www.huffingtonpost.com/hyla-cass-md/is-it-drugs-not-guns-that_b_2393385.html, Web. 2/4/2018.
