Deprescribing Digest Issue 2: Peer Power

Welcome to Deprescribing Digest!

"The truth about withdrawal didn't come from journals—it came from thousands of us talking to each other." – A tribute to the peer power that refused silence.

Hi everyone—Tonia here.

Welcome back to the Deprescribing Digest, your steady companion for navigating psychiatric drugs, understanding their harms, and moving toward safer, slower exits when you're ready.

I dedicate this edition to the quiet revolution that made withdrawal visible: peer support. For decades, the most devastating part of coming off psychiatric drugs—protracted, often disabling withdrawal—was mislabeled as "relapse," minimized, or ignored by the very systems we turned to for help. It took survivor-led forums, mutual support groups, courageous individuals, clinicians, and researchers willing to listen and document the reality to force the conversation into the open.

Today I celebrate the peer networks and bridge-builders who refused to let withdrawal remain hidden—and in doing so, changed the trajectory for hundreds of thousands of people, including me.

Featured Peer Pioneers: The Networks That Broke the Silence

These survivor-created spaces and projects didn't wait for permission. They documented withdrawal in real time, developed harm-reduction tapering methods, and built communities when no one else would.

Adele Framer & SurvivingAntidepressants.org

Adele Framer founded SurvivingAntidepressants.org (SA) in 2011 after her own harrowing withdrawal. The site was among the first to standardize the 10% hyperbolic taper method, developed by Dr. Mark Horowitz, compile thousands of case reports, and offer free support for all psych drugs. With 18,000+ members, it has pressured regulators to acknowledge iatrogenic harm. Her new organization, the Psychotropic Deprescribing Council, now educates prescribers on safe deprescribing. A huge next step!

Laura Delano & The Inner Compass Initiative / The Withdrawal Project

Laura Delano, off 19 medications after years of tapering, founded the Inner Compass Initiative (2014) and The Withdrawal Project to provide free education and peer support, including tapering guides, symptom libraries, and forums. Her 2025 memoir Unshrunk exposes iatrogenic cycles, centering on informed choice and life beyond psychiatry.

Morgan Stewart & The Antidepressant Coalition for Education (ACE)

Morgan Stewart took her lived experience with psychiatric drugs and founded the 501(c)(3) nonprofit Antidepressant Coalition for Education (ACE) to educate the public and providers on antidepressant risks, limitations, and long-term effects. ACE advocates for safer prescribing, informed consent, and research, offering evidence-based information, patient stories, peer support meetings, and FDA adverse effect reporting campaigns to bridge gaps in understanding use and withdrawal.

Emerging Voices: Clinician-Researchers & Survivor-Coaches Who Listened and Acted

These individuals combined lived experience (or close observation) with research, coaching, and advocacy, amplifying the peer voice and providing real-world support.

Mark Horowitz, MD: From Personal Withdrawal to Global Guidelines

Psychiatrist Mark Horowitz endured severe antidepressant withdrawal, inspiring his research validating survivor reports. He co-authored The Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines (2024) on safe tapering and founded Outro Health for hyperbolic tapering support in the US. His collaborations with Mad in America bridge peer knowledge and clinical practice.

Angie Peacock, MSW, CPC: Veteran Survivor Turned Withdrawal Coach & Advocate

Combat veteran Angie Peacock tapered off 18 medications after PTSD polypharmacy and protracted withdrawal. Now a full-time coach, she offers harm-reduction guidance, co-hosts free groups, and advocates for veterans. Featured in Medicating Normal, she shares her story via YouTube (@AngiePeacockMSW), her website, and events with Mad in America and Inner Compass.

Other Vital Peer-Led Spaces Driving Change

• Mad in America — A platform that amplifies survivor voices, publishes peer-reviewed critiques, and hosts community forums. Its comment sections and personal essays have been instrumental in normalizing discussions of withdrawal and challenging the "relapse" framing.

• BenzoBuddies & Benzodiazepine Information Coalition — Early peer forums that documented benzodiazepine dependence and withdrawal long before mainstream medicine acknowledged it. Their persistence helped shift public and regulatory awareness.

• Facebook withdrawal & tapering groups (e.g., "Antidepressant Withdrawal Support," "Effexor Withdrawal Support," etc.) — Thousands of private and public groups where people share daily wins, setbacks, and micro-tapering tips in real time—creating a safety net no clinic can match.

Why Peer Support Mattered So Much

Particular financial interests—pharmaceutical companies, guideline writers, and parts of academic psychiatry—have long preferred to frame withdrawal as rare, mild, or short-lived. Peer networks and survivor-coaches like those above shattered that narrative by doing what institutions often refused to do:

• Collect real-world data at scale

• Document protracted symptoms

• Share tapering strategies that actually work

• Validate suffering instead of gaslighting it

These grassroots efforts created pressure from below—pushing journals to publish withdrawal studies, regulators to issue warnings, and clinicians to take patient reports seriously.

Resources and Next Steps

• Visit SurvivingAntidepressants.org — start with the "Symptoms and Self-Care" and "Tapering" sections.

• Explore InnerCompassInitiative.org and TheWithdrawalProject.org for free guides and community.

• Check out The Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines by Mark Horowitz or visit Outro Health for tapering support.

• Connect with Angie Peacock at angiepeacock.com — check her free resources, blog, YouTube channel (@AngiePeacockMSW), or book a coaching session.

• Join a moderated Facebook withdrawal group (search cautiously—look for survivor-led, well-moderated ones).

• Read Unshrunk by Laura Delano or browse survivor stories on Mad in America.

• Share your own story when you're ready—your voice helps someone else feel less alone.

• Find a copy of the package insert for your medication.

Peer support isn't just comfort—it's evidence. It's resistance. It's how we reclaim the narrative.

Which peer resource, coach, book, or story has helped you most so far? Or what surprised you about how long it took professionals to listen to survivors?

Stay fierce,

Tonia

lifewithantidepressants.com | Read my Personal Essay on Mad in America

P.S. Issue #3 drops next: "Hyperbolic Tapering – Why 10% Isn't Just a Number." Subscribe if you haven't!