The SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressant Paxil destroyed my family and career.
On July 31, 2004, shortly after I started taking Paxil, I had a psychotic episode and took the life of my 11-year-old son, Ian, in Canada and was charged with first-degree murder. I was judged not criminally responsible (insane) in September 2005 and sent to a forensic mental health centre. I received an absolute discharge in December 2009.
Before I took Ian’s life, I had a successful 20-year career in the physical activity and sport sector, with no history of mental illness. After I was discharged from the mental health centre in 2009, I built a career as a prescription drug safety advocate, which culminated with me developing Know Your Drugs in 2017. I’ve been off psychiatric drugs since September 2010.
In 2024, I merged my two careers and developed Sport for Mental Health as an information portal for coaches who would like to help athletes develop mental skills, which would help prevent the overprescribing of psychiatric drugs.
All of this is explained in my chronology.
In 2026, I’ll be touring North America to raise public awareness about the legal requirement for doctors to discuss alternative treatment options with patients to obtain informed consent before prescribing a drug. Some of the reasons why this doesn’t happen are explained on the Champions for Change page at Know Your Drugs.
