125. Brooke Siem: May Cause Side Effects

Brooke Siem is a speaker, author, award-winning chef, and Food Network “Chopped” Champion. She was among the first generation of teens to be medicated with antidepressants. After spending half her life—and her entire adult life—on antidepressants, she wondered: Who might I be without them? Six years after taking her last antidepressant and now fully healed from what was once assumed to be lifelong depression, Brooke’s mission is to share the story of what happened after she booked a one-way ticket to Malaysia and got off all the psychiatric drugs.  We talk about...  - What was happening in Brooke’s life when she accessed antidepressants for the first time - How many terrible narratives there are about stopping psychiatric medications - What psychiatric drug withdrawal looked like for her - Why we need to start discussing the reality of psychiatric withdrawal - How Brooke navigated Chopped while in severe antidepressant withdrawal - How a one-way ticket to Malaysia helped her heal - What she’s doing today to prioritize her mental health - What Brooke believes needs to happen for real healing to occur   HANGOUT WITH ME ON INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/courageously.u/   TODAY'S SHOW NOTES: https://courageouslyu.com/brooke-siem/