27.1 Misdiagnosed and Overmedicated Kids with Kassondra Ola

Today, we have Kassondra Ola joining the podcast to give a patient perspective on the dangers of psychiatric polypharmacy. Kassondra is a mental health advocate who was misdiagnosed as bipolar at the age of 10 and put on multiple psychiatric medications over the subsequent decade. She is here to tell her story and promote a positive message that we, as psychiatric prescribers, need to think long and hard about whether or not to use medications in youths and teenagers... and if we decide medication is necessary or warranted, to do it extremely carefully, monitoring for immediate and sustained progress of each medication, giving time for medications to have an effect, and tapering patients off of one medicine before we start the next medicine. This way, kids don't end up in the position Kassie and so many other children end up in being prescribed several medications at once and having unmanageable side effects. In 1987, we medicated 0.2% of our youth with mental health problems and prominent psychiatrists of the time believed severe mental illnesses essentially required puberty and the resultant expansion of consciousness and brain development. Now, we medicate 15-20% of American youths... Have we really become so mentally ill in a matter of 2 generations, OR are we being marketed and sold pharmaceutical products as if they were child play things... you know where I stand on that question, but what do you think?

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Disclaimer, this podcast is for informational purposes only. The information provided in this podcast and related materials are meant only to educate. This information is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice. While I am a medical doctor and many of my guests have extensive medical training and experience, nothing stated in this podcast nor materials related to this podcast, including recommended websites, texts, graphics, images, or any other materials should be treated as a substitute for professional medical or psychological advice, diagnosis or treatment. All listeners should consult with a medical professional, licensed mental health provider or other healthcare provider if seeking medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment

In more than a decade of training and clinical practice as a psychiatrist, I've become increasingly disillusioned by the American healthcare system. It prioritizes profit over progress at the expense of OUR health. The average American spends almost twice as much on healthcare as the next highest spending country, yet our life expectancy drags four years behind other industrialized nations and ranks OUTSIDE the top 50 in the world. The system is a disaster, yet it's broadcast as 'the greatest healthcare system in the world.' Renegade Psych wants to return medicine's focus to PROGRESS OVER PROFIT, and limit the influence and power of the pharmaceutical industry and big business entities, whose primary motivations are financial in nature.

This conversational podcast is released monthly via SERIES on particular topics. There are 8-12 SEGMENTS, or episodes, per topic. I interview internationally-recognized experts in their fields AND relatively unknown, up-and-coming healthcare providers. Hopefully, we can educate patients AND providers about our medical system (especially mental health), so they can make better and more informed healthcare decisions.

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• Latest episode: 2025-07-14
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