The estranged wife of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had three antidepressants but no alcohol in her system when she hanged herself in May, according to an autopsy report released Friday, July 6, 2012.
Mary Richardson Kennedy, 52, had trazodone, venlafaxine and desmethylvenlafaxine in her system when she killed herself in a barn at her family’s estate in Bedford, according to the Westchester County Medical Examiner’s report.
Trazodone hydrochloride, brand name Desyrel: The mechanism of Trazodone HCl’s antidepressant action in man is not fully understood; however, like all antidepressants of this type, suicidal thoughts or behavior are possible side effects, according to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration.
Venlafaxine, brand names Dobupal, Efectin, and Effexor, is an antidepressant of the serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) class. Like all antidepressants of this type, suicidal thoughts or behavior are possible side effects, according to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. Norepinephrine is a hormone secreted by the adrenal gland that increases blood pressure and rate and depth of breathing, raises the level of blood sugar, and decreases the activity of the intestines. Norepinephrine is very similar to its cousin, adrenaline. Serotonin-Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors boost levels of norepinephrine in addition to serotonin.
Desmethylvenlafaxine, brand name Pristiq, is a synthetic form of venlafaxine, with the same side effect warnings. Pristiq has also been implicated with higher rates of discontinuation syndrome (withdrawal adverse effects) than are seen with other similar antidepressants.
The fact missed by most is that psychiatric, mind-altering drugs have been found to be the common factor in an overwhelming number of acts of random senseless violence and suicide. The scientific research documenting the connection between violence, suicide and psychiatric drugs is overwhelming.
As usual, Mary Kennedy’s suicide was attributed to her “mental illness.” With three suicide-inducing drugs in her system at the time of her death, one wonders through which profit-motivated looking glass her death is being viewed.
Drugging millions of Americans with psychiatry’s mind-altering drugs has become one of the most dangerous and insidious situations facing American life — the corresponding increase in acts of violence and suicide are terrorizing our society.
Watch the CCHR documentary “Psychiatry’s Prescription for Violence.” Documenting the impact of a multibillion dollar psychiatric-pharmaceutical industry, this powerful and graphic video contains interviews with experts, parents and victims. Dramatic recordings of actual 911 calls made by desperate family members—and even by a killer himself—convey the chilling reality behind today’s headlines. Here is the shocking truth underlying the current wave of violence devastating our homes, schools and communities.