Welcome!
I’m Anders Sørensen - a clinical psychologist and researcher with a PhD in psychiatry. Since 2015, I’ve helped people safely taper off psychiatric drugs such as antidepressants, antipsychotics, mood stabilizers, benzodiazepines, and stimulants in my dedicated taper and psychotherapy clinic in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Coming off psychiatric medication is rarely just one thing. In my work, it’s always two:
1. The taper itself - reducing the dose slowly and carefully to minimise withdrawal symptoms and avoid relapse misdiagnosis. After long-term use, this can take months or years.
2. Life beyond meds - learning to navigate your inner emotional landscape, intrusive thoughts, ruminations, worries, and trauma responses without pharmaceutical numbing. This is where the deeper psychological work begins.
Free vs. Paid
The premise of this newsletter is simple:
- The tapering and withdrawal stuff is free for everyone, including research updates - it always will be.
- The deeper psychology content - including practical psychotherapeutic exercises on emotion regulation, trauma therapy, and cognitive strategies, and insights for navigating life beyond meds - is reserved for the paid subscriber community (whose support makes the free resources possible).
In addition, paying subscribers also get:
1. Access to private chat with Dr. Sørensen and a community of committed members who share your journey and help each other
2. Monthly live Q&A on Zoom - bring your questions and get direct answers in real time
Why this newsletter exists
For many, the decision to stop taking medication becomes a second crisis.
I’ve sat – and still sit – with people through withdrawal so severe, it’s hard to grasp that it came from a prescription drug taken exactly as instructed. What I’ve learned from my practice, research, and the people whose lives I’ve been invited into is this:
The system has profoundly failed to prepare us for what coming off psychiatric drugs actually takes. Many find themselves battling unexpected withdrawal symptoms for months or even years, and mainstream psychiatry has largely ignored the problem of prescribed drug dependence.
This newsletter is here to change that.
Because we do know a lot about safe tapering – far more than is reflected in clinical practice and guidelines. It’s not that the science and lived experience are missing. It’s that the knowledge hasn’t been implemented. And so the people who need it are often left unsupported, blamed for ‘relapsing,’ or told the medication is essential to stay well and stable.
What You'll Find Here
Clear, trustworthy information about the pharmacology and psychology of tapering and what lies beyond
Clinical reflections and success stories from my practice
Psychological perspectives on why psychiatric drugs can feel so appealing to the suffering mind – and how we might approach emotional pain differently
Updates on talks, podcast appearances, and upcoming events
Plain language summaries of relevant research in the field, translated into everyday language
Resources for therapists and prescribers who want to stay informed and do better
Guidance on how to talk to loved ones about your withdrawal experience
Reflections on psychiatric diagnoses and why they are not that important anyway
Commentary on the myths, power dynamics, and blind spots in mainstream psychiatry
Honest answers to the question: “If not medication, then what?”
Each subscriber – free or paid – helps this work find its way to those who need it, and helps shift the global conversation around mental health, psychiatric drugs, and what it takes to live without them. In return, I’ll do my best to keep this newsletter useful and relevant to you.
Who This Is For
People who are tapering (or thinking about it)
Loved ones trying to understand
Anyone questioning the lifelong medication model – and the medical model of mental illness more broadly
Therapists, psychologists, and prescribers seeking psychosocial, trauma-informed ways
Advocates, writers, researchers, policymakers — anyone interested in real reform and true informed consent in psychiatry
Why I Write
Because the science doesn’t match the story we’ve been told
Because too many people think they’re “relapsing” when they’re in withdrawal
Because people are being harmed
Because there are ways forward, and they start with honest conversation and dialogue.
Thanks for being here.
- Anders
