Pat Robertson antidepressants shooting

Anti-Depressants to Blame for Church Shooting, Not Guns, According to Pat Robertson

Pat Robertson antidepressants shooting
Via video screenshot
Televangelist blames anti-depressants despite studies proving the contrary

Televangelist Pat Robertson has a different view on why the shootings on Sunday took place[/tweetit] – anti-depressants. “We understand a lot of these shootings, the people involved have been taking antidepressant drugs, and that may well be the causative factor, but something is going on,” Robertson said on Monday’s edition of the religious TV show, The 700 Club.

Anti-Depressants to Blame for Church Shooting, Not Guns, According to Pat Robertson[/tweetthis]

Although Robertson was not the first person to suggest that antidepressants could be behind the shootings that have taken place in the past, the theory has already been debunked. Studies have been conducted on a number of mass-shooters without any concrete results. Although it was found that many of the shooters had in fact taken antidepressants, it has not been established that it was the drugs that caused them to act violently. Psychiatrists assert antidepressants actually result in a reduction of violent behavior.

BBC had even aired a documentary on the potential link between antidepressants and mass-shooting. However, intensive studies based on exhaustive research has only proved that antidepressants resulted in a drastic reduction in violent behavior.

Although Robertson accepted that the shooter maybe mentally unstable, he added that he hoped that matter does not get too political. He believes that it is not important at this point to talk about issues such as gun control because it did not matter. However, he believes that there is a need for a thorough investigation on the effects of antidepressants because he believes that almost every shooter in history has had some history with antidepressants or the other. He also called on viewers to introspect about what they are being given as drugs.

It has not yet been ascertained whether or not Devin Patrick Kelley, the accused has actually been on antidepressants or not. Just as when the BBC documentary was aired, now too psychiatrists are disappointed that antidepressants are being blamed for the violence, especially when these drugs are actually used to help people overcome their mental issues.

American Psychological Association president Antonio E. Puente even went to the extent of saying that it was wrong to label such shooters as ‘mentally ill’ because the vast majority of those who had mental illnesses were not violent at all. Puente observes that it is “a complex combination of risk factors, including a history of domestic violence, violent misdemeanor crimes and substance use disorders, increases the likelihood of people using a firearm against themselves or others.”

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