Short Wave - Stopping SSRIs Can Be Hard. Researchers Are Unsure Why

More than 1 in 10 people in the United States take an antidepressant. And the most commonly prescribed type of antidepressant are SSRIs — or selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. That includes drugs like Zoloft, Prozac and Lexapro. But what happens when some patients decide they want to stop taking their SSRIs? While doctors know stopping SSRIs can sometimes cause unpleasant short-term side effects – like dizziness, anxiety, insomnia and nausea – some people report symptoms that last months, even years. So, with investigative reporter Emily Corwin and professor of clinical psychology Michael Hengartner, we’re diving into the research around the long-term effects of going off your antidepressants – what it shows and its limits. 


Read more of Emily Corwin’s reporting on the topic here


Want more stories on mental health? Email us at shortwave@npr.org.


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NPR's Book of the Day - Kate Riley’s novel ‘Ruth’ was inspired by her year in an insular religious community

Author Kate Riley says her book Ruth was partly based on her year spent living in an insular religious community. The debut novel explores what it’s like to live in a world without total access to information, despite the protagonist's intense curiosity. In today’s episode, Riley speaks with NPR’s Ayesha Rascoe about the Peace Church tradition, how her interior life shaped the novel, and why this might be Riley’s first and last book.


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What Next | Daily News and Analysis - Presidency for Sale

From selling hats, NFTs and cryptocurrency, to stock boosts, swaps and golf-course deals made abroad, the Trumps are taking this presidency to the bank—for what looks to be billions. You can call it distasteful, but has it tipped over into “illegal”?

Guest:  David Kirkpatrick, staff writer at the New Yorker.

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Podcast production by Elena Schwartz, Paige Osburn, Anna Phillips, Madeline Ducharme, and Rob Gunther.


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The Stack Overflow Podcast - Building AI for consumer applications isn’t all fun and games

Kylan Gibbs, CEO of Inworld, joins the show to discuss the technical challenges of creating interactive AI for virtual worlds and games, the significance of user experience, and the importance of accessibility and cost-efficiency in deploying AI models.

Episode notes: 

Inworld provides solutions for AI applications that allow teams to build and deploy workloads, spend less time on maintenance, and accelerate iteration speed.

Connect with Kylan on LinkedIn.

Today we’re shouting out the winner of an Illuminator badge, user MrWhite, who edited and answered 500 questions, both actions within 12 hours.

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Read Me a Poem - “If Money” by Kenneth Fearing

 

Amanda Holmes reads Kenneth Fearing’s “If Money.” Have a suggestion for a poem by a (dead) writer? Email us: podcast@theamericanscholar.org. If we select your entry, you’ll win a copy of a poetry collection edited by David Lehman.


This episode was produced by Stephanie Bastek and features the song “Canvasback” by Chad Crouch.


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It Could Happen Here - BlueAnon: Assassination False Flag and Liberal Election Denial

Garrison and Mia discuss the evolution of liberal conspiracy theories, and why people believe the Trump assassination was staged or that Elon Musk stole the 2024 election.

Sources:

https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2024/nov/07/threads-posts/no-20-million-democratic-votes-didnt-disappear-and/

https://www.snopes.com/news/2025/08/04/harris-nsa-audit-2024-election/

https://www.wired.com/story/election-denial-conspiracy-theories-x-left-blueanon/ 

https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/americans-accept-election-results-even-if-some-are-unhappy-outcome

https://www.reddit.com/r/houstonwade/comments/1gnwsv0/they_cheated/

https://theplotagainstamerica.com/

https://www.cip.uw.edu/2024/11/18/conspiracy-theory-starlink-election-results/

https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2024/nov/12/threads-posts/no-elon-musks-starlink-wasnt-used-to-rig-the-2024/

https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/trump_assassination_attempt_online_conspiracy_theories_musk.php 

https://pro.morningconsult.com/analysis/trump-assassination-attempt-polling 

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Opening Arguments - Brown v. Board v. Science

OA1186 - We continue our series on some of our favorite Warren-era Supreme Court decisions with the one Warren-era decision--and very likely the only Supreme Court decision that is still good law--that most people can name from memory. The desegregation of American schools in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954) stands today as one of the greatest moments of  justice in American legal history, but did you know that it was also an equally important moment for social science? Matt tees up the legal and historical context and Dr. Jenessa Seymour, Esq. brings her unique background as both a lawyer and a PhD in neuroscience to provide a singular perspective on the science behind Brown and what it has meant for both law and science in the 71 years since then.

  1. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)

  2. Brown v. Board of Education: A Civil Rights Milestone and Its Troubled Legacy (Pivotal Moments in American History), James T. Patterson (2001)

Stuff They Don't Want You To Know - Strange News: An Orgy Dome Disaster, Cardboard Conspiracies, Insults on Airplanes and More

US Nationals captured attempting an info war to destablize Greenland. A lawsuit emerges on an airline. A cardboard cartel is in play and, it appears, actively conspiring against you. All this -- plus an orgy dome -- in this week's strange news segment.

They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/

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