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Date
9 October 2025
About
This webinar featured Dr Mark Horowitz and Prof David Taylor who attempt to fill this gap of how to safely stop psychiatric drugs with the Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines.
The major risks of stopping medication are relapse and withdrawal effects.
Withdrawal effects from antidepressants are more common, severe and long-lasting than previously recognised. Protracted withdrawal syndromes occur in some people who have stopped psychiatric medications and can be debilitating.
Antidepressant withdrawal effects can manifest as both psychological and physical symptoms.
Poor recognition of these effects can lead to misdiagnosis of relapse of an underlying condition or onset of a new physical or mental health condition. Tips are provided to distinguish these conditions from withdrawal effects.
The Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines provides fast, moderate and slow reduction regimens for all licensed antidepressants, benzodiazepines, gabapentinoids and z-drugs, as well as guidance on which formulations of medication are suitable for this approach, including ‘off-label’ options where relevant.
It is hoped that this guidance will help prevent some of the difficulties patients have when stopping medication and thus enable rationalisation of medication regimens.
The session provides the following learning outcomes:
- You will learn when and why to stop antidepressants and other psychiatric drugs
- You will learn how to distinguish withdrawal effects from relapse
- You will learn how to implement a safe taper in clinical practice and adjust it to the individual
Speakers
Professor David Taylor
Professor David Taylor is the Director of Pharmacy and Pathology at the Maudsley Hospital, Professor of Psychopharmacology at King’s College, London, UK and Editor-in-Chief of the journal Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology.
He has been the lead author of the Maudsley Prescribing Guidelines since their inception in 1993. The Maudsley Prescribing Guidelines have sold over 300,000 copies in fourteen editions and twelve languages.
David is the Co-author of the Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines (2024) and Author of around 450 clinical papers in journals such as the Lancet, BMJ, British Journal of Psychiatry and Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. These papers have been cited over 25,000 times.
He is a member of the UK Department of Transport expert panel that introduced drug-driving regulation and currently a member of the UK government’s Advisory Council on Misuse of Drugs.
David is the only pharmacist to have been made an honorary fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
Professor David Taylor is the Director of Pharmacy and Pathology at the Maudsley Hospital, Professor of Psychopharmacology at King’s College, London, UK and Editor-in-Chief of the journal Therapeutic Advances in Psychopharmacology.
He has been the lead author of the Maudsley Prescribing Guidelines since their inception in 1993. The Maudsley Prescribing Guidelines have sold over 300,000 copies in fourteen editions and twelve languages.
David is the Co-author of the Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines (2024) and Author of around 450 clinical papers in journals such as the Lancet, BMJ, British Journal of Psychiatry and Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. These papers have been cited over 25,000 times.
He is a member of the UK Department of Transport expert panel that introduced drug-driving regulation and currently a member of the UK government’s Advisory Council on Misuse of Drugs.
David is the only pharmacist to have been made an honorary fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
Dr Mark Horowitz
Dr Mark Horowitz MBBS PhD is a Clinical Research Fellow in Psychiatry in the National Health Service (NHS) in England, Visiting Lecturer in Psychopharmacology at King’s College London, and a trainee psychiatrist.
He has a PhD from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London in the neurobiology of depression and antidepressant action.
He is the lead author of the Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines, which provides the basis for national guidance in the UK from the NHS for prescribers on how to safely stop psychiatric drugs and has been endorsed by the RACGP in Australia, and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in the UK.
Dr Mark Horowitz MBBS PhD is a Clinical Research Fellow in Psychiatry in the National Health Service (NHS) in England, Visiting Lecturer in Psychopharmacology at King’s College London, and a trainee psychiatrist.
He has a PhD from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London in the neurobiology of depression and antidepressant action.
He is the lead author of the Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines, which provides the basis for national guidance in the UK from the NHS for prescribers on how to safely stop psychiatric drugs and has been endorsed by the RACGP in Australia, and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in the UK.
Disclaimer
This session is a member benefit of the RANZCP and for educational purposes only. The information may represent views of the author and not necessarily the views of the College. Information is subject to change and the College does not warrant that the information is current at the time of viewing and accepts no liability for any loss or damage suffered by you or a patient directly or indirectly as a result of relying on information provided and should not be a substitute for individual clinical judgement. By accessing e-learning sessions you also agree to the RANZCP Website Terms of Use Agreement.
