In any given year, one in four Americans suffers from a diagnosable mental illness—and yet there is still a significant stigma attached to being labeled as “mentally ill.” We hear about worst-case scenarios, but in many—maybe even most—cases, there is much room for hope. These frank, often intimate stories reflect the writers’ struggles to overcome—both as professionals and as individuals, as current therapists and as former patients—the challenges presented by depression, bipolar disorder, OCD, and other mental disorders. These dramatic narratives communicate clearly the rewards of helping patients move forward with their lives, often through a combination of medication, talk therapy, and common sense. Collectively, these true stories highlight the need for empathy and compassion between therapist and patient, and argue for a system that encourages human connection rather than diagnosis by checklist.
Content:
Introduction Peter D. Kramer
Editor's Note Lee Gutkind
Foreword Karen Wolk Feinstein
Acknowledgments
Playing Cards with Mr. Newman J. Timothy Damiani
Hope Nurtures the Dream Ronald Bassman
Inside Dan Tomasulo
Paradise/Lost Jennifer Lunden
What Would My Mother Say? Annita Sawyer
The Dictator in My Head Kurt Warner
In Minnesota Once: On Anorexia, Masculinity, and Recovery Owen Vince
Jeannie Miriam Mandel Levi
An American Boy Candy Schulman
I’m Not a Noun Either Tom Mallouk
Indistinguishable Chairs Cassie Eaton
Salvaging Parts Olga-Maria Cruz
Hitbodedut Catherine Klatzker
Live a Little Ellen Holtzman
Illusions of Wellness Katherine Sheppard Carrane
Stalker George Drinka
No Hope? Don't Believe It Sharron Hoy
Came Down a Person Ella Wilson
