Reviews tagging 'Schizophrenia/Psychosis '

Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen

77 reviews

anima_vestaa's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

4.25

Interesting points raised on mental health, reality, psychosis and everything in between. A compelling critique of psychiatric procedures, stigma as well as overall system. Personally, I feel like the text lacks a cohesive story to tie it together and turn it into a concrete novel. However, the book is not a work of fiction, but rather an assembly of memoir fragments and should be read and appreciated as such. A brave statement of personal experience and though-provoking meditation on freedom and individualism.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Eating disorder, Mental illness, Violence, and Xenophobia

Almost nothing like the movie btw

zzaranazz's review against another edition

funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

the perfect biography. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Self harm, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Dysphoria

mack_urdaddy's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective slow-paced

4.0

It’s very different from the movie on the same way that “Perks of Being a Wallflower” is different from the movie. It’s in more of a character-focused, almost diary entry format with significantly less plot than the movie.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, and Police brutality

downcircles's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

I couldn't put this book down when I started. It's a short read and I completely understand why it's so beloved. I read it as a friend sharing their experiences with me so the time line jumps didnt bother me at all. I felt the author was very good at making me feel the way their environment felt withouth needing to go into too much detail and I quite liked the shorter chapter style. While being able to balance being funny and recognizing that these girls where commited for a reason. The last few chapters add an important perspective of social bias of diagnosis and believability of those of us who struggle with mental health. The pages with her medical notes added a lot as well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Bullying, Physical abuse, Violence, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Sexual content

ifigeneiatsa's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative medium-paced

4.0

I originally bought this book because I read online that it it has similar themes to the Bell Jar, although this one has a happier ending/ message than Plath's work. I was surprised when I learnt afterwards that it is a memoir. This characteristic makes the story more real and impactfull. Kaysen is very hinest about her time in the psychiatric clinic and she does a good job at balancing the emotions she flet and being obejctive and trying to analyze her diagnosis. My favourite part of the book was when she describes mental illness as kind of a schism between reality and one's own perceived mental states. Hows there is something inside the mind that is interpreting all the neurological activity that is going on and gives reasons to them and how with mental health that something is not always credible. I also loved the structure of the memoir, how it wasn't linear and the fact that the chapters were short.

Quote: "It is easy to slip into a parallel universe"

"I was in pain and nobody knew it; even I had trouble knowing it"

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

sunnybugz's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Cursing, Mental illness, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Excrement, Grief, and Abandonment

nicoleanthony's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring fast-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail

nirellis's review against another edition

dark informative reflective fast-paced

4.5

Really interesting. I advise for anyone who’s planning to read this book to mentally be in a place  where they can handle heavy topics and traumatic situations. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Eating disorder

madisbookshelf's review against another edition

emotional funny informative inspiring lighthearted reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

 I've said it before and I'll say it again, one hug from Susanna Kaysen could fix everything broken inside me.
"Girl, Interrupted" by Susanna Kaysen is a memoir based on her stay 18-month stay at the infamous McLean Psychiatric Hospital. From the mouth of Susanna herself, we hear of her and her fellow patients' experiences as psychiatric patients in the 1960s.
Before reading this memoir, I had never related to an author so deeply. As someone who was also hospitalized in a psychiatric facility as a teenager, I found myself relating to almost every little piece of Susanna's experience. Susanna has a way of taking complex memories and turning them into something that everyone can understand and relate to in some way that I find to be so beautiful. After completing this memoir, I feel that the young "psycho" girl inside me that was once hospitalized has finally been heard by somebody, and for that, I will always be thankful <3.
Although I personally hate rating memoirs (who am I to rate someone else's life experiences? lol), I have to give "Girl, Interrupted" five stars.
Thank you Susanna for being the queen of us mentally ill teen girls. We love you. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

cleo_j's review against another edition

challenging dark informative medium-paced

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Infidelity, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Fire/Fire injury