Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

The Great Pretender by Susannah Cahalan

18 reviews

alexxrose's review against another edition

informative slow-paced

4.5

A very informed and well crafted book about mental health treatment in 20th Century America. Cahalan's personal connection to the topic certainly made the book more compelling, I felt reassured that she really cared and thus that the research would be as fair and accurate as she could make it. 

Personally the book lacked in two elements. One:

not enough was done to discuss the falsehoods Cahalan discovered in the study.

This became a major part of the latter half of the book but was not cross-examined enough in my opinion. Considering how groundbreaking the study was at the time, this should have been earth shattering news but it wasn't treated as such. 
Two: the problem of

deinstitutionalization

was brought up in the final parts but not explored. This wasn't the focus of the book, so I can't fault Cahalan for not exploring it more. But it still felt like there was so much potential to discuss the modern issues with mental health care that was just brushed over. 

Overall I'm glad to have read this book, especially have experienced mental health care myself; both personally and seeing those around me go through it. It raises a lot of important questions but also demystifies so much that is still kept as taboo. Definitely would recommend! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Medical content

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Excrement

mcfie42's review against another edition

challenging informative inspiring tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

chacepaulson's review against another edition

informative

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

browncoatcristi's review against another edition

challenging informative inspiring mysterious reflective fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Moderate: Forced institutionalization

shelby_denise_reads's review against another edition

informative medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

elisekay's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative fast-paced

4.0

Fantastic, disturbing and unusual in its approach. Cahalan is very much part of the story, and her research doesn't uncover  answers so much as dig in deeper to the complex maybes and what-ifs surrounding mental illness, and how we grapple with it in this country.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use and Mental illness

nancydrew's review against another edition

informative slow-paced

3.5

Very interesting and thought provoking read about a well-known study of institutional psychiatry and the modern fall out from the study.  Intelligent, but accessible non-fiction writing.  Will leave you thinking about the overall condition of our mental health care.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Confinement, Mental illness, and Forced institutionalization

noshelf_control's review against another edition

informative reflective medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness