A review by paulataua
Into the Abyss: A Neuropsychiatrist's Notes on Troubled Minds by Anthony David
1.0
What a terrifying book! The writer begins by expressing his commitment to science and empiricism, and his belief in a ‘biopsychosocial’ approach to mental illness that weaves together three strands- biology, psychology and sociology. Frankly, this seems to boil down to no more than a Whac-A-Mole model of psychiatry in which when a symptom appears, be it biological, psychological, or sociological, just whack it. The book presents different cases from the doctor’s many years of practice, but it comes over as a very poor man’s Oliver Sachs, providing all the fascination of the case and yet none of the insight. At one point we are presented with one patient who goes into a catatonic stupor, a state characterized by a marked decrease in response to stimuli with the patient remaining motionless and rigid. The doctor leans over her and says
“You’re safe now. I think you got like this because you stopped all your medication. Once you get back on it you will start to feel better. I promise.”
Not exactly the level of explanation that brings comfort to the sufferer or their close family. It is this lack of depth that characterizes the whole book. It frightens me that it is being promoted as a new advance in psychiatry. The book is right to ask the question of why we attach so much stigma to mental illness, but does little to improve matters, and most likely makes them worse.
“You’re safe now. I think you got like this because you stopped all your medication. Once you get back on it you will start to feel better. I promise.”
Not exactly the level of explanation that brings comfort to the sufferer or their close family. It is this lack of depth that characterizes the whole book. It frightens me that it is being promoted as a new advance in psychiatry. The book is right to ask the question of why we attach so much stigma to mental illness, but does little to improve matters, and most likely makes them worse.