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4.22 AVERAGE
4.22 AVERAGE
Backed by a slew of scientific research this book broandens the view on what depression is and what might be the cause of it. If you are in a position where depression affects you because you're suffering from it, if people close to you are suffering from it or if you want to know more than the stories about brain chemistry and depression that we are told again and again this is the book for you.
Takeaways:
- There are more reasons for depression than you are told and more ways to overcome it than presented to you.
- Happiness as in the lack of depression is an internal thing that can't be facilitated by externalities
- Depression is normal reaction to a sick society.
Conclusion:
Johann Hari has a talent for making difficult research assessable through human stories that capture you and reels you in. Lost Connections is thought provoking and can give you a sense of relief, piss you off and all of the feelings inbetween. You won't leave this book without feeling something.
I will definitely re-read this book and I have already borrowed my copy to a friend and recommended it to others.
Takeaways:
- There are more reasons for depression than you are told and more ways to overcome it than presented to you.
- Happiness as in the lack of depression is an internal thing that can't be facilitated by externalities
- Depression is normal reaction to a sick society.
Conclusion:
Johann Hari has a talent for making difficult research assessable through human stories that capture you and reels you in. Lost Connections is thought provoking and can give you a sense of relief, piss you off and all of the feelings inbetween. You won't leave this book without feeling something.
I will definitely re-read this book and I have already borrowed my copy to a friend and recommended it to others.
This book was profound and important but requires a content warning for fat-phobia (the following contains the o word and a description of mistreatment of large-bodied people).
Throughout the book, fatness is overtly defined as bad, unhealthy, and shame-inducing. However, what is especially egregious is the chapter about trauma. The author shares a story of a doctor working with obese patients to help them lose weight. The doctor finds a way for patients to NOT EAT ANYTHING while giving them nutrients necessary so that they won't LITERALLY DIE. In doing so he discovers that a disproportionate number of his patients attribute their being overweight to sexual trauma. Never is this method of weight loss (i.e. starvation and, essentially, torture of large-bodied people) called into question. And, in the end, the chapter implies (but does not directly state) that obesity is like depression (a kind of disorder) and is always the result of trauma. While it's true that many people do attribute their weight to trauma, it's also true that many traumatized people do not gain weight, and that many large-bodied people are the size they are not for any negative reason at all but because size varies in the human race. I found the fat-phobia very disturbing, which is why I am including this extended content warning.
The rest of the book was pretty astounding (in a good way) and in the end, very hopeful. It is in essence an excoriation of a culture that produces conditions which reasonably result in large scale depression and anxiety. His exploration of this was revealing, startling, and fascinating, and his latter chapters on how to restore wellness are inspiring and thought-provoking. This book challenges the widely held belief that depression is solely a disorder resulting from an imbalanced mind and instead posits that depression is ALSO the natural result of living in depressing circumstances. While a bit flabbergasting at first, it also feels empowering to be able to say, "My depression is NOT all in my head," and to have some notion of what to do about it, even though the solution is very complex.
Throughout the book, fatness is overtly defined as bad, unhealthy, and shame-inducing. However, what is especially egregious is the chapter about trauma. The author shares a story of a doctor working with obese patients to help them lose weight. The doctor finds a way for patients to NOT EAT ANYTHING while giving them nutrients necessary so that they won't LITERALLY DIE. In doing so he discovers that a disproportionate number of his patients attribute their being overweight to sexual trauma. Never is this method of weight loss (i.e. starvation and, essentially, torture of large-bodied people) called into question. And, in the end, the chapter implies (but does not directly state) that obesity is like depression (a kind of disorder) and is always the result of trauma. While it's true that many people do attribute their weight to trauma, it's also true that many traumatized people do not gain weight, and that many large-bodied people are the size they are not for any negative reason at all but because size varies in the human race. I found the fat-phobia very disturbing, which is why I am including this extended content warning.
The rest of the book was pretty astounding (in a good way) and in the end, very hopeful. It is in essence an excoriation of a culture that produces conditions which reasonably result in large scale depression and anxiety. His exploration of this was revealing, startling, and fascinating, and his latter chapters on how to restore wellness are inspiring and thought-provoking. This book challenges the widely held belief that depression is solely a disorder resulting from an imbalanced mind and instead posits that depression is ALSO the natural result of living in depressing circumstances. While a bit flabbergasting at first, it also feels empowering to be able to say, "My depression is NOT all in my head," and to have some notion of what to do about it, even though the solution is very complex.
I really liked this. It gave me a lot to think and talk about and a new way of understanding depression and anxiety. The first half of the book explores the various causes of depression and the second half explores how different forms of connection can help us understand and overcome depression. I found both halves compelling and convincing. As opposed to other pop-science books, Hari at least made a half-hearted effort at citation, but I cannot make any claim to understand whether or not the studies he cites are truly reputable and to what extent he skims over scholarly disagreement (I suspect a lot). If you already know a lot about the subject, I'm not sure how much you would get from this, but for a novice, I think it would be eye-opening.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
challenging
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Fascinating book. It's a book about depression but it's not a self-help book per se. He spends a lot of time delving into the sources of depression and also gets into a variety of ways to combat depression. A lot of it is really useful. In some instances, especially when he talks about depression caused by childhood trauma, what he offers doesn't go nearly deep enough. But he is tackling a huge subject and a lot of what he does offer is really intriguing. And useful.
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
I'm not sure there was anything specifically ground breaking in this book, but what was amazing about it was the attention to detail, the rigorous evidence based investigation, and the in depth plan for treating depression with something other than chemical antidepressants. I found the argument balanced and rational. The author is cautious about any research that requires further testing and his conclusions are carefully considered. He always presents both sides of the arguments and makes concessions where they're due. His own initial position as a skeptic and slow transformation to a new way of thinking makes him an ideal person to write this book, eliminating a lot of issues of bias.
As I read I found that a lot of my personal experience was validated and my own suspicions corroborated. This is the first book I've read that has delved deeply into the systemic social problems that are at the root of depression and the first to really push to change the narrative that depression is simply a chemical imbalance in your brain. I wish all the doctors who have tried to push antidepressant medication on me over the years would read this.
I really want everyone I've ever known, everyone who has suffered from depression, or who knows someone who has to read this book. I was nodding so much at some points I risked whiplash.
As the author admits, the system of reconnection that he believes could effectively treat depression is not easily implemented. But my own experience bears out the fact that his ideas work. Moving to a co-op housing unit where I have friends and a built in community has done more to resolve my depression and anxiety than anything else I've done.
I really think Hari has nailed this one. I do wish the title was a little less tabloid-y. I almost didn't pick it up, but I was really glad I did.
As I read I found that a lot of my personal experience was validated and my own suspicions corroborated. This is the first book I've read that has delved deeply into the systemic social problems that are at the root of depression and the first to really push to change the narrative that depression is simply a chemical imbalance in your brain. I wish all the doctors who have tried to push antidepressant medication on me over the years would read this.
I really want everyone I've ever known, everyone who has suffered from depression, or who knows someone who has to read this book. I was nodding so much at some points I risked whiplash.
As the author admits, the system of reconnection that he believes could effectively treat depression is not easily implemented. But my own experience bears out the fact that his ideas work. Moving to a co-op housing unit where I have friends and a built in community has done more to resolve my depression and anxiety than anything else I've done.
I really think Hari has nailed this one. I do wish the title was a little less tabloid-y. I almost didn't pick it up, but I was really glad I did.
This book has a very interesting take on depression and loneliness. Although it is more aimed at solving potential causes of depression instead of medicating, the author does mention that medicine does work for some people and shouldn't be dismissed out of hand. Don't let the soapbox you're used to being on prevent you from taking away the good parts of this book. I almost abandoned it several times but I am glad I continued reading as I think he has many good points. His thoughts on what the lack of meaningful work do to people especially resonated with me. This is written as an almost biographical journey through his own depression and has anecdotes from experts who add their thoughts on what else causes depression besides a chemical imbalance in the brain. If you're interested in themes such as what disconnection does to people in modern society or other parts of your life that you could look into to possibly prevent some aspects of depression, this is definitely a book you should check out. It made me think and challenged some of my preconceived notions about depression. This one is definitely a conversation starter even if it fails to be the groundbreaking new "cure" it wants to be. I highly recommend checking it out.