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steph_84 's review for:
Lost Connections: Why You're Depressed and How to Find Hope
by Johann Hari
Got halfway through then this was due back at the library and I’ve decided not to reserve it again.
It’s an easy and entertaining read, there were some interesting anecdotes, I liked the referencing, and most of the information is true (though some is misleading) but it’s all presented as though it’s new and it’s just not. Jobs we hate make us miserable, big pharma tells lies, humans need social connection... helloooo Captain Obvious! This has all been in other well-known books before, perhaps not all together but more carefully explained - for example what happens with testing of SSRIs is clearer in Ben Goldacre’s “Bad Pharma”, published six years before “Lost Connections” (not new!).
The author also repeatedly talks about how people with depression or anxiety are mislead by their doctors but I have anxiety and my GP is all over the social side of mental health. Is America just behind Australia in this space? Or do I live in an unusually progressive bubble? I dunno, but I found this book too self-important and not really for me.
That said, I hear that the book ends with supporting a universal basic income so I’m a fan of that bit! ✔️
It’s an easy and entertaining read, there were some interesting anecdotes, I liked the referencing, and most of the information is true (though some is misleading) but it’s all presented as though it’s new and it’s just not. Jobs we hate make us miserable, big pharma tells lies, humans need social connection... helloooo Captain Obvious! This has all been in other well-known books before, perhaps not all together but more carefully explained - for example what happens with testing of SSRIs is clearer in Ben Goldacre’s “Bad Pharma”, published six years before “Lost Connections” (not new!).
The author also repeatedly talks about how people with depression or anxiety are mislead by their doctors but I have anxiety and my GP is all over the social side of mental health. Is America just behind Australia in this space? Or do I live in an unusually progressive bubble? I dunno, but I found this book too self-important and not really for me.
That said, I hear that the book ends with supporting a universal basic income so I’m a fan of that bit! ✔️