The MoJo Daily newsletter, Monday through Friday.
I have long held a very cut-and-dry perspective on mental illness: that the brain is an organ like any other, and that when it runs into issues, it signifies a chemical imbalance that should be treated with medication. This summer, though, I've started to develop a more nuanced view. A new overview of the evidence—or lack thereof—for the serotonin hypothesis of depression led The Conversation to declare that the "chemical imbalance theory is dead." Of course, as the article notes, "that doesn't mean antidepressants don't work." But everyone, from a series of New York Times opinion writers to the prolific critic of psychiatry P.E. Moskowitz, seems to have something to say about how the United States ought to address what we can all agree is a mental health crisis. The uncomfortable truth is that we might not yet know how to think about our own brains, even though we have to live with them every day. Two days ago, I took New Yorker writer Rachel Aviv's new book, Strangers to Ourselves, out from the library, and I've been riveted. I know it's poor form to recommend a book I haven't yet finished (I'm about halfway through), but, thus far, it's been an incredibly insightful look at people whose experiences with mental illness run up against the ways that psychiatry defines them. It asks more questions than it answers, leaving me with the distinct sense that I know nothing. What more could I ask for? —Abigail Weinberg |
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Initial evidence from the horrific attack underscores how mass shootings can potentially be prevented. |
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Servicemembers were attacked, discredited, and shortchanged on GI benefits—with lasting implications. |
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Support from readers allows Mother Jones to do journalism that doesn't just follow the pack. |
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