Who Would Like This Book:
This is a powerful, eye-opening memoir that shatters stereotypes about schizophrenia. Elyn Saks's story is both harrowing and incredibly inspiring - she takes you inside her mind, giving a vivid account of what psychosis is really like while also showcasing the resilience, intelligence, and determination that led her to thrive as a law professor and mental health advocate. If you're interested in mental health, memoirs of personal triumph, or want to better understand what it's like for those living with severe mental illness, you'll find this a riveting and ultimately hopeful read. Therapists, medical professionals, and anyone with a loved one facing mental health challenges will gain tremendous insight (and optimism) from Saks's journey.
Who May Not Like This Book:
Some readers have struggled with Saks's strong emphasis on psychoanalysis, a controversial therapy for schizophrenia. The book also doesn't shy away from describing difficult, sometimes disturbing, episodes of psychosis and the occasionally harsh realities of psychiatric treatment - this can be intense or upsetting for some. Others felt the focus on Saks’s exceptional achievements might make her experiences feel less relatable to the average person facing similar challenges, and the financial privilege involved in her extensive therapy and support might not reflect most people's reality.
About:
'The Center Cannot Hold' by Elyn R. Saks is a memoir that delves into the author's journey of living with schizophrenia while achieving remarkable academic and professional success. Saks recounts her experiences of battling wild hallucinations, debilitating paranoia, and violent psychotic breaks, while also highlighting the stigmatism associated with mental illness. Through her narrative, she sheds light on various treatments, the challenges she faced, and the misconceptions surrounding mental illness. The writing style is unflinchingly honest, inspiring, and offers a moving and disturbing look at the life of the mind when plagued by psychosis.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
The memoir includes discussions of severe mental illness, psychotic episodes, forced hospitalization, and the stigma surrounding mental health.
From The Publisher:
A much-praised memoir of living and surviving mental illness as well as "a stereotype-shattering look at a tenacious woman whose brain is her best friend and her worst enemy" (Time).
Elyn R. Saks is an esteemed professor, lawyer, and psychiatrist and is the Orrin B. Evans Professor of Law, Psychology, Psychiatry, and the Behavioral Sciences at the University of Southern California Law School, yet she has suffered from schizophrenia for most of her life, and still has ongoing major episodes of the illness.
The Center Cannot Hold is the eloquent, moving story of Elyn's life, from the first time that she heard voices speaking to her as a young teenager, to attempted suicides in college, through learning to live on her own as an adult in an often terrifying world. Saks discusses frankly the paranoia, the inability to tell imaginary fears from real ones, the voices in her head telling her to kill herself (and to harm others), as well as the incredibly difficult obstacles she overcame to become a highly respected professional. This beautifully written memoir is destined to become a classic in its genre.
Ratings (13)
Incredible (5) | |
Loved It (4) | |
Liked It (1) | |
It Was OK (2) | |
Did Not Like (1) |
Reader Stats (45):
Read It (15) | |
Want To Read (22) | |
Not Interested (8) |
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The Center Cannot Hold?
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