- Table View
- List View
Unnatural Causes
by Leah Ruth RobinsonThe life-and-death struggle waged daily in the ER is a constant, integral part of Evelyn Sutcliffe's existence. Her home is her refuge from the frenzy, the anxiety, the uncertainty, and the blood. But on a night when she and her closest friends are supposed to be celebrating Evelyn's anniversary with her significant other, psychiatrist Phil Carchiollo, a would-be murderer has invaded her sanctuary. Now a colleague clings to life by the barest of threads, struck down by poison he ingested while cooking in Evelyn's Manhattan apartment-a lethal surprise intended for one or more of Dr. Sutcliffe's invited guests...or for Evelyn herself. As chaos threatens to engulf her professional and personal worlds-as sordid secrets about the friends and coworkers she thought she knew suddenly begin to come to light-Evelyn Sutcliffe realizes that she must trace a murderous evil to its twisted roots. For everything she senses, everything she learns, suggests that a killer is lurking perilously close to her: in the halls of University Hospital...in the shadows of the ER. ... Outside her bedroom door.
Unnatural Causes: 'An absolutely brilliant book. I really recommend it, I don't often say that' Jeremy Vine, BBC Radio 2
by Dr Richard ShepherdTHE TRUE CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR AND 18-WEEK SUNDAY TIMES TOP 10 BESTSELLER'One of the most fascinating books I have read in a long time. Engrossing, a haunting page-turner. A book I could not put down' The Times, BOOKS OF THE YEAR__________Meet the forensic pathologist, Dr Richard Shepherd.He solves the mysteries of unexplained or sudden death.He has performed over 23,000 autopsies, including some of the most high-profile cases of recent times; the Hungerford Massacre, the Princess Diana inquiry, and 9/11. He has faced serial killers, natural disaster, 'perfect murders' and freak accidents.His evidence has put killers behind bars, freed the innocent, and turned open-and-shut cases on their heads. Yet all this has come at a huge personal cost. Unnatural Causes tells the story of not only the cases and bodies that have haunted him the most, but also how to live a life steeped in death. Thoughtful, revealing, chilling and always unputdownable, if you liked All That Remains, War Doctor and This is Going to Hurt you'll love this. **Pre-order Dr Richard Shepherd's new book THE SEVEN AGES OF DEATH now**__________'Gripping, grimly fascinating, and I suspect I'll read it at least twice' Evening Standard'A deeply mesmerising memoir of forensic pathology. Human and fascinating' Nigella Lawson 'An absolutely brilliant book. I really recommend it, I don't often say that but it's fascinating' Jeremy Vine, BBC Radio 2'Puts the reader at his elbow as he wields the scalpel' Guardian 'Fascinating, gruesome yet engrossing' Richard and Judy, Daily Express'Fascinating, insightful, candid, compassionate' Observer
Unnatural Death: Confessions Of A Medical Examiner
by Michael Baden Judith A. Hennesee* JFK's autopsy failed to disclose crucial evidence. * The deaths of John Belushi and Elvis Presley were far more complex than anyone has let on. * Decisive medical findings in the von Bulow affair were consistently overlooked. These are but three of the shocking revelations in Dr. Michael Baden's first-person, no-holds-barred account of his distinguished career in forensic pathology. In determining the causes of tens of thousands of deaths, from those of presidents and rock stars to victims of serial killings, exotic sex rituals, mass disasters, child abuse and drug abuse, Baden has come to the unavoidable conclusion that the search for scientific truth is often sullied by the pressures of expediency. He produces dramatic evidence to demonstrate that political intrigue, influence peddling, and professional incompetence have created a national crisis in forensic medicine. "A fascinating look into the mechanics of forensics and a disconcerting lesson in the politics of death.
Unnatural Death: The gripping new Kay Scarpetta thriller (Kay Scarpetta #27)
by Patricia CornwellTHE BREATHTAKING NEW KAY SCARPETTA THRILLER FROM THE 120-MILLION-COPY BESTSELLERTwo mauled bodies in the woods. Two top secret autopsies. The most chilling case of Scarpetta's career . . .In this thrilling new instalment of the #1 bestselling series, chief medical examiner Dr Kay Scarpetta finds herself in a Northern Virginia wilderness examining the remains of two campers wanted by federal law enforcement.The victims have been savaged beyond recognition, and other evidence is terrifying and baffling, including a larger-than-life footprint.After one of the most frightening body retrievals of her career, Scarpetta must discover who would commit murders this brutal, and why.'A chilling, thrilling, macabre masterpiece. Unnatural Death is Patricia Cornwell at her mesmerising finest. The best just got better' CHRIS WHITAKER, author of WE BEGIN AT THE END'Sinister, surprising and utterly unputdownable. Cornwell at her brilliant best'M. J. ARLIDGE, author of EYE FOR AN EYE'Classic Cornwell with an up-to-the-minute twenty-first-century plot. An intoxicating blend that proves Scarpetta is still queen of the autopsy and Cornwell is still queen of crime fiction' ANDREA MARA, author of NO ONE SAW A THING'One of the best crime writers writing today'GUARDIAN'Thirty years on, there's still no other crime writer like her'SUNDAY TIMES'The top gun in this field'DAILY TELEGRAPH
Unnatural Death: The gripping new Kay Scarpetta thriller (Kay Scarpetta #27)
by Patricia CornwellTHE BREATHTAKING NEW KAY SCARPETTA THRILLER FROM THE 120-MILLION-COPY BESTSELLERTwo mauled bodies in the woods. Two top secret autopsies. The most chilling case of Scarpetta's career . . .In this thrilling new instalment of the #1 bestselling series, chief medical examiner Dr Kay Scarpetta finds herself in a Northern Virginia wilderness examining the remains of two campers wanted by federal law enforcement.The victims have been savaged beyond recognition, and other evidence is terrifying and baffling, including a larger-than-life footprint.After one of the most frightening body retrievals of her career, Scarpetta must discover who would commit murders this brutal, and why.'A sinister mystery from one of the all-time greats of the genre'SUN'A chilling, thrilling, macabre masterpiece. Unnatural Death is Patricia Cornwell at her mesmerising finest. The best just got better' CHRIS WHITAKER, author of WE BEGIN AT THE END'An edge-of-the-seat mystery, packed with twists'DAILY MAIL'Sinister, surprising and utterly unputdownable. Cornwell at her brilliant best'M. J. ARLIDGE, author of EYE FOR AN EYE'Classic Cornwell with an up-to-the-minute twenty-first-century plot. An intoxicating blend that proves Scarpetta is still queen of the autopsy and Cornwell is still queen of crime fiction' ANDREA MARA, author of NO ONE SAW A THING
Unnatural Exposure (Kay Scarpetta)
by Patricia CornwellThe eighth book in the Kay Scarpetta series, from No. 1 bestselling author Patricia Cornwell. 'America's most chilling writer of crime fiction' The TimesA sadistic serial killer, the weapon a deadly virus . . .Dublin, Ireland and Richmond, Virginia: separated by thousands of miles - linked by murder. For Dr Kay Scarpetta a lecture stint in Ireland provides the perfect opportunity to find out if the murders on both sides of the Atlantic are indeed connected. Five dismembered, beheaded bodies were found in Ireland five years ago - now four have been discovered in the States.But the tenth corpse in Virginia is different. There are vital discrepancies, and an indication that the elderly victim was already seriously ill. A copy-cat killing. Ghoulish, perhaps, but not unusual. And then abject terror grips Scarpetta and her colleagues when the next body is found. The circumstances of death broadcast a clear and horrifying message: the killer is armed with the most lethal weapon on earth - smallpox.Praise for the groundbreaking series: 'One of the best crime writers writing today' Guardian 'Devilishly clever' Sunday Times 'The top gun in this field' Daily Telegraph 'Forget the pretenders. Cornwell reigns' Mirror 'The Agatha Christie of the DNA age' Express
Unnatural Selection: How We Are Changing Life, Gene by Gene
by Emily MonossonGonorrhea. Bed bugs. Weeds. Salamanders. People. All are evolving, some surprisingly rapidly, in response to our chemical age. In Unnatural Selection, Emily Monosson shows how our drugs, pesticides, and pollution are exerting intense selection pressure on all manner of species. And we humans might not like the result. Monosson reveals that the very code of life is more fluid than once imagined. When our powerful chemicals put the pressure on to evolve or die, beneficial traits can sweep rapidly through a population. Species with explosive population growth--the bugs, bacteria, and weeds--tend to thrive, while bigger, slower-to-reproduce creatures, like ourselves, are more likely to succumb. Monosson explores contemporary evolution in all its guises. She examines the species that we are actively trying to beat back, from agricultural pests to life-threatening bacteria, and those that are collateral damage--creatures struggling to adapt to a polluted world. Monosson also presents cutting-edge science on gene expression, showing how environmental stressors are leaving their mark on plants, animals, and possibly humans for generations to come. Unnatural Selection is eye-opening and more than a little disquieting. But it also suggests how we might lessen our impact: manage pests without creating super bugs; protect individuals from disease without inviting epidemics; and benefit from technology without threatening the health of our children.
Unprecedented: The Constitutional Challenge to Obamacare
by Randy E. Barnett Josh BlackmanIn 2012, the United States Supreme Court became the center of the political world. In a dramatic and unexpected 5-4 decision, Chief Justice John Roberts voted on narrow grounds to save the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare. Unprecedented tells the inside story of how the challenge to Obamacare raced across all three branches of government, and narrowly avoided a constitutional collision between the Supreme Court and President Obama. <p><p> On November 13, 2009, a group of Federalist Society lawyers met in the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C., to devise a legal challenge to the constitutionality of President Obama's "legacy" — his healthcare reform. It seemed a very long shot, and was dismissed peremptorily by the White House, much of Congress, most legal scholars, and all of the media. Two years later the fight to overturn the Affordable Care Act became a political and legal firestorm. When, finally, the Supreme Court announced its ruling, the judgment was so surprising that two cable news channels misreported it and announced that the Act had been declared unconstitutional. <p> Unprecedented offers unrivaled inside access to how key decisions were made in Washington, based on interviews with over one hundred of the people who lived this journey — including the academics who began the challenge, the attorneys who litigated the case at all levels, and Obama administration attorneys who successfully defended the law. It reads like a political thriller, provides the definitive account of how the Supreme Court almost struck down President Obama's "unprecedented" law, and explains what this decision means for the future of the Constitution, the limits on federal power, and the Supreme Court.
The Unquiet Heart: A Novel (Sarah Gilchrist Mysteries #0)
by Kaite WelshIn this sequel to the acclaimed The Wages of Sin—and once again set in moody fin de siecle Edinburgh—Sarah Gilchrist finds herself trying to prove her fiancé’s innocence in the midst of his murder trial. Edinburgh, 1893. Sarah Gilchrist has no intention of marrying her dull fiancé Miles, the man her family hope will restore her reputation and put an end to her dreams of becoming a doctor, but when he is arrested for a murder she is sure he didn’t commit, she finds herself his reluctant ally. Beneath the genteel façade of upper class Edinburgh lurks blackmail, adultery, poison, and madness, and Sarah must return to Edinburgh’s slums, back alleys, and asylums as she discovers the dark past about a family where no one is what they seem, even Miles himself. It also brings her back into the orbit of her mercurial professor, Gregory Merchiston—he sees Sarah as his protege, but can he stave off his demons long enough to teach her the skills that will save her life?
Unraveling: Remaking Personhood in a Neurodiverse Age
by Matthew J. Wolf-MeyerDeveloping a cybernetic model of subjectivity and personhood that honors disability experiences to reconceptualize the category of the human Twentieth-century neuroscience fixed the brain as the basis of consciousness, the self, identity, individuality, even life itself, obscuring the fundamental relationships between bodies and the worlds that they inhabit. In Unraveling, Matthew J. Wolf-Meyer draws on narratives of family and individual experiences with neurological disorders, paired with texts by neuroscientists and psychiatrists, to decenter the brain and expose the ableist biases in the dominant thinking about personhood. Unraveling articulates a novel cybernetic theory of subjectivity in which the nervous system is connected to the world it inhabits rather than being walled off inside the body, moving beyond neuroscientific, symbolic, and materialist approaches to the self to focus instead on such concepts as animation, modularity, and facilitation. It does so through close readings of memoirs by individuals who lost their hearing or developed trauma-induced aphasia, as well as family members of people diagnosed as autistic—texts that rethink modes of subjectivity through experiences with communication, caregiving, and the demands of everyday life. Arguing for a radical antinormative bioethics, Unraveling shifts the discourse on neurological disorders from such value-laden concepts as &“quality of life&” to develop an inclusive model of personhood that honors disability experiences and reconceptualizes the category of the human in all of its social, technological, and environmental contexts.
Unraveling New Frontiers and Advances in Bioinformatics
by Amit Chaudhary Sushanta K. Sethi Akarsh VermaThis book describes the bioinformatics research field, from its historical roots to the cutting-edge technologies. Many readers can discover the power of next-generation sequencing and genomic data analysis, uncover the secrets of single-cell genomics and transcriptomics, explore the metagenomics and microbiome analysis, and predict the protein structures using structural bioinformatics. Several case studies witnessing the fusion of bioinformatics and artificial intelligence, driving insights from vast biological datasets have also been explored. Other important aspects listed in the book are integrating the omics data for a holistic view of biological systems; experiencing the future of medicine with precision healthcare and personalized treatments; accelerating drug discovery and repurposing through computational approaches; agricultural genomics; and exploring the role of immunoinformatics in designing effective vaccines against infectious diseases.
Unraveling the Exposome: A Practical View
by Anthony Macherone Sonia DagninoThis volume presents a comprehensive overview of the science and application of the Exposome through seventeen chapters from leaders in the field. At just over ten years since the term was coined by Christopher Wild in 2005, this is the first, field-defining volume to offer a holistic picture of the important and growing field of Exposomics. The term “Exposome” describes the sum of all exposures (not only chemical) that an individual can receive over a lifetime from both exogenous sources (environmental contaminants, food, lifestyle, drugs, air, etc.) and endogenous sources (metabolism, oxidative stress, lipid peroxidation, chemicals synthesized by the microbiome, etc.). The first section of this book contains chapters that discuss how the Exposome is defined and how the concept fits into the fields of public health and epidemiology. The second section provides an overview of techniques and methods to measure the human Exposome. The third section contains methods and applications for measuring the Exposome through external exposures. Section four provides an overview on statistical and computational techniques- including big data analysis - for characterizing the Exposome. Section five presents a global collection of case studies
Unravelling Cancer Signaling Pathways: A Multidisciplinary Approach
by Kakoli Bose Pradip ChaudhariUnravelling the intricate cell signalling networks and their significance in cancer poses major intellectual challenge. Keeping this in mind, the book aims at understanding the mechanism of action of different proteins and their complexes in the cancer signalling pathways. Hence, the proposed book that comprises 20 chapters provides a comprehensive introduction on cell signalling, its alterations in cancer, molecules that have been popular targets as well as the ones that are emerging as targets. In addition, it discusses different forms of therapy that are coming up for its treatment. Other than that, a major portion of the book is focused on studying different disciplines at the interface of biology and other areas of science that are being used to understand cancer biology in depth.
Unsafe Abortion and Women's Health: Change and Liberalization
by Colin FrancomeUnsafe abortion remains one of the most neglected sexual and reproductive health problems according to the World Health Organisation. In recent years it has been estimated that nearly 44 million abortions occur annually leading to around 47,000 deaths. At this rate a woman will die of an unsafe abortion every 11 minutes. Bringing together a wealth of information from around the world, this book argues that the time has come for a great change in legislation, advocating a shift towards the legalization of abortion to improve the health of women in poorer countries. With attention to circumstances in each of the major continental regions, an outline of the global situation is provided to reveal the major trends in the provision and procurement of abortion, as well their effects. Presenting data drawn from over a hundred countries covering over ninety per cent of the world’s population, based on published statistical information, changes to legal frameworks, court cases and the accounts of local commentators and activists, Unsafe Abortion and Women's Health will be of interest to scholars and students of the sociology of medicine, gender and reproductive health, social and health policy and feminist studies.
Unsafe Motherhood: Mayan Maternal Mortality and Subjectivity in Post-War Guatemala (Fertility, Reproduction and Sexuality: Social and Cultural Perspectives #21)
by Nicole S. BerrySince 1987, when the global community first recognized the high frequency of women in developing countries dying from pregnancy-related causes, little progress has been made to combat this problem. This study follows the global policies that have been implemented in Sololá, Guatemala in order to decrease high rates of maternal mortality among indigenous Mayan women. The author examines the diverse meanings and understandings of motherhood, pregnancy, birth and birth-related death among the biomedical personnel, village women, their families, and midwives. These incongruous perspectives, in conjunction with the implementation of such policies, threaten to disenfranchise clients from their own cultural understandings of self. The author investigates how these policies need to meld with the everyday lives of these women, and how the failure to do so will lead to a failure to decrease maternal deaths globally.
The Unseen Body: A Doctor's Journey Through the Hidden Wonders of Human Anatomy
by Jonathan ReismanIn his beautifully written prose, Dr Jonathan Reisman - physician, adventure traveller and naturalist - allows readers to navigate their insides like an explorer discovering a new world.Through his offbeat adventures in healthcare and travel, Reisman discovers new perspectives on the body: a trip to the Alaskan Arctic reveals that fat is not the enemy, but the hero; a stint in the Himalayas uncovers the boundary where the brain ends and the mind begins; and eating a sheep's head in Iceland offers a lesson in empathy. By relating his experiences in far-flung lands and among unique cultures back to the body's inner workings, he shows how our organs live inextricably intertwined lives in an internal ecosystem that reflects the natural world around us.Reisman's unique perspective on the natural world and his expert wielding of wit ultimately helps us make sense of our lives, our bodies and our world in a way readers have never before imagined.'An elegant, elegiac, and deeply enjoyable meander through human anatomy . . . the images Reisman conjures will linger long after you've devoured his delightful prose.' - Nicola Twilley, co-author of Until Proven Safe and co-host of Gastropod podcast
The Unseen Body: A Doctor's Journey Through the Hidden Wonders of Human Anatomy
by Jonathan Reisman"A fascinating, lyrical book... Reisman's experiences in other cultures bring a richness and depth to The Unseen Body. The way he thinks about the body and medicine—the rivers and tributaries, the flowing and unclogging, the top-down organization of the brain—is extraordinary!"—Mary RoachIn this fascinating journey through the human body and across the globe, Dr. Reisman weaves together stories about our insides with a unique perspective on life, culture, and the natural world.Jonathan Reisman, M.D.—a physician, adventure traveler and naturalist—brings readers on an odyssey navigating our insides like an explorer discovering a new world with The Unseen Body. With unique insight, Reisman shows us how understanding mountain watersheds helps to diagnose heart attacks, how the body is made mostly of mucus, not water, and how urine carries within it a tale of humanity’s origins.Through his offbeat adventures in healthcare and travel, Reisman discovers new perspectives on the body: a trip to the Alaskan Arctic reveals that fat is not the enemy, but the hero; a stint in the Himalayas uncovers the boundary where the brain ends and the mind begins; and eating a sheep’s head in Iceland offers a lesson in empathy. By relating rich experiences in far-flung lands and among unique cultures back to the body’s inner workings, he shows how our organs live inextricably intertwined lives—an internal ecosystem reflecting the natural world around us.Reisman offers a new and deeply moving perspective, and helps us make sense of our bodies and how they work in a way readers have never before imagined.
The Unseen Body: A Doctor's Journey Through the Hidden Wonders of Human Anatomy
by Jonathan ReismanIn his beautifully written prose, Dr Jonathan Reisman - physician, adventure traveller and naturalist - allows listeners to navigate their insides like an explorer discovering a new world.Through his offbeat adventures in healthcare and travel, Reisman discovers new perspectives on the body: a trip to the Alaskan Arctic reveals that fat is not the enemy, but the hero; a stint in the Himalayas uncovers the boundary where the brain ends and the mind begins; and eating a sheep's head in Iceland offers a lesson in empathy. By relating his experiences in far-flung lands and among unique cultures back to the body's inner workings, he shows how our organs live inextricably intertwined lives in an internal ecosystem that reflects the natural world around us.Reisman's unique perspective on the natural world and his expert wielding of wit ultimately helps us make sense of our lives, our bodies and our world in a way readers have never before imagined.'An elegant, elegiac, and deeply enjoyable meander through human anatomy . . . the images Reisman conjures will linger long after you've devoured his delightful prose.' - Nicola Twilley, co-author of Until Proven Safe and co-host of Gastropod podcast(P) 2021 Macmillan Audio
The Unseen Minority: A Social History of Blindness in the United States
by Frances A. KoestlerThe book ia a definitive history of the societal forces affecting blind people in the United States and the professions that evolved to provide services to people who are visually impaired.
Unser Körper - Ausdruck, Haltung, Körpersprache: Mit der TCM neu wahrnehmen
by Mike MandlWer sind wir in körperlicher Hinsicht? Was sagt unser Erscheinungsbild über uns? Und was hat das alles mit chinesischer Medizin zu tun? Um diese Fragen zu beantworten, müssen wir uns nur betrachten. Unser Körper spricht zu uns. Durch seine Formen, seine Strukturen, seine Ausprägung. Er erzählt uns spannende und lehrreiche Geschichten: Über unsere Herkunft und unseren Werdegang. Über unseren Status Quo und unsere Zukunft. Er berichtet von Möglichkeiten und Grenzen, von Stärken und Schwächen, von Vorlieben und Abneigungen. Er kann uns helfen, uns selber besser kennen zu lernen. Vorausgesetzt: Wir verstehen seine Sprache. Die Sprache unseres Körpers zu erlernen, ist das Ziel dieses Buches. Der Autor vergleicht dabei Menschen mit Bäumen, spricht von Fünf Elementen, widmet sich den drei Schätzen und ist der Meinung, dass Kondition und Konstitution auf einen Nenner kommen sollen. Das wirkt auf den ersten Blick chinesisch, im zweiten Blick ist es sogar, weil eine Grundlage dieses Buches die Traditionelle Chinesische Medizin ist. Das alles wird serviert mit Leichtigkeit und einer Prise Humor: Geschichten von Kopf bis Fuß.
Unsettled: How the Purdue Pharma Bankruptcy Failed the Victims of the American Overdose Crisis
by Ryan HamptonA shocking inside account of reckless capitalism and injustice in the Purdue Pharma bankruptcy case.In September 2019, Purdue Pharma—the maker of OxyContin and a company controlled by the infamous billionaire Sackler family—filed for bankruptcy to protect itself from 2,600 lawsuits for its role in fueling the U.S. overdose crisis. Author and activist Ryan Hampton served as co-chair of the official creditors committee that acted as a watchdog during the process, one of only four victims appointed among representatives of big insurance companies, hospitals, and pharmacies. He entered the case believing that exposing the Sacklers and mobilizing against Purdue would be enough to right the scales of justice. But he soon learned that behind closed doors, justice had plenty of other competition—and it came with a hefty price tag.Unsettled is the inside story of Purdue’s excruciating Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings, the company’s eventual restructuring, and the Sackler family’s evasion of any true accountability. It’s also the untold story of how a group of determined ordinary people tried to see justice done against the odds—and in the face of brutal opposition from powerful institutions and even government representatives. Although America was envisioned as an equitable place, where the vulnerable are protected from the greed of the powerful, the corporate-bankruptcy process betrays those values. In its heart of hearts, this system is built to shield the ultra-wealthy, exploit loopholes for political power, promote gross wealth inequality, and allow companies such as Purdue Pharma to run amok.The real story of the Purdue bankruptcy wasn’t that the billion-dollar corporation was a villain, a serial federal offender. No matter what the media said, Purdue didn’t do this alone. They were aided and abetted by the very systems and institutions that were supposed to protect Americans. Even on-your-side elected officials worked against Purdue’s victims—maintaining the status quo at all costs.Americans deserve to know exactly who is responsible for failing to protect people over profits—and what a human life is worth to corporations, billionaires, and lawmakers. Unsettled is what happened behind closed doors—the story of a sick, broken system that destroyed millions of lives and let the Sacklers off almost scot-free.
Unsettling Welfare: The Reconstruction of Social Policy (Social Policy: Welfare, Power and Diversity)
by Gordon Hughes Gail LewisUnsettling Welfare addresses the changing relationship between social welfare, its 'recipients' and the state. In particular, the book explores the direction and the impact of the reforms of the welfare state that took place during the 1980s and 1990s. By focusing on specific fields of social welfare and social control, including health, education, housing, income maintenance, social services and criminal justice, Unsettling Welfare identifies general trends and the ways in which these are manifested.
Unshrunk: A Story of Psychiatric Treatment Resistance
by Laura Delano&“A must read for anyone probing the dark side of mental health treatment.&” —Anna Lembke, MD, New York Times bestselling author of Dopamine Nation &“A really moving and heart-rending story. Unshrunk will help and empower so many people.&” —Johann Hari, New York Times bestselling author of Stolen FocusThe powerful memoir of one woman&’s experience with psychiatric diagnoses and medications, and her journey to discover herself outside the mental health industryAt age fourteen, Laura Delano saw her first psychiatrist, who immediately diagnosed her with bipolar disorder and started her on a mood stabilizer and an antidepressant. At school, Delano was elected the class president and earned straight-As and a national squash ranking; at home, she unleashed all the rage and despair she felt, lashing out at her family and locking herself in her bedroom, obsessing over death.Delano&’s initial diagnosis marked the beginning of a life-altering saga. For the next thirteen years, she sought help from the best psychiatrists and hospitals in the country, accumulating a long list of diagnoses and a prescription cascade of nineteen drugs. After some resistance, Delano accepted her diagnosis and embraced the pharmaceutical regimen that she&’d been told was necessary to manage her incurable, lifelong disease. But her symptoms only worsened. Eventually doctors declared her condition so severe as to be &“treatment resistant.&” A disturbing series of events left her demoralized, but sparked a last glimmer of possibility. . . . What if her life was falling apart not in spite of her treatment, but because of it? After years of faithful psychiatric patienthood, Delano realized there was one thing she hadn&’t tried—leaving behind the drugs and diagnoses. This decision would mean unlearning everything the experts had told her about herself and forging into the terrifying unknown of an unmedicated life.Weaving Delano&’s medical records and doctors&’ notes with an investigation of modern psychiatry and illuminating research on the drugs she was prescribed, Unshrunk questions the dominant, rarely critiqued role that the American mental health industry, and the pharmaceutical industry in particular, plays in shaping what it means to be human.
Unshrunk: How The Mental Health Industry Took Over My Life - And My Fight to Get it Back
by Laura DelanoOne of Lit Hub's Most Anticipated Books of 2025A really moving and heart-rending story. Unshrunk will help and empower so many people.JOHANN HARI, author of Stolen Focus and Lost ConnectionsUnshrunk is the story of a young woman who dared to be herself, and a potent reminder of why human suffering can never be reduced to a diagnostic manual. A must read for anyone probing the dark side of mental health treatment. ANNA LEMBKE, author of Dopamine Nation'A wonderful, incisive and deeply moving book... provides a rare glimpse behind the curtain of a profession in peril.'DR JAMES DAVIES, AUTHOR OF CRACKED AND SEDATES'Inspiring... A wake-up call about a deeply flawed system'PROFESSOR JOANNA MONCRIEFFIn this gripping, essential memoir, Laura Delano takes readers through the labyrinth of the American mental health system, where 'the best available care' left her sicker, more desperate, and more lost than ever before. This beautiful, rageful, joyful book is a beacon for all seeking a life beyond labels, beyond medication, beyond disorder.JESSICA NORDELL, AUTHOR OF THE END OF BIAS: A BEGINNING***I began to think about the forces at play, not just within me, but beyond me. What if my life hadn't fallen apart in the way that it had because of 'treatment-resistant mental illness', as I'd been led to believe, but because of the treatment itself?At age fourteen, Laura Delano's parents took her to her first psychiatrist. At school, she was the model student, but at home Laura felt an uncontrollable rage that she unleashed on family, friends and herself. She was promptly diagnosed with bipolar disorder and started on a course of mood stabilizers and antidepressants. It was to mark the beginning of a painful and relentless journey. For the next thirteen years, Laura sought help from the best psychiatrists and hospitals, accumulating an ever-expanding list of diagnoses and prescriptions for nineteen different drugs. She accepted her diagnoses and embraced the pharmaceutical regime she'd been told was necessary to manage her incurable, lifelong disease. But as her symptoms only got more severe and eventually she was deemed 'treatment resistant', Laura began to wonder if the drugs and diagnoses were the cure - or had they become the problem?Weaving together Laura's medical records and doctors' notes with illuminating research on the drugs she was prescribed, Unshrunk is the powerful memoir of one woman's battle against the commercial psychiatric industry and the role it plays in shaping what it means to be human.
Unshrunk: How The Mental Health Industry Took Over My Life - And My Fight to Get it Back
by Laura DelanoOne of Lit Hub's Most Anticipated Books of 2025A really moving and heart-rending story. Unshrunk will help and empower so many people.JOHANN HARI, author of Stolen Focus and Lost ConnectionsUnshrunk is the story of a young woman who dared to be herself, and a potent reminder of why human suffering can never be reduced to a diagnostic manual. A must read for anyone probing the dark side of mental health treatment. ANNA LEMBKE, author of Dopamine Nation'A wonderful, incisive and deeply moving book... provides a rare glimpse behind the curtain of a profession in peril.'DR JAMES DAVIES, AUTHOR OF CRACKED AND SEDATES'Inspiring... A wake-up call about a deeply flawed system'PROFESSOR JOANNA MONCRIEFFIn this gripping, essential memoir, Laura Delano takes readers through the labyrinth of the American mental health system, where 'the best available care' left her sicker, more desperate, and more lost than ever before. This beautiful, rageful, joyful book is a beacon for all seeking a life beyond labels, beyond medication, beyond disorder.JESSICA NORDELL, AUTHOR OF THE END OF BIAS: A BEGINNING***I began to think about the forces at play, not just within me, but beyond me. What if my life hadn't fallen apart in the way that it had because of 'treatment-resistant mental illness', as I'd been led to believe, but because of the treatment itself?At age fourteen, Laura Delano's parents took her to her first psychiatrist. At school, she was the model student, but at home Laura felt an uncontrollable rage that she unleashed on family, friends and herself. She was promptly diagnosed with bipolar disorder and started on a course of mood stabilizers and antidepressants. It was to mark the beginning of a painful and relentless journey. For the next thirteen years, Laura sought help from the best psychiatrists and hospitals, accumulating an ever-expanding list of diagnoses and prescriptions for nineteen different drugs. She accepted her diagnoses and embraced the pharmaceutical regime she'd been told was necessary to manage her incurable, lifelong disease. But as her symptoms only got more severe and eventually she was deemed 'treatment resistant', Laura began to wonder if the drugs and diagnoses were the cure - or had they become the problem?Weaving together Laura's medical records and doctors' notes with illuminating research on the drugs she was prescribed, Unshrunk is the powerful memoir of one woman's battle against the commercial psychiatric industry and the role it plays in shaping what it means to be human.