Review
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David Karp records voices of ordinary people with
depression; in so doing he tells us what it's like to take one of
the commonest types of drugs for one of the commonest disorders.
And what it's like is as complex as people and depression are in
America in our time. A revealing book! (Arthur Kleinman, author
of What Really Matters)
Laying bare his own lifelong struggle with depression and often
having to juggle a veritable cocktail of drugs, Karp says he has
often wondered whether his personality is his own or just some
kicked-up by-product of the meds. Even though the answer remains
elusive, at least for him, he seems to be in good company, and
his story combines with the alternately plaintive and upbeat
psychiatric drug experiences of 50 interviewees, all diagnosed
with various mental illnesses, to put a poignant face behind the
title question. (Donna Chavez Booklist 2006-04-15)
In his sociological examination of the growing pill-popping
population, Karp does not reveal himself to be for or against
antidepressants. His bias is in favor of self authenticity,
something frequently lost in medication. (Pam Lilley Cleveland
Plain Dealer 2006-04-19)
In a 21st-century spin on Cartesian dualism, many of the millions
of Americans taking psychotropic drugs wonder where their
"authentic" self ends and the "drugged" one begins. Or, as Boston
College sociology professor David A. Karp puts it, "Is it me or
my meds?" Karp doesn't answer with statistics from drug trials or
clinical and academic studies. Instead, he uses 50 in-depth
interviews with the "experts"--adults and teens who take drugs
for mental illness. The common and divergent strands of their
stories are pieced together in a study informed by current
sociological literature and Karp's longtime struggle with his own
drug regimen (his "partial victory" easing off his antianxiety
and antidepression meds opens the book). The question posed in
the title remains unanswered, though, perhaps because it's not an
either/or proposition. Rather, Karp argues persuasively that "it"
might just be us, our meds, and the society we live in. (Hannah
Lobel Utne 2006-09-01)
Karp sets out to weave the opinions he has collected from people
who use psychotropic medication into a fascinating, incisive, and
comprehensive essay. Indeed, the debate on psychiatric
medications extends far beyond side-effects and drug
effectiveness; incorporating questions of identity, social
acceptance, the dominance of the biomedical model of disease, and
the role of the drug industry in medicalising normal feelings for
profit. The more I read, the more I agreed with Karp; taking a
pill, is not simply taking a pill. Karp explores the conflicting
concerns facing those who are prescribed such . Is It Me
or My Meds? offers doctors an in into the difficult choices
their patients face, but its greatest value may lie in showing
those who take antidepressants that they are not alone.
Understanding patients' views on this issue is an important part
of deciding whether the U.S. public should be prescribed another
$12 billion dollars of antidepressants next year. (Lindsay Banham
The Lancet 2006-09-02)
Karp sets out to weave the opinions he has collected from people
who use psycho-tropic medication into a fascinating, incisive,
and comprehensive essay. Indeed, the debate on psychiatric
medications extends far beyond side-effects and drug
effectiveness; incorporating questions of identity, social
acceptance, the dominance of the biomedical model of disease, and
the role of the drug industry in medicalising normal feelings for
profit. (Lindsay Banham Lancet)
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About the Author
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David A. Karp is Professor of Sociology at Boston
College and the author of Speaking of Sadness: Depression,
Disconnection, and the Meanings of Illness and The Burden of
Sympathy: How Families Cope with Mental Illness.
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