My Shit Therapist

My Shit Therapist: And Other Mental Health Stories | Michelle Thomas

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I thought I might like this, and really loved it. Michelle (it's a first-name-terms kinda book) speaks frankly about her experience of mental health issues, mainly depression and anxiety & the self-loathing that came with it. However, the book isn't grim, despite not flinching from the reality of living with enduring poor mental health, and Michelle injects a hearty dose of humour and lightheartedness without ever being flippant or dismissive. ⬇️

Bookwomble As well as her own story, Michelle shared those of followers of her blog and Instagram account (as well as from Blackpool seafront!) to give a broader perspective of the diversity of experience.

The only small criticism I have is her repetition of the pharmaceutical advertiser's lie that poor mental health is the result of "imbalanced brain chemistry": the meds do work for many people, but not because they're "rebalancing" something that's ⬇️ 1y

Bookwomble ... gone wrong.

Otherwise, I loved hearing about Michelle's ongoing development of self-compassion and empathy, and laughed as much as I sagely nodded in agreement. 1y

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Bookwomble

My Shit Therapist: And Other Mental Health Stories | Michelle Thomas

"Years before I saw a therapist for my mental illness, I was prescribed American literature."
Specifically, The Catcher in the Rye, by a GP who felt the teenage Michelle would feel less weird & isolated if she peeped inside Holden Caulfield's head.
"There are some who might think it unwise to prescribe American literature for teenage depression. And in fairness, they're not wrong. But in my case, neither was Dr. B."

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl

The_Book_Ninja Seems weird but at the same time appropriate that literature can be “prescribed” in relation to mental illness. Some of the best authors tell us their writings are “cathartic”. When you think about it, we self prescribe it to “escape”. Wether that‘s a good or a bad thing is another issue: Escapism good? Escapism bad? 1y

Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja In the context of the book, teenage Michelle wasn't significantly suffering from poor mental health, so her GP's bibliotherapy prescription was ok, but her later experience of being offered trite advice to "pull yourself together" was not only ineffective, but injurious. She goes on to say that reading (and writing) have been reliably beneficial for her, expect when she was so deeply depressed that she couldn't access them. 1y

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Bookwomble

My Shit Therapist: And Other Mental Health Stories | Michelle Thomas

A deeply unnecessary library visit, but they had some good stuff 😁📚
I'm 🎵Sitting in an English garden, waiting for the sun🎵, which has actually arrived with a vengeance 🌞 (I know 26⁰C is chilly for some Littens, but I'm melting! 🥵) a Beatles playlist, gourmet food and drink (😒🍜🥤), and this stack to browse through.
I've heard some therapist horror stories from my own clients, so hoping I'm not making an appearance in the tagged! 😬

julesG It's September for crying out loud! Why does it have to be above 24°C again? It's warm here in my part of Germany, too. 1y

Bookwomble @julesG The forecast yesterday was that today could be the hottest day of the year in Britain, getting over 32.2⁰C in parts. If so, it will only be the third recorded time September has had the hottest day. This part of the apocalypse is ok in my area, quite nice, actually, but I'm worried about the approaching End Times. 🔥🌡️🔥 Still, you've gotta keep smilin' 🫠 1y

julesG Let's hope the Angel and the Demon manage to stear the Antichrist in the right direction. (yes, I just re-watched Good Omens) 1y

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Dilara We (Western France) hit 36° yesterday, and we're expecting top temperatures between 33° & 35° every day until Monday. That's 12° over the average. And it hardly drops under 20° at night 😕. Hottest September on record. @julesG The Good Omen mention made me smile 😁 1y

julesG @Dilara Friends are camping near Paris and said it was hot. I cannot imagine temperatures over 30°C in September, but I imagine we will have to get used to it. 😬 1y

Bookwomble @julesG I've not read/watched Good Omens, but I'll ask Mrs B to explain as she has 😊 1y

julesG I have no words. You should read it. It's a classic. It should be part of the school syllabus. 😁 1y

dabbe Going to be 41 degrees C here today and as high as 43 by the weekend. 🔥
Some autumn so far. #acrossthepond 1y

Bookwomble @julesG I have mental blocks for both Gaiman and Pratchett - on paper I should love them both, but I've never felt the urge to read either of them (apart from a short story about David Bowie that NG wrote). I've no reasonable explanation 🤷🏻‍♂️😏 1y

Bookwomble @dabbe How do you survive? 🥵 1y

Bookwomble A bit late to add this, as most people I interact with have already ❤️ this post, but the horror stories I was told weren't about me - did that need clarification? 🤷🏻‍♂️ Just in case! 😏 1y

dabbe @Bookwomble I'm lucky enough to have an air conditioner. I stay inside, have the ac on, plus a fan blowing directly on me. I pretty much don't go out of doors until mid-October unless I absolutely have to. 😃 1y

Bookwomble Ah, a @dabbe biome! 🥶😄 1y

The_Book_Ninja My favourite Beatles song is the last one they ever recorded together. I‘ll let you google if you don‘t know already. I think that would have been the next, exciting phase of their sound. Also I‘m behind Litsy reviews as I‘m in San Diego which isn‘t as hot as UK I‘m lead to believe🥵 1y

Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja Well, I did have to search for it! I knew which album it would be on, but not the specific track - good pub quiz info 😊 I hope you're enjoying San Diego - they have bookshops, right? And probably air conditioned 🌬️😎 1y

The_Book_Ninja @Bookwomble Well my better half is keen on visiting a thrift store so I‘m about to go down town in the hope that there‘s something a little more sexy than a Barns and Noble😉 1y

Bookwomble @The_Book_Ninja Happy book hunting! 😊 1y

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