The Myth of Normal

Gabor Mate takes us on an epic journey of discovery about how our emotional well-being, and our social connectivity (in short: how we live), is intimately intertwined with health, disease and addictions ... This riveting and beautifully written tale has profound implications for all of our lives, including the practice of medicine and mental health * Bessel A. van der Kolk, author of #1 New York Times Bestseller The Body Keeps the Score * The Myth of Normal is a book literally everyone will be enriched by - a wise, profound and healing work that is the culmination of Dr Mate's many years of deep and painfully accumulated wisdom * Johann Hari, New York Times bestselling author of Stolen Focus * Gabor and Daniel Mate have delivered a book in which readers can seek refuge and solace during moments of profound personal and social crisis ... an essential compass during disorienting times. * Esther Perel, psychotherapist, author and host of of Where Should We Begin * Gabor Mate's connections - between the intensely personal and the global, the spiritual and the medical, the psychological and the political - are bold, wise and deeply moral. He is a healer to be cherished * Naomi Klein, author of No Logo and The Shock Doctrine * Wise, sophisticated, rigorous and creative: an intellectual and compassionate investigation of who we are and who we may become. Essential reading for anyone with a past and a future * Tara Westover, New York Times bestselling author of Educated * In this brilliant, compelling and groundbreaking book, Gabor Mate unveils the societal trance that has blinded us to the death-grip of pervasive trauma in our world ... Drawing on his decades of pioneering clinical work, fascinating contemporary science and contemplative wisdom, Mate offers us a way to bring clear seeing and a greatness of heart to the crisis of our times * Tara Brach, author of Radical Acceptance and Radical Compassion * The Myth of Normal is an astonishing achievement, epic in scope and yet profoundly down to earth and practical. I believe it will open the gates to a new time where we come to understand that our emotions, culture, bodies and spirits are not separate and wellness can only come about if we treat the whole being. I will read this book again and again * V (formerly Eve Ensler), author of The Vagina Monologues and The Apology * The Myth of Normal presents a unique perspective in viewing what we see as 'normal' and opens up a way to wake up to what is real and authentic in our lives ... a compelling book that will challenge your views and help lift the veil of illusion to what is truly happening in your mind and in your body * Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness and Real Happiness * This gripping book builds upon two key truths for our time, that everything is connected, including psychic wounds and physical illnesses, and that these are not anomalies but ordinary, even epidemic, in the society we've built. The Myth of Normal is a powerful call for change in how we live with, love, understand, treat, and think about each other * Rebecca Solnit, author of Men Explaining Everything To Me * At a time so many of us are struggling physically and psychically, Gabor Mate's The Myth of Normal is a godsend, providing wisdom and realistic hope. Mate is a revolutionary thinker and gifted writer whose work has always inspired me. The Myth of Normal is no exception. It's no exaggeration to say that this groundbreaking book can help us heal as individuals, families and a society * David Sheff, Author of NYT #1 bestseller, Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction *