No More Normal

Mental Health in an Age of Over-Diagnosis

Dr Alastair Santhouse

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Hardback

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English

Granta Books
10 April 2025

Medical diagnosis; Popular medicine & health; Coping with illness

At what point does a low mood tip over into depression? When does a distressing experience qualify as trauma? When does a cluster of symptoms indicate an underlying condition? As the conversation around mental health has moved from the consulting room to the public arena, so the concept of normal is shifting. Today, we are seeing an unprecedented rise in diagnosable conditions, in waiting lists, in diagnoses, and in medication.

Yet, are we really less psychologically healthy than previous generations? In this brave, engrossing and vitally important new book, consultant neuropsychiatrist Dr Alastair Santhouse argues that the consequences of the new climate of diagnosis are immense. Drawing on his decades of clinical experience, Dr Santhouse explores our current malaise and proposes a solution - that we pull back from this diagnostic expansion, focus on the effective treatment of a core group of severe mental health problems, and de-medicalise a vast range of other normal human experiences.

By: Dr Alastair Santhouse
Imprint: Granta Books
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 216mm, Width: 138mm,
ISBN: 9781803511146
ISBN 10: 1803511141
Pages: 272
Publication Date: 10 April 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

DR ALASTAIR SANTHOUSE is a consultant neuropsychiatrist at the Maudsley Hospital in London. Before retraining to become a psychiatrist, he practised hospital medicine - he is a fellow of both the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Psychiatrists. His first book was Head First: A Psychiatrist's Stories of Mind and Body.

Reviews for No More Normal: Mental Health in an Age of Over-Diagnosis

'I urge everyone who is seriously interested in the mind and its disorders to read this thoughtful, insightful and compassionate book. The medicalisation of ordinary distress and anxiety is a threat to our mental health services and those who need it most' - Dr Gwen Adshead, author of The Devil You Know 'A thoughtful, well-informed, and compassionate response to the recent boom in mental health diagnoses. Dr Santhouse is sounding an important alarm: What happens when labels like ""traumatized"" and ""neurodivergent"" are misunderstood or overapplied? What happens when the rich variations of life are flattened by medical reductionism? A book for doctors, patients, and casual readers alike' - Nathan Hill, author of Wellness