Rethinking Depression

How to Shed Mental Health Labels and Create Personal Meaning
by Eric Maisel | New World Library © 2012 · 256 pages

This is a great book. In Rethinking Depression, Eric Maisel presents an incredibly persuasive case for how medicalized we’ve made the normal human emotions of sadness, anxiety and other unfun feelings (and how dangerous that is) while giving us an existential handbook on how to deal with life’s challenges by creating an authentic life packed with meaning. In this Note, we check out the fact that unhappiness happens while learning how to create our “existential ideal” as we make meaning in our lives! (And, therefore, a *lot* more happiness.)


It is a grave mistake to make every unwanted aspect of life the symptom of a mental disorder.
Eric Maisel

The existential program I’ve described is my vision. It is my subjective response to what I see as the demands posed on individuals by the facts of existence. You may see life in a very different way and not share my vision. If, however, you experience the thing called “depression” and feel like exploring an existential approach to climbing out of that hole, give my program a try. The word depression is a corruption of language, and the more society uses it, the further it will push us all toward unhappiness. Pathologizing unhappiness creates unhappiness. Reject the very idea of depression and make meaning instead.”

~ Eric Maisel, Ph.D. from Rethinking Depression

This is a great book.

In Rethinking Depression, Eric Maisel presents an incredibly persuasive case for how medicalized we’ve made the normal human emotions of sadness, anxiety and other unfun feelings (and how dangerous that is) while giving us an existential handbook on how to deal with life’s challenges by creating an authentic life packed with meaning.

If you or someone you know suffers from what we typically refer to as “depression,” I think you’ll dig it—especially if a part of you has always wondered whether we all *really* need to be popping Prozac like their tic tacs.

This is another one of those books that’s *packed* with goodness. If it’s resonating with you, I think you’ll love it. (Get a copy here.)

Personal tangent: Since I wrote a Note on The Creativity Book (another one of Eric’s great books), I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Eric and working with him on a couple projects.

As one of the world’s leading creativity coaches, you’d kinda expect him to be on top of things but his level of creative production and follow-through and overall goodness have been deeply inspiring for me.

Each time I read one of his books I feel like I get a clue on how he rocks it and I’m excited to share a handful of my favorite Big Ideas from his newest book!

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About the author

Authors

Eric Maisel

America's foremost creativity coach.