But What Comes After?

by Ruth Leon

Ruth Leon was married to Sheridan Morley - theatre critic, broadcaster and Britain's pre-eminent arts journalist. He'd suffered from bouts of depression all his life but suddenly, after a mild stroke, his usual treatments stopped working. He sat, crying, his chin pressed down into his chest, all day, every day. Ruth looked after him - sometimes gracefully and sympathetically, often angrily and tensely. Also an arts journalist, for two years she did her own freelance work as well as his. She no longer recognised her husband, but she could be him.One day, a consultant in Oxford said he thought they'd been treating the wrong kind of depression; that the stroke had damaged the emotional centre of Sheridan's brain. He knew of a procedure that might help, but it had never before been performed in the UK. It was an outlandish, fantastical idea - an implant would be put in Sheridan's brain that would allow doctors to adjust his mood with an electronic remote control. They would be tampering with the very core of what made Sheridan Sheridan. On behalf of her long-absent husband, Ruth agreed.Ruth Leon's account of this unique journey to the heart of what it is to be human is as honest and moving as it is fascinating and challenging.

336 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2011

Reviews

[Cara]

Such a sad story.

Have been through depression and it is the loneliest place in the world. There is nothing anyone can say at the time to change how you feel and sadly many friends and family feel like you are 'ignoring' them or 'not listening' to them which is just even more sad as they don't understand it's not the person it is the illness. Too much of 'just pull up your socks and get on with it' such the wrong attitude to have.

Please read this.

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh such a sad book. As someone who has suffered from depression this book showed me how really serious it can be. After a stroke, this well known, articulate man, went into a deep depression. He had suffered from bi-polar most of his life, buut this time, a four year depression cannot be lifted.

After a brain operation, he was well for about 8 months, and then declined again. His wife nursed him throughout.