Sociopath: A Memoir

by Patric Gagne

An engrossing, “completely fascinating” (Cosmopolitan) memoir revealing the author’s struggle to come to terms with her own sociopathy and shed light on the often maligned and misunderstood mental disorder.

Patric Gagne realized she made others uncomfortable before she started kindergarten. Something about her caused people to react in a way she didn’t understand. She suspected it was because she didn’t feel things the way other people did. Emotions like fear, guilt, and empathy eluded her. For the most part, she felt nothing. And she didn’t like the way that “nothing” felt.

In college, Patric finally confirmed what she’d long suspected. She was a sociopath. But even though it was the very first personality disorder identified—well over 200 years ago—sociopathy had been neglected by mental health professionals for decades. She was told there was no treatment, no hope for a normal life. But when Patric reconnects with an old flame, she gets a glimpse of a future beyond her diagnosis. If she’s capable of love, it must mean that she isn’t a like the madmen and evil villains in pop culture. With the help of her sweetheart (and some curious characters she meets along the way) she embarks on a mission to prove that the millions of Americans who share her diagnosis aren’t all monsters either.

This is the inspiring story of Patric’s journey to unlock the true nature of sociopathy and build a life of love and hope against all odds.

Genres: Audiobook

Audible Audio

First published January 1, 2024

About the author

Patric Gagne is a writer, former therapist, and advocate for people suffering from sociopathic, psychopathic, and anti-social personality disorders. She is the author of the New York Times bestseller, Sociopath: A Memoir, which shares her struggle to understand her own sociopathy and shed light on this often-maligned and misunderstood mental disorder.

Patric earned her BA at UCLA and then enrolled at the Westwood, CA, campus of the California Graduate Institute (CGI), a graduate school specializing in psychology, marital and family therapy, and psychoanalysis. She earned a Master of Arts degree in Psychology from CGI and a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology.

Her dissertation — “Followers of Fagin: Secondary Sociopathy and Its Relationship to Anxiety” — explored the relationship between sociopathy and anxiety and became the foundation for her memoir.

Today, she is working to expand the definition of psychopathy to include its status as a spectrum disorder and is a member of the Society for the Scientific Study of Psychopathy.

Patric lives with her husband, David, and their two children.

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is just as the title suggests: a memoir of a woman diagnosed with sociopathy. I learned a great deal from this book. Patric Gagne has done a wonderful service with her memoir. It offers insight to those of us who have never really understood the term beyond what is portrayed in the media. It also gives hope to those who may be diagnosed as sociopaths. Gagne's book has also sparked me to be more open and understanding to those who react differently to what I might see as emotional events.

[Gigi Pappas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although extremely insightful, interesting, and raw, I found myself struggling to finish it. It almost became a DNF. I think I expected this book to be a little more informational, and I just struggle to understand her. She claims this book is made for sociopaths and I find myself trying very hard to break out of society’s stereotypes and stigmas regarding sociopaths (her whole point of the book) yet she admits to multiple violent acts and disturbing thoughts? Very contradictory and confusing.

[Laura Lauzen-Collins]

Audiobook. Narrator: Patric Gagne Ph.D..

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gagne is the Temple Grandin of sociopaths.