This is Your Brain on Depression: Creating Your Path To Getting Better

by Faith G. Harper

People who have never been depressed have no idea what it's like. And people who have know all too well how tough depression can be to live with. Dr. Faith explains the brain science behind depression (complete with Zuul references) and talks you through the different options out there for getting better. Because yes there are things you can do to feel good again (including drugs but avoiding spiraling successions of drug cocktails). If you need solid expert advice from someone who can also make you laugh your ass off, this book's for you!

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Psychology, Audiobook, Mental Health, Science, Health

102 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 12, 2018

About the author

Faith G. Harper, PhD, LPC-S, ACS, ACN is a bad-ass, funny lady with a PhD. She’s a licensed professional counselor, board supervisor, certified sexologist, and applied clinical nutritionist with a private practice and consulting business in San Antonio, TX. She has been an adjunct professor and a TEDx presenter, and proudly identifies as a woman of color and uppity intersectional feminist. She is the author of the book Unf*ck Your Brain and many other popular zines and books on subjects such as anxiety, depression, and grief. She is available as a public speaker and for corporate and clinical trainings.

Reviews

[Allie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would have loved this (wonderfully warm and funny) if there wasn’t a big dose of snake oil at the center. She has a lot of caveats around whether or not you want to use them.. but it destroyed her credibility for me (which sucks because I did enjoy the book). Simply saying something is evidence-based doesn’t make it so.

Here’s an example..
We state that UCLA studies electrical activity in the body, and is a respected institution with government funding.

But we are asked to assume that..
1. Electrical activity in the body is the same as energy healing and is a focus of study at UCLA.
2. UCLA is publishing findings that reiki is effective.
3. One institution / paper is enough to support reiki as evidence-based

Conclusion: Reiki works y’all

That’s just breaking down one line tossed out there. How are we to know what’s legitimate when it comes to claims around sun-lamps and weighted blankets? Peer-support? Meditation? Self-care? It brings all of the presented depression tools into question. I don’t want to have to fact-check every tip here.

And personally, I’ve dropped stupid money on posture correctors, sun lamps, vitamins, weighted blankets... whatever would help me overcome my depression even a little. I wish I’d saved myself the cash, and I feel a bit taken advantage of. Having that money in the bank, or paying off debt, is a much more effective antidepressant in my experience.

[Kendra Rader · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author had a really awkward relationship with curse words and clearly seemed to think that adding a sprinkle here & a sprinkle there would give them more credibility or make them more relatable.

I am no stranger when using my “French” but it was just strained in its timing and made the read awkward and often times detracted from the main message that was trying to be conveyed .

Same thing for the use of the word “ya’ll”.

This was a strange read for a topic that deserves more then an attempt at Humor with ill timed and forced curse words and language choice.

[Virginia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I had these books when I was a teenager. The language makes it so much more relatable which means the really important information in the book is easier to take in.

[Brian Sachetta · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started reading Harper’s more popular book, “Un**** Your Brain,” a few weeks ago. I’m really enjoying it so far. When I noticed that she had several other short books on mental illness, I picked this one up as well.

It’s a quick read / listen, but that doesn’t take away from its power. It gets to the root of depression quickly and effectively and makes you feel like you’re not alone nor crazy. In this one, Harper’s trademark style is on full display — swears, jokes, and the like.

Personally, I enjoy her somewhat explicit style; I think it provides comedic relief and solidarity amidst some difficult and heavy subject matters.

This one, structurally, reminded me of “F*** Anxiety” by Robert Duff in the sense that it’s a very good introduction to a specific mental illness. Sure, it’s not the entire picture of said illness, but it’s still quite effective and eye-opening.

I’d recommend this one for sure.

-Brian Sachetta
Author of “Get Out of Your Head: A Toolkit for Living with and Overcoming Anxiety”

[Allison · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author was definitely trying too hard to be cool and up to date. I can appreciate cursing because sometimes you need different words. Everytime felt forced. The one thing I really liked was the mention and explanation of alternative medicine. Pills don't silver everything, lifestyle matters too.

[Aspasía Bissas · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you've read Unfuck Your Brain, you don't really need to read this (although if you have some form of depression and no other mental health concerns, then reading this instead of UYB is probably the better choice). Like UYB, she delves into pseudo-science at times, which leaves me disinclined to trust the rest of what she has to say. Yes, by all means, do whatever makes you feel better--however--some of what she suggests will at best have only a placebo effect, which might make you feel better for a little while, but won't help long term. If a little while is good enough, then go for it.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

“This Is Your Brain on Depression: Creating Your Path to Getting Better” by Faith G. Harper is a book that quite literally explains what your brain is like on depression and how to create a plan to get better. This book was entertaining and informative, although it was not overly helpful for me I can see some people getting some benefit out of it.

The book is not overly long and doesn’t beat you over the head with science mumbo jumbo. Instead it has a very casual writing style that makes understanding the content very easy. Now while I did find some tid bits to be beneficial, for the most part it was a lot of rehashing of things I have already heard. I do try to plan to implement some of the things that were discussed though. All in all if you are struggling with depression this may be a beneficial read for you. I don’t think everything in this book will be helpful, but something might be. For me it was just nice reading and learning about something I struggle with almost daily.

[Karl · Rating 4 out of 5]

No bullshit. Straight ahead. Provocative and searingly helpful. I suffer from this shit and I got a lot out of it. Dr Faith’s mini-books from Microcosm are the ultimate self help DIY guides. There’s about 12 of them. I got this via Kickstarter.

[sanne]

this book is alright. I liked the writing style and the way the author approached certain topics, however it didn't really do anything for me and I wasn't a fan of the pseudo-science thrown in there.

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars


This was a refreshing and validating take on depression, the causes, behaviors, and treatment options (both medicinal and holistic). It did not “hit” me as hard because I have not experienced true depression and therefore cannot speak on the representation of those who have. I hope that people who struggle with depression find this comforting and freeing, overall this was a solid read for me.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is a fine primer for understanding depression. It talks about specific diagnoses (major depressive, bipolar, dysthymia, etc.) and some of the treatment options available. I appreciated that the book includes some non-conventional treatments, as the other's approach is if it works, do it (within reason, I assume.) Great for people who are unfamiliar with depression or are newly diagnosed. If you want some more detailed, this might not be it. Fairly short read, I would recommend.

[Meggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good overview about mood disorders with a focus on depression! What I love about it is the combination of useful information and humour... I would recommend everyone give this a read as it gives you a good insight into the world of depression and hopefully some advice on how to support people who may have it!

[Justine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the spoons analogy and I’ll be writing out my own “crisis plan” for when I see the signs of an impending depression tunnel.

I usually don’tmind swearing, but this felt like she was doing it just to prove how relatable she is; it felt forced and awkward.

[Drake Hahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.00 out of 5.00

This was a pretty solid read. I think I missed out a little on it because I’m not nearly as depressed as I once was so most of these things I learned in therapy already and that a fair amount was already stated in the anxiety book I read prior.

Still some really good nuggets of info and I had a good time reading it, like her other works, but so far, my least favorite of the three I’ve read.

[Brock Mclaughlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

This just goes to show anyone can write a book. This read like a combination of buzzfeed listicles and Wikipedia articles with swear words and slang to seem more relatable I guess. Props if this works for you.

[Jonathan Clauss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fucking fantastic. Should be called “fuck depression for idiots”. Simple, informative, helpful, and plenty of expletives. This is a war against depression but you’re not alone and this book is full of weapons and tactics to fight back.

[counter-hegemonicon · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bad style and pseudoscientific. Next time just make a podcast

[Deanna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good information packed into a quick read/listen. However, for me, the highly overused F-bombs detracted from the main message of the book.

*Note* - Had I paid closer attention to the small print at the bottom of the audiobook, I would have noticed the titles of other books by the author.

[Gwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Sarah]

A quick course full of language on the lowdown of depression. Interesting.

[Elisabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to read this, you need to be fine with a lot of swear words. If that is not your cup of tea, then this is not for you.

This book is a great intro and properly dense if you really soak in all the info. It is a sort of abridged anthology, giving an overview of where to start on depression.

I appreciate how non-judgemental Harper is. She normalizes depression from the first page, and by the end of it I felt way more prepared to have a discussion about symptoms, treatments, and coping skills.

[Joao DeMacedo · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dangerous!
She uses real science to reel you in, then she switches into pseudoscience treatment propaganda. Everything from homeopathy, reiki, light therapy and pretty much all other unproven methods are expressed as real replacement options to medication and credential MDs’ consults. Please see a real doctor if you have any symptoms of depression or any of the other possible conditions cited at the early part of this book.
And if you are still contemplating on whether to read this book or not, I would skip it. It was a waste of five hours out of my life.

[Teo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short book providing a simple introduction to the topic of depression and other related mental conditions like bipolar disorder. Also gave a brief overview of complementary treatments with potential benefits (though evidence is pretty scarce for some) for a person suffering from depression. Some of these include naturopathy, weighted blankets, light therapy (red for pain, blue for depression), meditation (5-8-9, in out x10), talk therapy, acupuncture and acupressure, biofeedback neurofeedback emotional freedom technique aka EFT etc. Main takeaway: "people with depression are survivors fighting against brain chemistry that is entirely at odds with what makes life worth living."

Other note: The big great thing about having a diagnosis is the big sense of relief that something going on with you makes sense, it has a name, it exists as a real problem, it has treatment options. The big horrible thing is that we so often become defined by this label, it becomes who we are, instead of something we have e.g. depressed person, bipolar person. Cultural norms of illness. The language of diagnosis is the language we speak to access treatment. It's the language we need to speak so we can communicate about care and wellness and healing. But, you are not your diagnosis.

[Kayley Steele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Content - The content focus on depression, worry guilt and shame. The symptoms of depression and indicators that you are showing signs of depressive disorder. Brief summaries of causes of behaviours, and treatment options. Faith Harper in all her short self-help books explores alternatives to medications which is great, it's taking a new world approach to how we should manage mental health disorders. I like the mention of bi-polar disorder in relation to depression as I've seen so many people I support misdiagnosed and not receiving the correct support and treatment option available.

Audio Quality - Good, listened via audible.

Overall -  Was a good listen, simple to follow along with.

Recommendation - . Recommend to anyone wanting a basic understanding of depression , behavioral causes and treatments available including alternatives to medications.

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook. It was a quick 2 hour listen. The author has a potty mouth, but she fully warns you of this in the first sentence of the book. I didn't mind, it didn't feel "put on" to me. I appreciated her discussion of the need for a holistic approach to healing, that we tend to compartmentalize things too much in our western culture. In this way, it's important to explore many different types of activities/lifestyles to find what will work for us. It's this combination of activities that's important. Talk therapy, medication when necessary, diet, exercise, and the kicker, other mystery activities that bring everything full circle. These activities could be anything from yoga, massage, regular baths, reiki. I thought this was a good high level overview and I enjoyed it.

[Jimena · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, the way is written made it so easy for me to understand and to deal with what has a become a reality in the past few months of my life.

Warning! Maybe for some people it might nos be as enjoyable, yes it has bad words, and yes it deals with some topics that some "pure scientists" might not agree with. About the swearing, some people find it forced, I think this might be because they don't usually speak like that in their ordinary lifes, because for me, even English not being my first language, I found it very relatable, and to be honest that was one of the things that I enjoyed the most.

[Stephanie Thonesen Petersen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a book that should be read by any person that are or knows someone who is affected by depression/mental illness. Such a short, easy to understand, cut to the chase book. Does it provide any deeper understanding or huge academic knowledge on the topic? No. But that really isn't what it is promising either and based on what it is, I think it is a great read. I will definietely recommend this to people who need an introduction to understanding depression. However, the way the writer is trying to be "cool" by using lots of slang such as "fucking" is over the top and will probably be best received by a younger audience.

[Renee · Rating 5 out of 5]

The way Faith narrates her book is extremely relatable and I found myself laughing because I was like this is exactly how I feel and she breaks every mental illness down where it makes sense and where I personally didn't feel bad about having major depressive disorder.
I am also currently listening to her other book unfuck your brain which is also amazing this is my third listen on audible....
Do yourself a favor and pick it up it is amazing

[Carmen Beeton · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Depression is a hob goblin of mind fuckery"

If one more person tells me I need to exercise to make myself feel better I might scream - I have sat at the gym crying before because I don’t want to go in.
In all fairness she did say “exercise that you enjoy” unfortunately I do not enjoy much exercise forms.
This is something I am working on.
Overall this book was great, super informative packed with informative and coping mechanisms to help those that are struggling.

[Shyla Colt · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly informative overview of depression: what causes it, some of the levels, ways to help yourself through a down period etc. It helps you understand the biochemical roots of th mood disorder,along with some common medical jargon and treatments and plans for the funnel aka the path toward a depressive episode.