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The Happy Treatment: What if happiness was only a simple procedure?
A book that will change your definition of happiness.
In this dystopian, coming of age story, 16 year old Cindy Reeves lives in a world where mental illness has become a business and happiness is an advertisement. The heavily increased expenses of medications and psychiatric appointments leave people struggling to the point of even falling into debt. The world is struggling, both financially and mentally, and Cindy, like everyone else, is desperately searching for happiness in all of the chaos. Luckily, there's an The Happy Treatment. It's only a simple procedure, and afterwards, there will be no need for expensive medication or appointments anymore. In fact, it not only cures your mental disorder such as depression, but also any negative emotions you may feel ever again. You'll never feel sad again, never feel afraid, depressed, lonely, angry. You'll feel nothing but happiness. Cindy longs for this perfect treatment. She longs to have the emotional pain in her mind stop, but after noticing the strange events that have started happening in her life around this treatment, something starts to feel off. With her best friend, Eva Straus, Cindy is sent through a challenging journey of chaos, pain, love, and loss. Through her search for happiness, she finds herself more depressed than ever, and she can't help but wonder, is the Happy Treatment really the solution to finding happiness in this depressing, hopeless world?
In this dystopian, coming of age story, 16 year old Cindy Reeves lives in a world where mental illness has become a business and happiness is an advertisement. The heavily increased expenses of medications and psychiatric appointments leave people struggling to the point of even falling into debt. The world is struggling, both financially and mentally, and Cindy, like everyone else, is desperately searching for happiness in all of the chaos. Luckily, there's an The Happy Treatment. It's only a simple procedure, and afterwards, there will be no need for expensive medication or appointments anymore. In fact, it not only cures your mental disorder such as depression, but also any negative emotions you may feel ever again. You'll never feel sad again, never feel afraid, depressed, lonely, angry. You'll feel nothing but happiness. Cindy longs for this perfect treatment. She longs to have the emotional pain in her mind stop, but after noticing the strange events that have started happening in her life around this treatment, something starts to feel off. With her best friend, Eva Straus, Cindy is sent through a challenging journey of chaos, pain, love, and loss. Through her search for happiness, she finds herself more depressed than ever, and she can't help but wonder, is the Happy Treatment really the solution to finding happiness in this depressing, hopeless world?
- GenresScience Fiction
Hardcover
Published January 1, 2023
9 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 16, 2023
Sixteen-year-old Cindy lives in a society where mental health has become even more of an epidemic than it is now. However, it has also become a business, where the price for medication is forcing people into debt. A ‘solution’ is offered – people can have the procedure, meaning they will never feel depressed again, which Cindy longs for.
I was drawn to reading this because I was curious how the author would write a world where some people only experience happiness. It reminded me a bit of a Doctor Who Episode (Gridlock) where a women took an emotion drug-patch to make her forget something tragic. It is a really interesting concept and I really liked how character focussed this book is as it explored this. This is Cindy’s journey, through trust, vulnerability and betrayal. It is about finding the strength to continue and knowing when to admit you need help. It was gut-wrenchingly sad at times and a reflection of our society – such as the mindlessness of social media, like the juxtaposition of posts about horrific events mixed in with funny ones.
I recognised parts of my own mental health struggles in the character. When I was sixteen, I went through a phase of reading other books about teenagers with mental health problems and I know I would have so valued a book like this, especially because it talks so frankly about self-harm. It would definitely have helped me back then. Thankfully, attitudes have changed since then, for the better.
This book is a dark, unfiltered look at depression. Definitely check the triggers warnings though because Annika Galloway does not shy away from the brutal reality of mental health disorders.
I received this book as part of the book tour in exchange for an honest review.
4 / 5
I was drawn to reading this because I was curious how the author would write a world where some people only experience happiness. It reminded me a bit of a Doctor Who Episode (Gridlock) where a women took an emotion drug-patch to make her forget something tragic. It is a really interesting concept and I really liked how character focussed this book is as it explored this. This is Cindy’s journey, through trust, vulnerability and betrayal. It is about finding the strength to continue and knowing when to admit you need help. It was gut-wrenchingly sad at times and a reflection of our society – such as the mindlessness of social media, like the juxtaposition of posts about horrific events mixed in with funny ones.
I recognised parts of my own mental health struggles in the character. When I was sixteen, I went through a phase of reading other books about teenagers with mental health problems and I know I would have so valued a book like this, especially because it talks so frankly about self-harm. It would definitely have helped me back then. Thankfully, attitudes have changed since then, for the better.
This book is a dark, unfiltered look at depression. Definitely check the triggers warnings though because Annika Galloway does not shy away from the brutal reality of mental health disorders.
I received this book as part of the book tour in exchange for an honest review.
4 / 5
January 18, 2023
Thank you so much to the author and Hazels Booktours for sharing a copy of this book with me !!!
“It was easier just to not pay attention, to not bear the pain of acknowledging brokenness.”
“This feels torturous, and I want to escape, but I can’t escape my own mind, unfortunately. “
“Sometimes all people need is to be heard, Cindy, and I didn’t hear your father.”
An heartbreaking story about what it means to be constantly fighting against one’s own mind!!!
Different characters with different fights to overcome … I found it deeply connecting!!
I felt foreign even the thought of a “happy treatment” to make all the darkness go away but … I really liked how the author went through it.
I think this book spoke perfectly to everyone struggling with their mental health or feel like they are not heard. You are heard. Your feelings are valid and your emotions and thoughts worth listening to. I think this is the most important message this book wants to send out.
This story has the ability to speak to a deep part of your heart, in a way you don’t initially think it could be effected by.
I felt my heart breaking repeatedly but also realising something deeper about human mind every chapter.
I’m so grateful for the experience I had while reading this book and I honestly, from the bottom of my heart, believe that more books like this one should be written and read by people.
“No one’s naturally happy all the time so why should they expect you to be? “
“But Cindy, you can only be happy if you first recognize your pain, not run away from it and expect it to not chase after you constantly. This isn’t a cure. It’s an exhausting race between you and your pain that you’ll never win.”
“Emotions are a wonderful follower, but a dreadful leader.”
“It was easier just to not pay attention, to not bear the pain of acknowledging brokenness.”
“This feels torturous, and I want to escape, but I can’t escape my own mind, unfortunately. “
“Sometimes all people need is to be heard, Cindy, and I didn’t hear your father.”
An heartbreaking story about what it means to be constantly fighting against one’s own mind!!!
Different characters with different fights to overcome … I found it deeply connecting!!
I felt foreign even the thought of a “happy treatment” to make all the darkness go away but … I really liked how the author went through it.
I think this book spoke perfectly to everyone struggling with their mental health or feel like they are not heard. You are heard. Your feelings are valid and your emotions and thoughts worth listening to. I think this is the most important message this book wants to send out.
This story has the ability to speak to a deep part of your heart, in a way you don’t initially think it could be effected by.
I felt my heart breaking repeatedly but also realising something deeper about human mind every chapter.
I’m so grateful for the experience I had while reading this book and I honestly, from the bottom of my heart, believe that more books like this one should be written and read by people.
“No one’s naturally happy all the time so why should they expect you to be? “
“But Cindy, you can only be happy if you first recognize your pain, not run away from it and expect it to not chase after you constantly. This isn’t a cure. It’s an exhausting race between you and your pain that you’ll never win.”
“Emotions are a wonderful follower, but a dreadful leader.”
March 13, 2023
This is a thought provoking book that really makes you think. There are some tough themes of depression, suicide and self harm, but it is done in a meaningful way.
The book takes place in a time where everyone is depressed. Cutting is normal. Everyone who can afford it is on medication, but costs are high. There is a treatment, called The Happy Treatment that can "cure" you. However, there are downsides to the treatment.
The book takes place in a time where everyone is depressed. Cutting is normal. Everyone who can afford it is on medication, but costs are high. There is a treatment, called The Happy Treatment that can "cure" you. However, there are downsides to the treatment.
March 17, 2023
This book had some very eye opening moments! It really makes you do some deep thinking. It reminded you of always making sure to check up on the well being of your loved ones. It reminds you that the world is filled with pain and sadness but we have to learn to live our lives to the fullest and stay strong through that sadness.
Overall, this book was a very different read for me but in a good way. It did have some dark topics such as self harm and suicide. I highly suggest checking out this book!
Overall, this book was a very different read for me but in a good way. It did have some dark topics such as self harm and suicide. I highly suggest checking out this book!
May 8, 2023
I have to apologize to @annikagallowaybooks for taking so long to post this review. She was thoughtful & generous in reviewing & amplifying ReInception. But I'm actually glad that it did. Here is why. Sometimes you read a book that you don't get right away, but it sticks with you -- you keep thinking about it. The Happy Treatment was like that for me. If I'd reviewed it when I read it over a month ago, the review would have been different & quite off the mark. The Happy Treatment felt a little superficial...I wasn't sure what Annika was trying to tell me. But I kept thinking about it. It stuck with me. Slowly, I started to get it. It was the world that was superficial, not the book. The book has so much more to say. Like anyone else, I have had my ups and downs in life. I have been depressed. There are people close to me who suffer from mental illness. I am fortunate not to. I think that's why this didn't compute at first. This is a future world where depression has been normalized. Things like cutting are normalized. Medicating is ubiquitous, but unaffordable, and the black market for anti-depressives is booming--there is robust trade amongst teenagers. And then there is the Happy Treatment. You can just make it all go away. But at what price? No one is doing the hard work. No one is trying to get help. No one is talking any more. Everyone is trying to solve the problem with a pill, a blade, or a treatment, all to dull the pain. It's hard to imagine a world where this is possible until you think about the world we live in now. How much we try to blunt our pain by immersing ourselves in the false happiness of social media, for example. How much more stressed and depressed the younger generation is. We are not far away from this possibility. Annika reached out to me in the first place because of the parallels between our future worlds. It is no coincidence that speculative future sci-fi writers often predict parallel possibilities. Thank you for sharing your book with me @annikagallowaybooks I'm glad I gave it the time it deserved! #scifi #bookstagram #SFF #bookrecommendations #womenofsciencefiction #ampublishing #writersofinstagram #ReInception #specfiction
February 15, 2023
It is known that happiness comes in waves, yet we always rant about why we can't always be happy. It is a rollercoaster sort of thing, and if you rationally think about it, you would realize the answer is simple, for it is not called living when you're feeling just one emotion your whole life — that is what the happy treatment does to you, and if you think it's heaven, you're totally mistaken.
In a community of depressed folks, the happy treatment has become the ultimate savior, and I shall say I sympathized even more with those who had sought that treatment, hence turned into mindless zombies, detached from life and depicted as "happy", when in fact, they're more miserable than anything else. For you're just as lost when forgetting your past as you are when dwelling in it.
My heart ached for Cindy Reeves, who had seen her best friend, Eva, being lost to her, turned into a stranger she doesn't know. I have seen her struggle and tears, her desperation and fear. But she's lucky enough to have the caring mother she has, without whom she might have been forever lost like her best friend. Zophie was there too, holding onto Cindy as they both tried to keep themselves stable after Eva's procedure.
Coming this far, Cindy has learnt a lesson that is ours to recognize. The world is an awful place, only because we let it be. Humanity is being lost, and I mean that absolutely no one is being human enough to make this world worth living in. We must care more, love more, and open up more. We must genuinely learn how to live, how to accept that grief is an inevitable part of life that makes the essence of life along with all the other emotions we feel. This, I think, is worth a million happy treatments — at least, the happiness would be sincere.
The world is filled with people dreaming of suicide everyday; this book is a message for you, and I bet you, alone, will learn how to be happy after that. ♡
In a community of depressed folks, the happy treatment has become the ultimate savior, and I shall say I sympathized even more with those who had sought that treatment, hence turned into mindless zombies, detached from life and depicted as "happy", when in fact, they're more miserable than anything else. For you're just as lost when forgetting your past as you are when dwelling in it.
My heart ached for Cindy Reeves, who had seen her best friend, Eva, being lost to her, turned into a stranger she doesn't know. I have seen her struggle and tears, her desperation and fear. But she's lucky enough to have the caring mother she has, without whom she might have been forever lost like her best friend. Zophie was there too, holding onto Cindy as they both tried to keep themselves stable after Eva's procedure.
Coming this far, Cindy has learnt a lesson that is ours to recognize. The world is an awful place, only because we let it be. Humanity is being lost, and I mean that absolutely no one is being human enough to make this world worth living in. We must care more, love more, and open up more. We must genuinely learn how to live, how to accept that grief is an inevitable part of life that makes the essence of life along with all the other emotions we feel. This, I think, is worth a million happy treatments — at least, the happiness would be sincere.
The world is filled with people dreaming of suicide everyday; this book is a message for you, and I bet you, alone, will learn how to be happy after that. ♡
March 13, 2023
TW: Suicide, attempted suicide, mentions of shootings, cutting, blood
If a simple procedure could make you happy forever, would you do it?
This is the question teenagers and friends, Cindy and Eva are faced with. With antidepressants too expensive and getting into the doctor taking too long, it's an attractive solution to many.
But are the happy people really happy?
----
This is a dark book, but not in the sense that you may be used to. It covers a very difficult topic that needs to be addressed.
It's a quick read but a difficult one due to the nature of the topic.
This is different from what I expected. We pretty much just follow Cindy through some difficult mental health episodes as well as her struggle to help her friend. I personally thought it would be more about the world with the happy treatment and the lack of emotions, not so much one persons struggles.
If a simple procedure could make you happy forever, would you do it?
This is the question teenagers and friends, Cindy and Eva are faced with. With antidepressants too expensive and getting into the doctor taking too long, it's an attractive solution to many.
But are the happy people really happy?
----
This is a dark book, but not in the sense that you may be used to. It covers a very difficult topic that needs to be addressed.
It's a quick read but a difficult one due to the nature of the topic.
This is different from what I expected. We pretty much just follow Cindy through some difficult mental health episodes as well as her struggle to help her friend. I personally thought it would be more about the world with the happy treatment and the lack of emotions, not so much one persons struggles.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews