Lost Connections – Johann Hari
Book – Lost Connections by Johann Hari
Background:
The insight this book has on depression is overwhelmingly accurate. In the beginning I was slightly annoyed at the author. He has no psych credentials, but he was basically saying that SSRI antidepressants don’t work.
As the book went on, I realised that everything he said was right. Antidepressants do have a time and a place, however if you’re not dealing with the core reason for your depression or trauma, they’ll only be a Band-Aid that also clouds your brain.
The books lessons and advice:
Johann explains 9 causes of depression, tells stories as to how he came across them, and backs it all up with research and lived experience. He covers similarities and differences between grief and depression, benefits of psychedelic drugs in clinical settings, the importance of compassionate acknowledgement, the effects of shame and humiliation.
I found sympathetic joy meditation so beneficial. This is an extremely valuable tool, and it can help your thoughts be less toxic – I have been doing it since reading the book. It is SO much easier to say ‘good on you, I’m happy for you’ than feeling horrible when you know someone isn’t coming from a genuine place.
Johann also mentioned social media and the unhappiness and toxicity caused by people competing and comparing lives. It is much healthier to be happy for other people’s achievements and feel joy for them than it is to feel jealousy and have negative thoughts or make negative/passive aggressive comments.
When this happens – try to feel compassion for the person being negative, but also show them boundaries.
Result: I incorrectly believed I loved isolation. I was alone, lonely, unhappy, bored, unfit, and I did toxic things to hide it. I rediscovered myself and connected with people walking a similar path to healing and found solutions.
I took up photography, started reading again, went to the beach, did jiujitsu and started studying again.
I reconnected – to people, nature, my body, and to my values. Johann doesn’t need university-based credentials, he backs up his claims with facts from psychologists, psychiatrists, scientists and lived experience.
