A Needed Dose of Reality in The Mind Reels

A few months ago, as a subscriber to Freddie deBoer‘s Substack, I was lucky enough to win a galley of his forthcoming novel The Mind Reels, which will be released on October 7th. For those who are unfamiliar with his work, Freddie has written bravely about his own mental health struggles and has also penned apt criticism of therapy culture as well as some of the contradictions posed by modern discourse on mental illness and disability . Specifically, in the effort to avoid stigmatization, he laments that we have gone to the opposite extreme and romanticized mental illness to the point that our stories about it are almost entirely divorced from its reality. I largely agree with this criticism and his novel is a daring, vivid portrayal of one teenager’s descent into the tragedies of mental illness, even when it is addressed with medication, therapy, and familial support. We are spared any of the modern fantasies about mental illness really being a kind of superpower or just a “quirk”, and are forced to contend with the costs that it can reap on the individual and the surrounding community. He wisely avoids any of the typical sophomoric attempts at a “solution” and instead focuses on building a rich, dynamic character that connects with the heart of the reader. deBoer’s novel will feel like a salve for those who are tired of seeing depictions of those with mental illness as angelic victims who just need love, understanding, and Vitamin D. The Mind Reels is not for the faint of heart but as someone who has worked in the mental health field for five years, it is a much needed addition to a discourse that has been dominated by delusional optimism. If we are going to adequately address mental illness, we must first drop our wish of what we want it to be and face the reality of what it is.