One Person's Journey from Medical Model Advocate to Skeptic: An Interview with Rose Cartwright

11/06/24 • 39 min

Mad in America: Rethinking Mental Health

Rose Cartwright is a screenwriter and the author of Pure, a hugely successful memoir which was then turned into a series for Channel Four. She is also a writer and producer on Netflix’s 3 Body Problem. Pure portrayed Rose’s autobiographical account of finding that she had OCD, a “mental illness”, and the breakthrough that this medical framework provided her. This was short-lived. In her new book The Maps We Carry, she writes about the dawning realization that the “illness” story she had believed in and publicly advocated for, was wretchedly incomplete and often dangerous.

In this interview, Cartwright charts her journey of painful and lonely disillusionment with the “mental illness” framework. She talks about understanding the place of her own childhood trauma and also the limitations of simplistic trauma narratives. She speaks about the place of psychedelics and meditation in helping her uncover her disconnection, eventually to realize the importance of trusting relationships and communities. In this brutally honest book and interview, Cartwright reflects on the importance of holding all our understandings around mental health and suffering, lightly.

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To find the Mad in America podcast on your preferred podcast player, click here: https://pod.link/1212789850

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To find the Mad in America podcast on your preferred podcast player, click here: https://pod.link/1212789850

Previous Episode

We Should Listen to Our Emotional Pain: An interview with Paul Andrews

Dr. Paul Andrews is an Associate Professor of Evolutionary Psychology in the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience and Behaviour at McMaster University. His research focuses on understanding the evolution of depression, which he argues may be an evolved emotional response for understanding and solving complex problems. Dr. Andrews is also concerned with the evolution of the serotonin system and the effects of antidepressants on mental and physical health. His research has shown an increased risk of cardiovascular events, as well as death among those who use antidepressants.

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To find the Mad in America podcast on your preferred podcast player, click here: https://pod.link/1212789850

Next Episode

The Anatomy of Anxiety: An Interview With Ellen Vora

Ellen Vora is a board-certified psychiatrist, acupuncturist, and yoga teacher. She's the author of The Anatomy of Anxiety and takes a functional medicine approach to mental health. She considers the whole person and addresses imbalance at the root. Dr. Vora received her BA from Yale University and her MD from Columbia University.

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To find the Mad in America podcast on your preferred podcast player, click here: https://pod.link/1212789850