I've been in a reading slump as of late, so this took me a while to get through, but I'm glad I stuck with it.

Glancing at the other reviews, it isn't surprising to me that the book is controversial. (I doubt anything in the reviews would surprise the author.) And while I don't think the book should be taken at face value, I think the ideas explored in Lost Connections are vital when talking about depression and anxiety.

The idea that depression isn't necessarily some kind of chemical screw up, but instead a sign your body is giving you that you are missing something essential from your life, makes sense. And Hari makes a good case that the science is starting to agree, as well. You may or may not agree with his conclusions, but the arguments are compelling.

We're lonely and self-medicated in unhealthy ways, we feel insecure about the future, we have unresolved trauma, and we don't feel valued or respected, and we live too much in our own heads. It stands to reason that working on this stuff will help a lot of people.