Much progress has been made in recent years to promote awareness and openness around mental illness. But academic psychologist Dr Lucy Foulkes argues that a wider understanding of what actually constitutes mental illness is still lacking. As a result, psychiatric terminology is widely overused and misapplied, and the distinction between clinical conditions that require medical treatment – such as depression and anxiety disorders – as opposed to the normal challenges of human experience – such as sadness, stress and anxiety – are being lost. Confusion arises because such distinctions are often hard to make but understanding and preserving them is essential if we are properly to care for those who are ill, equip ourselves to cope with life’s unavoidable mental challenges and provide the right kind of support that each demands.

Drawing on her expert understanding of the scientific literature as well as personal experience, Losing Our Minds will present a comprehensive and sympathetic overview of the state of our current knowledge about the causes and nature of the most prevalent mental illnesses, how and when they develop, and the effectiveness of current treatments. It will also make clear what remains unknown, setting the record straight about this often controversial, misunderstood and politicised subject.