Featured on ITV's THIS MORNING and in SUNDAY TIMES MAGAZINE

'controversial and courageous' – DAILY MAIL

For years, we've been led to believe that depression is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain and antidepressants are the solution. But what if this widely accepted belief has been built on unreliable truths?

In Chemically Imbalanced, renowned psychiatrist Joanna Moncrieff takes readers on a thought-provoking journey through the history of the serotonin theory of depression, from its origins in the 1960s to its widespread acceptance in the 1990s. With clarity and compelling evidence, Moncrieff exposes how scientific understanding has been swayed by social and economic forces, leading to misconceptions that have shaped treatment decisions for millions.

Accessible yet profoundly insightful, Chemically Imbalanced is essential reading for anyone seeking to make more informed choices about their mental health and understand the forces that shape the way we perceive and treat depression today.



- Title

- Copyright

- Contents

- Foreword by Chris van Tulleken

- Preface

- Part 1 The Issues



- 1 How the Chemical Imbalance Theory Changed Our Lives

- 2 Justifying Antidepressants: The Purpose of the Chemical Imbalance Theory

- 3 So, What is Depression?

- 4 What are Antidepressants?



- Part 2 The History



- 5 The Origins of the Chemical Imbalance Theory and the Early History of Antidepressants

- 6 Serotonin Arrives on the Scene

- 7 The 'Age of Depression'



- Part 3 The Science



- 8 Reviewing the Evidence on the Serotonin Theory of Depression

- 9 What Antidepressant Research Really Shows

- 10 Spinning Straw into Gold: How We Came to Believe that Antidepressants are Effective

- 11 How Antidepressants Affect Feelings and Sex

- 12 Dependence and Withdrawal Effects of Antidepressants



- Part 4 Reactions



- 13 Moving the Goalposts

- 14 Battening Down the Hatches: Public Reactions

- 15 The Profession Strikes Back



- Part 5 The Future



- 16 Alternative Approaches: The Good, the Bad and the Worrying

- 17 Informed Consent



- Epilogue

- Appendix 1: Public Information Suggesting Depression is Linked to a 'Chemical Imbalance'

- Appendix 2: What to Do if You are Taking Antidepressants: Advice and Resources

- Glossary

- Acknowledgements

- Notes



'Joanna Moncrieff is one of the most important scientists in the world. Her research has revolutionised our understanding – everyone should read this book.'



'controversial and courageous.'



'the most comprehensive rebuttal to date.'



'Authoritative and well-researched, Chemically Imbalanced documents the overinflation of antidepressant efficacy, where the false scientific information repeated is altogether misleading. The scale of deception and fraud unearthed is staggering and incendiary.'



'A complicated story told with patience and passion on behalf of the patient.'



'This is a scholarly and utterly engaging examination of one of the most important health scandals of the last few decades. Privileging the use of anti-depressants over all other individual and structural solutions for the growing crisis of mental health has harmed millions of people - this book is essential reading from one of the most important voices in the psychiatry. It has my enthusiastic support.'



'This essential book debunks one of the greatest misperceptions besetting current medical practice: that what we call mental illness is reducible to biological causes, divorced from people's life experiences and traumas. Dr. Moncrieff explains both the scientific flaws and the deliberate manipulations underlying much of today's psychiatric ideology and treatment.'



'This is the most important health book written in recent decades. It exposes a medical myth that has misled millions of people into taking powerful psychotropic drugs unnecessarily. It tells the story of how science was abused in the service of money and power, and how we, the public, have been the victims. This is the chilling story of how, in the name of helping, a medical community has caused harm, and how we can put things right again.'



'Everyone 'knows' that depression is caused by low levels of serotonin in the brain. However, the scientific data show that this is false. Professor Joanna Moncrieff and her colleagues have reviewed these data and exposed the fact that the serotonin-depression connection is a myth. This book should be read by all psychiatrists and physicians with depressed patients, as well as by anyone considering taking an antidepressant medication.'