While you were out : an intimate family portrait of mental illness in an era of silence / Meg Kissinger.

By:

Kissinger, Meg [author.]

Material type: Text

TextPublisher: New York, NY : Celadon Books, 2023Edition: First edition.Description: xii, 303 pages : illustrations, photographs ; 25 cmISBN:

9781250793775

Other title:

Intimate family portrait of mental illness in an era of silence

Subject(s):

Genre/Form:

Biography.

LOC classification:

RC464.A1 K57 2023

Contents:

Part I. Loving what is mortal — The tiger pit — Get out of jail free — Secret hiding places — Dangerous tricks — It's all in her head — While you were out : grandma died — We all have to go sometime — A hard molt — Love and a hate crime — Arrivals and departures — The prodigal son returns — Collecting treasures for heaven — Part II. Against my bones — Swimming back to Devil's Island — Building character — Holmer in the gloamin' — Be wounded by the stories you tell — Part III. Letting go — Life sparks through stubble — Pillars of light.

Summary: From award-winning journalist Meg Kissinger, a searing memoir of a family besieged by mental illness, as well as an incisive exploration of the systems that failed them and a testament to the love that sustained them. Growing up in the 1960s in the suburbs of Chicago, Meg Kissinger’s family seemed to live a charmed life. With eight kids and two loving parents, the Kissingers radiated a warm, boisterous energy. Whether they were spending summer days on the shores of Lake Michigan, barreling down the ski slopes, or navigating the trials of their Catholic school, the Kissingers always knew how to live large and play hard. But behind closed doors, a harsher reality was unfolding—a heavily medicated mother hospitalized for anxiety and depression, a manic father prone to violence, and children in the throes of bipolar disorder and depression, two of whom would take their own lives. Through it all, the Kissingers faced the world with their signature dark humor and the unspoken family rule: never talk about it. While You Were Out begins as the personal story of one family’s struggles then opens outward, as Kissinger details how childhood tragedy catalyzed a journalism career focused on exposing our country’s flawed mental health care. Combining the intimacy of memoir with the rigor of investigative reporting, the book explores the consequences of shame, the havoc of botched public policy, and the hope offered by new treatment strategies. Powerful, candid and filled with surprising humor, this is the story of one family’s love and resilience in face of great loss. Provided by publisher.

List(s) this item appears in: PSYCHOLOGY

Holdings ( 1 )
Title notes ( 3 )

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Call number	Copy number	Status	Date due	Barcode
Book	TBS Barcelona	RC464.A1 KIS SOON AVAILABLE (Browse shelf(Opens below))	1	Available

Includes bibliographical references.

From award-winning journalist Meg Kissinger, a searing memoir of a family besieged by mental illness, as well as an incisive exploration of the systems that failed them and a testament to the love that sustained them.

Growing up in the 1960s in the suburbs of Chicago, Meg Kissinger’s family seemed to live a charmed life. With eight kids and two loving parents, the Kissingers radiated a warm, boisterous energy. Whether they were spending summer days on the shores of Lake Michigan, barreling down the ski slopes, or navigating the trials of their Catholic school, the Kissingers always knew how to live large and play hard.

But behind closed doors, a harsher reality was unfolding—a heavily medicated mother hospitalized for anxiety and depression, a manic father prone to violence, and children in the throes of bipolar disorder and depression, two of whom would take their own lives. Through it all, the Kissingers faced the world with their signature dark humor and the unspoken family rule: never talk about it.

While You Were Out begins as the personal story of one family’s struggles then opens outward, as Kissinger details how childhood tragedy catalyzed a journalism career focused on exposing our country’s flawed mental health care. Combining the intimacy of memoir with the rigor of investigative reporting, the book explores the consequences of shame, the havoc of botched public policy, and the hope offered by new treatment strategies.

Powerful, candid and filled with surprising humor, this is the story of one family’s love and resilience in face of great loss. Provided by publisher.