Rewiring Stigma: Understanding Mental Illness Through the Brain
About this book
Mental illness isn’t weakness. It’s biology, and understanding it changes everything.In Rewiring Stigma, David Rock blends science, storytelling, and lived experience to reframe how we think about mental health. With decades of firsthand insight as a psychiatric nurse, foster parent, and person living with mental illness, Rock delivers a compassionate, evidence-based exploration of what really happens in the brain and how stigma distorts both care and identity.This groundbreaking guide How neurotransmitters and brain structures shape mental healthWhat psychiatric medications actually do and why they’re not “cheating”How therapy, nutrition, exercise, and sleep rewire the brain for recoveryWhy language and culture play a bigger role in stigma than most people realizeHow we can change conversations and lives through understandingBacked by the latest neuroscience and supported by powerful analogies and insights, Rewiring Stigma equips readers to move beyond fear, beyond labels, and toward empathy, healing, and change.Whether you live with a mental health condition, love someone who does, or want to help transform public understanding, this book will leave you informed, encouraged, and empowered.