Healthcare and Humanity Reading Series
Abstract: Acclaimed New Yorker writer Rachel Aviv uses examples from her own and others’ lives to show that psychiatric explanations can be helpful and harmful. Treated at age 6 for anorexia, Aviv later began to question the meaning her diagnosis held for her, and in general wondered how a mental health diagnosis can affect a patient when considered in the context of their whole life. Aviv believes, "There are stories that save us, and stories that trap us." She argues that clinicians resort to reductive views of mental illness because, “the reality — that mental illness is caused by an interplay between biological, genetic, psychological and environmental factors — is more difficult to conceptualize.”
This reading and discussion will be complemented by the November 7 reading by Greg Marshall, author of Leg: The Story of a Limb and the Boy Who Grew from It.
Co-sponsored by the Center for Bioethics & Health Law and City of Asylum, this series is curated by Theresa Brown, RN, author of The Shift and Healing: When a Nurse Becomes a Patient, and features authors whose works explore experiences of health, healthcare, and embodiment. Programs in the series include a brief reading from the author, a moderated conversation, an audience Q&A, and a book signing. This evening is supported by the Provost’s Year of Emotional Well-being initiative.
Location and Address
Online and in-person @ City of Asylum, 40 W. North Avenue