Trouble in My Head: A Young Girl's Fight with Depression [Paperback]

Mathilde Monaque (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 5, 2007

Mathilde Monaque developed severe depression when she was just 14. The eldest in a family of six and an exceptionally bright and gifted girl, the discovery shook her family to the core. With remarkable sensitivity and lucidity she describes her experience of depression, her days in the hospital, and her battle to conquer the disease. Mathilde’s perspective as a sufferer of teenage depression is unique. Unlike adult depression which involves feelings of guilt, Mathilde describes teenage depression as a breaking down of certainties, the fear of being oneself, the fear of not loving and of not being loved. Adults and teenagers alike will find inspiration and insight in her touching and remarkable account.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 7 Up—Monaque tells her own story of depression, which began at age 14. Recounting her experience from memory, the teen attempts to discern what caused the illness as well as to explain the process she went through to overcome it. Beginning with a physical illness that caused her to be separated from friends, Monaque's depression eventually manifested itself as anorexia and resulted in a monthlong stay in a mental-health facility for adolescents. Although she resisted medication, it became part of her therapy for more than a year. While the young woman's extreme introspection, which involves dissecting every thought and action, is intriguing in a clinical sense, the narrative becomes tedious in places. For example, the details of the first day after placement in the hospital take nearly one-fourth of the book. Monaque's story has a happy ending as she successfully battled her problems, finished school, and planned a career in medicine, perhaps as a psychiatrist. She is bright and articulate and paints a vivid picture of what depression feels like from the inside.—Wendy Smith-D'Arezzo, Loyola College, Baltimore, MD END

From Booklist

Fourteen-year-old Monaque has assigned herself a continuous program of self-help and assistance to other teens like herself: document her bout with teen depression, its soul-sucking misery, and the hospitalization that helped her move through anorexia and darkness. Focused on Monaque’s desire for perfection and her yearning for friends she does not have, this gripping account of her struggle is augmented by an afterword written by her psychologist, Jeanne Siaud-Facchin, who has opened a facility that treats French adolescents suffering from depression. This is a tough read, but it is one that will help explain to teens diagnosed with depression, their friends, and the adults around them the realities that come with the adolescent form of the disease. This important distinction between teen and adult depression, along with the revealing personal stories, make this book an invaluable addition to both YA and adult collections. Grades 7-12. --Frances Bradburn

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Random House UK (July 5, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0091917239
• ISBN-13: 978-0091917234
• Product Dimensions: 0.5 x 5 x 7.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #508,323 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #33 in Books > Health, Fitness & Dieting > Personal Health > Teen Health > Depression

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