You Don't Have to Be Mad to Work Here
A Psychiatrist’s Life
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You Don't Have to Be Mad to Work Here
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Narrated by:
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Benji Waterhouse
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By:
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Benji Waterhouse
About this listen
Brought to you by Penguin.
A woman with bipolar flies from America in a wedding dress to marry Harry Styles.
A lorry driver with schizophrenia believes he’s got a cure for coronavirus.
A depressed psychiatrist hides his profession from his GP due to stigma.
Most of the characters in this book are his patients. Some of them are his family. One of them is him.
Unlocking the doors to the psych ward, NHS psychiatrist Dr Benji Waterhouse provides a fly-on-the-padded-wall account of medicine’s most mysterious and controversial speciality.
Why would anyone in their right mind choose to be a psychiatrist? Are the solutions to people’s messy lives really within medical school textbooks? And how can vulnerable patients receive the care they need when psychiatry lacks staff, hospital beds and any actual cures?
Humane, hilarious and heart-breaking, You Don’t Have to Be Mad to Work Here is an enlightening and darkly comic medical memoir - from both sides of the doctor’s desk.
This is the perfect read for fans of This Is Going to Hurt, Unnatural Causes and The Prison Doctor.
A humane, hilarious and heart-breaking window into the world of psychiatry from ‘the Adam Kay of mental healthcare’ (THE TIMES)
'Very funny and deeply sympathetic. Really excellent' HENRY MARSH
'This is honestly my dream book. Both fascinating and bleakly funny' FERN BRADY
‘Honest, funny, saddening and uplifting all rolled into one’ JO BRAND
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What listeners say about You Don't Have to Be Mad to Work Here
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Dr C Garrett
- 27-06-24
Witty & moving. Captivated me from start to finish.
Equal parts witty & profound, great storytelling. Lots in here that I identified with as someone who works in mental health in the NHS. Felt like the book was like a little companion to me whilst it lasted. Didn’t want it to end!!
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- Anonymous User
- 07-08-24
A warm, insightful gem of a book.
A warm , insightful book about psychiatry and mental illness. At times heartbreaking but also filled with gentle humour and compassion. Beautifully read by the author. I loved it.
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- elizsheba
- 23-05-24
Thank you , doctor
Dear Colleague,
As an NHS doctor myself (though of another specialty), I thoroughly enjoyed your book. Many aspects were painfully recognizable, which made it all the more engaging.
Despite all the misery and despair described, I greatly admired your ability to maintain humor, kindness, and compassion towards a very complex group of patients.
I was particularly moved to tears by the conversations with your parents. Unfortunately, I have not reached that level of self-understanding and acceptance with my own parents in time, when I did they were already gone. I envy you for having had the time, a good psychoanalyst, and the personal wisdom and courage to achieve that. Hopefully, your story will help others to do it earlier.
But then Dostoevsky said - time is only an idea, so hopefully if we are late, we still can say things to those who already gone from its dimension.
Thank you for your book.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Curtis P
- 13-07-24
A fascinating insight into NHS psychiatry
Benji's tour of speciality training in psychiatry is informative enough to be deeply interesting whilst still being accessible to those who don't work in the system. A thoroughly interesting and worthwhile listen.
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- Amazon Customer
- 19-07-24
amazing book!
so funny, sad and insightful. I laughed out loud at bits I probably shouldn't but Benji has such a great way with words
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- Amy Brooks
- 21-08-24
Playful & Interesting…A GREAT READ
I really enjoyed this book. I found the NHS insight both interesting and shocking. I loved the anecdotes. An awesome narrative style. Highly recommend.
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- Avid listener
- 11-06-24
The humour & the fascinating insights into the state of NHS psychiatry
This was a very entertaining & informative listen, but it's very depressing to learn about the struggles faced by mental health professionals after years of grinding austerity & cuts to funding. 😔😔
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- Clare
- 04-06-24
A important book about the NHS and mental health
It was a eye opening view of life inside a psychiatric hospital. Balanced by the thoughtful worries of a doctor trying to do his best in a difficult situation.
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- Kerry
- 07-09-24
Vulnerable, real and laugh-out-loud funny
I really enjoyed listening to Benji read his book. He had a lovely style and the combination of his personal journey and clinical experiences is a great combination, An up close and personal heartbreaking reality of the state of mental health care system it made me cry, rage and laugh. I completely it in just a couple of days as I couldn’t stop listening. Will definitely be recommending this one to friends and colleagues. Thank you 🙏
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- Josh Sheppard
- 01-11-24
Morning commute to the psych ward
Having just started my speciality training in psychiatry this audiobook gave me a brief insight into my years ahead. I thoroughly enjoyed Benjis dry sense of humour which I think is essential to survive a career in psychiatry. His overview of mental health conditions were very informative however his experiences of working within the NHS were to pessimistic. The NHS has its faults but it still offers one of the best services in the world. I was fascinated by his alternative view of psychiatric care as a whole particularly his critique of psychopharmacology in favour of more holistic therapies. I'd love to listen to more work from Dr Benji, thank you for getting me into the psych frame of mind on those morning commutes to base.
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