Lost Connections: Uncovering The Real Causes of Depression – And the Unexpected Solutions

FEATURING JOHANN HARI – Nearly every single one of us knows someone who suffers from depression. Perhaps you have been diagnosed yourself. Nearly 7% of the American population is estimated to have had at least one depressive episode in their lifetimes.

Scientists have for years thought that depression arose from a chemical imbalance in the brain – not enough of the happy brain chemical serotonin. So pharmaceutical companies began offering chemical solutions in the form of anti-depressants like Prozac, Paxil, or Zoloft.

But what if the conventional wisdom on depression and anti-depressants is wrong? Award winning journalist Johann Hari, whose powerful book about addiction, Chasing the Scream became a New York Times bestseller, set his sights on depression, coming at it from someone who spent years taking anti-depressants. What he found through his years-long global journey and hundreds of interviews with experts is distilled into a new book called Lost Connections: Uncovering The Real Causes of Depression – And the Unexpected Solutions.

Johann Hari, New York Times bestselling author of Chasing the Scream. He has written for the New York Times, LA Times, and others. His TED talk, Everything You Know About Addiction is Wrong has been viewed over 21 million times. His latest book is called Lost Connections: Uncovering The Real Causes of Depression – And the Unexpected Solutions.

** This segment was originally broadcast on January 23, 2018.