Bethanne Patrick, a literary critic and adjunct professor in the Department of Literature, has experienced depression since her teens. By 2015, medications and weekly therapy sessions were helping, and Patrick delighted in celebrating the holidays with her husband and daughters. But several weeks into the new year, she fell into a deep depression that wouldn’t let go.

After compiling a detailed personal history, a psychopharmacologist finally presented Patrick with an accurate diagnosis. Double depression combines the chronic sadness of persistent depressive disorder with the incapacitating cycles of hopelessness caused by major depressive disorder.  

Along with a new prescription, meditation and yoga are part of her treatment plan now. “It’s not just a pill and you’re done,” Patrick stresses. “People can do all kinds of things to heal from these illnesses. You can live a balanced and contented life.”

Books have always featured prominently in hers. During adolescence, they provided comfort, a way to stave off negative thoughts. Today—whether she’s writing reviews for the Los Angeles Times; hosting Missing Pages, a podcast about the publishing industry whose second season kicked off in October; celebrating the May publication of her memoir, Life B: Overcoming Double Depression; or serving on the board of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation—books have become her life’s work. 

“Better mental health care is about making people well so that they can function and do what they’re called to do,” she says. “Whatever is most important to you can’t be enjoyed if you’re not well.”

Writing Life B has allowed Patrick to connect with readers—and connections are key in recovering from mental illnesses. “It’s hard to put ourselves in other people’s shoes, [but] we can do better, understand better, and talk to people about mental illness.”