Episode 143, ‘The Philosophy of Mental Health’ with Rose Cartwright (Part I - The Maps We Carry)

We’re living through a mental health crisis. In Europe, use of antidepressant has more than doubled in the past twenty years, and one in five children are now living with a recognised mental health condition. These numbers are striking, and the suffering they reflect personal, and clouded in mystery. But have we always been like this? Or has something shifted – in our politics, our culture, or perhaps in our understanding of what it means to be a person? Is the rise in mental health disorders a product of modern life, or are we simply more willing to talk about them? And what happens when system, designed to help us, ends up making us feel more broken, more stuck, and more alone?

In this episode, we’ll discussing these questions with Rose Cartwright – best-known as the author of Pure, a raw and radical memoir about living with OCD, which went on to become a popular Channel 4 television drama. Today, Rose is a screenwriter on the Netflix show 3 Body Problem, and her latest book, The Maps We Carry, takes a deep dive into the territory of trauma, healing, and the limits of the medical model.

As shall see, Rose’s work explores how our distress is shaped by the stories we tell – and the stories we’re told – about our minds. She asks whether we need new narratives, new frameworks, and even new states of consciousness to understand and transform our inner lives. Drawing on her own experiences – talking therapies, medications, psychedelic journeys, and the spaces in between – Rose invites us to imagine a more expansive approach to mental health. What does that expansive model look like? And is it really necessary? Well – lie back on the couch, take a deep breath… and let’s find out.

Links

Rose Cartwright, Website.

Rose Cartwright, The Maps We Carry.

Rose Cartwright, Pure.

Pure – TV Show.

3 Body Problem – TV Show.