I love a book that shines a light on the lesser acknowledged parts of life. Mental illness is not something we all see first hand on the regular, but it's there, skirting around the edges of our vision or hidden in plain sight, under a convincing smile.
Following Pat Peoples journey on the road to acceptance and wellness was very difficult at times. The way people interacted with him, with half truths and full of apprehension, seemingly always waiting for the other shoe to drop. Myself, I was waiting to find out what brought Pat to the "Bad Place", the neurological health facility, and how it was possible for him to lose 4 whole years of his life, with zero memory of that time even occurring. When we finally learn what the incident was, it was like all the piece of a puzzle finally fit together.
Pat felt like a person on a suicide mission to me. His overwhelming drive to be better to please someone else, his wife Nikki, and put his life back to the way it was. The couple is in, what Pat calls, 'Apart Time', and his number one focus is to get to the end of that. His checklist of things that will bring about the ending of 'Apart Time' were therapy, working on 'being kind instead of being right' and his physical appearance. The workout regimen was absolutely obsessive, hours on end every single day. Pat was so driven by thinking that if he could just be fit, if he could physically change himself, Nikki could love him again, that his whole life could be perfect if only she came back to him. Pat did do quite well with his drive to be kind instead of being right. I enjoyed the places where he would scold himself for harsh words towards others, although following it up with 'Nikki wouldn't like that' was really an unhealthy reason for feeling that way. I don't believe anyone should ever adjust their lives to please someone else, to put what their thoughts of you will be before thinking of how your personal growth will effect you. The idea that you can not think or be a certain way because of how you'll be seen by that person is harsh.
Pats interactions with Tiffany is really a bit of a head scratcher in the beginning. It's hard to figure out what the reasoning is behind it all. Pat runs, Tiffany follows him silently. When the run is over for Pat, at his house, she simply continues on to her own home without a word. Pat is encouraged to pursue Tiffany, but we, the readers, aren't 100% on why, since we do know that he is trying to get his wife back. The "dates" they go on, as friends, are quite something. Pats stress about leaving a huge tip outweighs his need to eat or be socially acceptable as a companion, and the pair end up with tea and raisin bran, which got me laughing pretty hard.
The attention given to psychiatrists in the story, to normalize the idea that requiring help from prescription medication and professionals is perfectly acceptable, and I felt like this was really well done. The relationship that Pat and Tiffany have with their therapists is so positive, like friends getting together each week to just chat. I loved the interactions with Cliff, Pats therapist, and how he was very specific in letting Pat know that he is his friend and fellow Eagles fan any time he is not in his therapy office chair. I felt like it really allowed Pat to feel connected to him in a more positive way. Tiffanys therapist wasn't a main focus, but it felt like the connection these ladies shared was something similar.
Asking for help is okay. Not being okay all the time, that's okay too. Surround yourself with the people who love you, and who want to see you succeed, that's the way to health and happiness. This is the message I came away with.
I loved this book, and now I'll watch the film. I wanted to know the whole story before I saw how the 'Big Screen' portrayed it.
Definitely recommend, but be warned, this is not a book full of rated G language! 5/5* for me!
Kommentare