Sociopath: A Memoir

By Patric Gagne

Book Overview

The acclaimed New York Times bestselling memoir of the author's struggle to understand her own sociopathy and shed light on the often maligned and misunderstood mental disorder.

"A cross between a podcast by relationship therapist Esther Perel and a salacious tell-all." --San Francisco Chronicle

Patric Gagne realized she made others uncomfortable before she started kindergarten. Something about her caused people to react in a way she didn't understand. She suspected it was because she didn't feel things the way other kids did. Emotions like fear, guilt, and empathy eluded her. For the most part, she felt nothing. And she didn't like the way that "nothing" felt.

She did her best to pretend she was like everyone else, but the constant pressure to conform to a society she knew rejected anyone like her was unbearable. So Patric stole. She lied. She was occasionally violent. She became an expert lock-picker and home-invader. All with the goal of replacing the nothingness with...something.

In college, Patric finally confirmed what she'd long suspected. She was a sociopath. But even though it was the very first personality disorder identified--well over 200 years ago--sociopathy had been neglected by mental health professionals for decades. She was told there was no treatment, no hope for a normal life. She found herself haunted by sociopaths in pop culture, madmen and evil villains who are considered monsters. Her future looked grim.

But when Patric reconnects with an old flame, she gets a glimpse of a future beyond her diagnosis. If she's capable of love, it must mean that she isn't a monster. With the help of her sweetheart (and some curious characters she meets along the way) she embarks on a mission to prove that the millions of Americans who share her diagnosis aren't all monsters either.

This is the inspiring story of her journey to change her fate and how she managed to build a life full of love and hope.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 166800318X
• ISBN13: 9781668003183
• Release Date: April 2024
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 1.16 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.5" x 6.1" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

Sociopath: Surprisingly relatable

Sociopath follows Patric, a diagnosed sociopath, as she tackles her life to the best of her ability. In the beginning she highlights her struggles with sociopathy as there isn’t much known information on it. Patric took this situation of not being able to find help or relatability for her condition, so she became the help and the relatability for other people like herself. Patric proves the stereotype of sociopaths being crazed killers wrong by showing us they can also be teachers, mothers, and even psychologists! Despite not enjoying memoirs very much, I throughly enjoyed this one. I laughed, I got teary eyed, I felt as if I were experiencing her life with her.