The Ghost in the House: Motherhood, Raising Children, and Struggling with Depression

By Tracy Thompson

Book Overview

An award-winning reporter for the Washington Post , Tracy Thompson was thirty-four when she was hospitalized and put on suicide watch during a major depressive episode. This event, the culmination of more than twenty years of silent suffering, became the point of departure for an in-depth, groundbreaking book on depression and her struggle with the disease. The Beast shattered stereotypes and inspired countless readers to confront their own battles with mental illness. Having written that book, and having found the security of a happy marriage, Thompson assumed that she had learned to manage her illness. But when she took on one of the most emotionally demanding jobs of allbeing a motherdepression returned with fresh vengeance. Very quickly Thompson realized that virtually everything she had learned up to then about dealing with depression was now either inadequate or useless. In fact, maternal depression was a different beast altogether. She tackled her problem head-on, meticulously investigating the latest scientific research and collecting the stories of nearly 400 mothers with depression. What she found was startling: a problem more widespread than she or any other mother struggling alone with this affliction could have imagined. Women make up nearly 12 million of the 19 million Americans affected by depression every year, experiencing episodes at nearly twice the rate that men do. Women suffer most frequently between the ages of twenty-five and forty-fournot coincidentally, the primary childbearing years. The Ghost in the House , the result of Thompson's extensive studies, is the first book to address maternal depression as a lifelong illness that can have profound ramifications for mother and child. A striking blend of memoir and journalism, here is an invaluable resource for the millions of women who are white-knuckling their way through what should be the most satisfying years of their lives. Thompson offers her readers a concise summary of the cutting-edge research in this field, deftly written prose, and, above all, hope.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060843799
• ISBN13: 9780060843793
• Release Date: August 2006
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 1.0" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

Gave me a lot of answers

This book is awesome for any woman, especially mother that is is suffering from depression. It has helped me immensely in my relationship with myself, my mother, and my daughter.

An insightful and well-written book on depression

In this important book, Tracy Thompson tackles the seldom talked about topic of maternal depression and has done a phenomenal job of exploring how, for far too many women, depression can intermingle with and transform the experience of motherhood. Drawing upon her own experiences with depression and including the stories of hundreds of women she interviewed, she paints a picture of maternal depression that is honest, compelling, and perhaps most importantly, empathic. Moreover, she has deftly woven this evocative descriptive material with a careful review of the medical literature, creating a work that is scholarly and engaging. As a psychiatrist who works primarily with women who suffer from depression within the context of pregnancy and raising children, I am certain this book will resonate for any mother who has struggled with depression. I was particularly impressed with Ms. Thompson's ability to write so candidly about depression and how it can color and compromise the act of mothering, while at the same time maintaining an aura of hopefulness. Over and over she urges women to get the help they need, arguing that depression need not be a devastating experience. In fact, she notes that by addressing the problem directly, a woman may have the opportunity to become a more insightful and emotionally available parent. This book is a pleasure to read. Ms. Thompson is an exquisite writer, and her ability to take complex medical information and to gracefully intertwine it with the deeply personal stories of those who have grappled with this illness is impressive. For these reasons, I recommend The Ghost in the House to any mother who has struggled with depression, as well as anyone who is interested in learning more about depression within the context of motherhood.

Insightful book on Depression ....

If I hadn't seen an ongoing discussion with the author online and heard about this book, I probably would not have picked it up since I do not suffer much from depression. But the discussion has sparked an interest and since I do have relatives that suffer from depression, I was intrigued enough to read it. The topic may sound off-putting but I can honestly say that this is one of the best laid-out and well-written books I have read in a long time. From the very first paragraph, Thompson grabs the reader's attention and holds it till the last page has been turned. Even then, you're finding yourself wishing that you have a little bit more money in your pocket to buy this book for all the women in your life. (And some for the men to better understand their wives!) This is a book that explains a taboo subject. It explores Post-Partum depression (not as thoroughly as other books may have) but also, maternal depression, which I will admit that I have never heard of. But the stories of individuals in this book have made it real and something noteworthy to explore. Thompson has made a concise exploration into this study. She makes the issue personal since she does suffer from depression. Her stories and other women's stories have given maternal depression a name and I never realized that it was so common till I read this book. She gives the reader a better understanding about depression, what kind of help you can get now and there is even a chapter on rat/monkey studies that is very interesting. This is science mixed in with intimate details. It is a book that teaches you something new and makes it interesting. It makes you pause in reflection and gives you a better understanding on what maternal depression really is. It helps maybe to feel a little bit less alone in this struggle and for me, it does help me understand those in my family who suffers from depression a bit more. This book really should be read by everyone to shed a little bit more light on a dark disease of the mind. 9-10-06

Read it for yourself, your family, recommend to your clients, and colleagues

I'm really not sure which book Publishers Weekly was reading, but it couldn't have been this one! Instead focus on Library Journal who, in my opinion, got it right. As a clinical social worker, who has worked with hundreds of mothers, this is a book I recommend to clients as well as mental health professionals. Thompson's ability to explain complicated -medical/physiological/pharmacological- information while simultaneously using commonly understood language,without watering down the information one iota, is a true gift. The stories Thompson shares from her own experience as a mother struggling with depression, in adddition to the compelling interviews she has conducted with hundreds of mothers(all backed by excellent research relating what is happening currently in the field of depression) set this book apart making it a one stop resource. As strange as it may sound, this book is an enjoyable read, even though it is tackling a very serious subject; maternal depression. I know! Enjoyable and maternal depression does appear to be incongruous in the same sentence. However Thompson's way with the written word just doesn't come along very often in this genre. Most of the books written about depression are heavily technical or written like a "how to" manual. Thompson has found, as Dave Matthews would sing, "The Space Between".