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Above the Noise My Story of Chasing Calm [electronic resource] : by DeRozan, DeMar.aut; Zarum, Dave.aut; Popovich, Gregg.; cloudLibrary;
From one of the most outspoken and respected NBA athletes comes a groundbreaking and remarkable memoir chronicling a very public struggle with depression, in the hopes that other people will not suffer alone “As men, and especially Black men, we don’t talk about our mental health enough. We struggle to admit when things aren’t okay, even when it’s obvious to everybody around us. I’ve seen how toxic that can become. I’ve experienced it myself, keeping everything under wraps until your head and heart are full of fire and rage.” Six-time NBA All-Star DeMar DeRozan has been called a “basketball savant” (ESPN) and “the best closer in the NBA” (GQ). But when he went public with his depression, it sparked a conversation that reached far beyond the court. By speaking out and breaking the stigma of mental illness, he added a new, seldom-heard voice to the mental health dialogue: that of a successful Black male athlete, openly naming his pain and advocating for others to do the same. Now it’s time to tell the full story. Born and raised in Compton, DeRozan was no stranger to hardship—he grew up in poverty and lost friends to gang violence. Practising in worn-out school gyms and community centres, fuelled by hunger and a desire to prove himself, he began to rise. But doubts followed. In Above the Noise, DeRozan opens up about both his proudest triumphs and the times he felt so weighed down he couldn’t get out of bed. He reflects on what it took to make a name for himself in a new country after getting drafted by the Toronto Raptors. He recounts the pressure of playing with veteran athletes as a twenty-year-old rookie, and the pain of losing role models. And he reveals what it felt like to be traded away from the team that he wanted to play with for the rest of his career. From a scared, angry kid to a confident father of five, DeRozan traces his journey to basketball stardom and the forces that honed him into the player—and the slowly healing person—he is today. His memoir will encourage anyone who has ever felt alone in their struggles and inspire people to rise above the noise and speak their truth.
Subjects: Electronic books.; Basketball; Sports; Depression;
© 2024., HarperCollins Canada,

Becoming Madam Secretary / by Dray, Stephanie,author.;
"Raised on tales of her revolutionary ancestors, Frances Perkins arrives in New York City at the turn of the century, armed with her trusty parasol and an unyielding determination to make a difference. When she's not working with children in the crowded tenements in Hell's Kitchen, Frances throws herself into the social scene in Greenwich Village, befriending an eclectic group of politicians, artists, and activists, including the millionaire socialite Mary Harriman Rumsey, the flirtatious budding author Sinclair Lewis, and the brilliant but troubled reformer Paul Wilson, with whom she falls deeply in love. But when Frances meets a young lawyer named Franklin Delano Roosevelt at a tea dance, sparks fly in all the wrong directions. She thinks he's a rich, arrogant dilettante who gets by on a handsome face and a famous name. He thinks she's a priggish bluestocking and insufferable do-gooder. Neither knows it yet, but over the next twenty years, they will form a historic partnership that will carry them both to the White House. Frances is destined to rise in a political world dominated by men, facing down the Great Depression as FDR's most trusted lieutenant -- even as she struggles to balance the demands of a public career with marriage and motherhood. And when vicious political attacks mount and personal tragedies threaten to derail her ambitions, she must decide what she's willing to do -- and what she's willing to sacrifice -- to save a nation"--
Subjects: Historical fiction.; Biographical fiction.; Novels.; Perkins, Frances, 1880-1965; Women cabinet officers; Women;

Dispatches from Ray's planet : a journey through autism / by Finlayson, Claire,1957-author.;
"As a child, Claire's big brother Ray was always bright and inquisitive, and she looked up to him. But as the two became teenagers, Ray struggled to acquire the social skills that came more easily to Claire and their friends. Claire tried to help, pointing out what he should or shouldn't have said or done. Ray insisted that he wasn't the problem--"On my planet ...", he would explain, there were no social climbers, no cocktail parties, no subtle hints or subliminal messages to miss. On his planet, the telling of little white lies would be a capital offence. At sixteen, sitting with him in the high school cafeteria, Claire vowed to find Ray's "planet." After graduation, Ray took a job as a letter carrier with Canada Post, but after thirty-three years on the job he had developed plantar fasciitis, his feet so painful he couldn't walk. Instead of seeking medical help, he began leaving mail in his truck overnight--a serious dereliction of duty. He was fired, blew his appeal, and spiralled into a suicidal depression. Claire didn't know he was in trouble until he reached out to her by email. Thus began a remarkable email correspondence that pulled back the curtain on an inner life Claire couldn't have imagined. Where in-person interactions plunged him into hot water, by email, Ray's writing revealed a compassionate, funny, sad man who showed extraordinary insight into his often self-destructive way of navigating the world. Ray was fifty when Claire realized he might have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), but by then, having survived without a diagnosis his whole life, Ray was reluctant to have a label pinned on him and resisted Claire's efforts to fix him by trying, in all sincerity, to make him more like her. Dispatches From Ray's Planet draws on Ray and Claire's correspondence to tell the story of two siblings from two very different planets. There are thousands of Rays in our world, hiding in basements or holding up walls at social functions. In this collective memoir, Claire and Ray share their journey with the hope that others can also learn that we all perceive the world in different ways, and that "different" does not necessarily mean dangerous."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Finlayson, Ray.; Finlayson, Claire, 1957-; Finlayson, Ray; Finlayson, Claire, 1957-; Autistic people; Autistic people;

Notes to John / by Didion, Joan,author.;
"In November 1999, Joan Didion began seeing a psychiatrist because, as she wrote to a friend, her family had had 'a rough few years.' She described the sessions in a journal she created for her husband, John Gregory Dunne. For several months, Didion recorded conversations with the psychiatrist in meticulous detail. The initial sessions focused on alcoholism, adoption, depression, anxiety, guilt, and the heartbreaking complexities of her relationship with her daughter Quintana. The subjects evolved to include her work, which she was finding difficult to maintain for sustained periods. There were discussions about her own childhood -- misunderstandings and lack of communication with her mother and father, her early tendency to anticipate catastrophe -- and the question of legacy, or, as she put it, 'what it's been worth.' The analysis would continue for more than a decade ... [This is] an ... intimate account that reveals sides of her that were unknown, but the voice is unmistakably hers -- questioning, courageous, and clear in the face of a wrenchingly painful journey."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Didion, Joan; Mothers and daughters.; Novelists, American; Novelists, American; Widows;

Sunshine [graphic novel] : how one camp taught me about life, death, and hope / by Krosoczka, Jarrett,author,illustrator.;
"When Jarrett J. Krosoczka was in high school, he was part of a program that sent students to be counselors at a camp for seriously ill kids and their families. Going into it, Jarrett was worried: Wouldn't it be depressing, to be around kids facing such a serious struggle? Wouldn't it be grim? But instead of the shadow of death, Jarrett found something else at Camp Sunshine: the hope and determination that gets people through the most troubled of times. Not only was he subject to some of the usual rituals that come with being a camp counselor (wilderness challenges, spooky campfire stories, an extremely stinky mascot costume), but he also got a chance to meet some extraordinary kids facing extraordinary circumstances. He learned about the captivity of illness, for sure but he also learned about the freedom a safe space can bring."--Provided by publisher.
Subjects: Biographical comics.; Nonfiction comics.; Autobiographical comics.; Graphic novels.; Personal narratives.; Krosoczka, Jarrett; Authors, American; Camp counselors; Camps; Cartoonists; Illustrators;

A Kid from Marlboro Road [electronic resource] : by Burns, Edward.aut; Burns, Edward.nrt; cloudLibrary;
An Irish-American family comes to life through the eyes of a 13-year-old boy in this debut novel by actor-filmmaker Ed Burns. Immigrants and storytellers, lilting voices and Long Island moxy are all part of this colorful Irish-Catholic community in 1970s New York.A Kid from Marlboro Road opens at a wake, as our twelve-year-old narrator, an aspiring writer, takes in the death of his beloved grandfather, Pop, a larger-than-life figure to him. The overflowing crowd includes sandhogs in their muddy work boots, old Irish biddies in black dresses and cops in uniform, along with the family in mourning. There’s an open casket, the first time he’s seen a dead person. Later, at the bar across the street, he tells a story to the assembled crowd about the day his dad proposed to his mom, and how he almost got beat up by her brothers for it, and then how Pop made him propose twice. His mom calls him “Kneenie,” and with her husband and older son Tommy lost to her, he’s the best thing she’s got. He sees her struggling with depression and is worried his parents might get divorced, but doesn’t know how to help—since like his brother and father before him he knows he’ll also abandon her soon enough.Stories cascade between the prior generation’s colorful origins in the Bronx and the softer world of the of Gibson, the town on Long Island where the family lives now. There are scenes in the Rockaways, at Belmont Race Track, and in Montauk. Out of individual struggles a collective warmth emerges, a certain kind of American story, raucous and joyous.Includes black and white photographs from the author's Irish-American New York family history.
Subjects: Audiobooks.; Coming of Age; Cultural Heritage; Family Life;
© 2024., Recorded Books,

Into the soul of the world : my journey to healing / by Wetzler, Brad,author.;
""My story, at its core, is about faith. Not religious faith. A faith that is more human and essential. Faith in myself, a deep knowing in my heart and body that I was on a good path, an elemental trust that taking one more step forward would lead to where I needed to go without self-betrayal. A faith that, when the world pushed back and set me on my heels, maybe forcing me to backpedal, I could adjust my course a few degrees and then take another step forward. I would get back on my feet, dust myself off, and, leaning into the headwind, restart my journey with one more step forward. And another." Suffering from PTSD and severe depression from past trauma, battling an addiction to overprescribed psychiatric medication, and at the rock bottom of his career, journalist Brad Wetzler had nowhere to go. So he set out on a journey to wander and hopefully find himself--and the world--again. Into the Soul of the World is Wetzler's thrilling, impactful, and heartrending memoir of healing--physically, emotionally, and spiritually. An adventure journalist at heart, Wetzler mixes travelogue with empowering insights about his inner journey to better care for his own mental health. Journey with him as he travels across Israel and the West Bank, before moving on to India, a candle-lit cave on a mountaintop in the Himalayan foothills, and a life-changing encounter with a 100-year-old yogi. Wetzler's writing is full of the poignant, amusing, and occasionally heart breaking situations that unfold when we finally decide to confront depression (or any mental health struggle) and declare ourselves ready to heal: How do we heal our past and thrive again? What does it mean to live a good life? How can we transform our suffering and serve others? His answer: live to tell the story and find the humility and courage to be the best human you can be"--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Wetzler, Brad.; Depression, Mental; Drug addiction; Journalists;

All the little monsters : how I learned to live with anxiety / by Robertson, David,1977-author.; Rogers, Shelagh,writer of foreword.;
Includes bibliographical references."With humour, warmth and heartbreaking honesty, award-winning author David A. Roberston explores the struggles and small victories of living with chronic anxiety and depression, and shares his hard-earned wisdom in the hope of making other people's mental health journeys a little less lonely. From the outside, David A. Robertson looks as if he has it all together -- a loving family, a successful career as an author, and a platform to promote Indigenous perspectives, cultures and concerns. But what we see on the outside rarely reveals what is happening inside. Robertson lives with "little monsters": chronic, debilitating health anxiety and panic attacks accompanied, at times, by depression. During the worst periods, he finds getting out of bed to walk down the hall an insurmountable task. During the better times, he wrestles with the compulsion to scan his body for that sure sign of a dire health crisis. In All the Little Monsters, Robertson reveals what it's like to live inside his mind and his body and describes the toll his mental health challenges have taken on him and his family, and how he has learned to put one foot in front of the other as well as to get back up when he stumbles. He also writes about the tools that have helped him carry on, including community, therapy, medication and the simple question he asks himself on repeat: what if everything will be okay? In candidly sharing his personal story and showing that he can be well even if he can't be "cured," Robertson hopes to help others on their own mental health journeys"--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Robertson, David, 1977-; Illness anxiety disorder; Authors, Canadian (English); First Nations authors; nêhinaw; Swampy Cree;

The year of the horses : a memoir / by Maum, Courtney,1978-author.;
Includes bibliographical references."At the age of thirty-seven, Courtney Maum finds herself in an indoor arena in Connecticut, moments away from stepping back into the saddle. For her, this is not just a riding lesson, but a last-ditch attempt to pull herself back from the brink even though riding is a relic from the past she walked away from. She hasn't been on or near a horse in over thirty years. Although Courtney does know what depression looks like, she finds herself refusing to admit, at this point in her life, that it could look like her: a woman with a privileged past, a mortgage, a husband, a healthy child, and a published novel. That she feels sadness is undeniable, but she feels no right to claim it. And when both therapy and medication fail, Courtney returns to her childhood passion of horseback riding as a way to recover the joy and fearlessness she once had access to as a young girl. As she finds her way, once again, through the physical and emotional landscapes of riding, Courtney becomes reacquainted with herself not only as a rider but as a mother, wife, daughter, writer, and woman. Alternating timelines and braided with historical portraits of women and horses alongside history's attempts to tame both parties, The Year of the Horses is an inspiring love letter to the power of animals-and humans-to heal the mind and the heart"--
Subjects: Autobiographies.; Biographies.; Personal narratives.; Maum, Courtney, 1978-; Depression, Mental; Horsemanship; Horsemen and horsewomen; Human-animal relationships.;

American breakdown : our ailing nation, my body's revolt, and the nineteenth-century woman who brought me back to life / by Lunden, Jennifer(Jennifer L.),1967-author.;
Includes bibliographical references and index."A Silent Spring for the human body, this wide-ranging, genre-crossing literary mystery interweaves the author's quest to understand the source of her own condition with her telling of the story of the chronically ill 19th-century diarist Alice James--ultimately uncovering the many hidden health hazards of life in America. When Jennifer Lunden became chronically ill after moving from Canada to Maine, her case was a medical mystery. Just 21, unable to hold a book or stand for a shower, she lost her job and consigned herself to her bed. The doctor she went to for help told her she was "just depressed." After suffering from this enigmatic illness for five years, she discovered an unlikely source of hope and healing: a biography of Alice James, the bright, witty, and often bedridden sibling of brothers Henry James, the novelist, and William James, the father of psychology. Alice suffered from a life-shattering illness known as neurasthenia, now often dismissed as a "fashionable illness." In this meticulously researched and illuminating debut, Lunden interweaves her own experience with Alice's, exploring the history of medicine and the effects of the industrial revolution and late-stage capitalism to tell a riveting story of how we are a nation struggling--and failing--to be healthy. Although science--and the politics behind its funding--has in many ways let Lunden and millions like her down, in the end science offers a revelation that will change how readers think about the ecosystems of their bodies, their communities, the country, and the planet."--
Subjects: Biographies.; Autobiographies.; Personal narratives.; Lunden, Jennifer (Jennifer L.), 1967-; James, Alice, 1848-1892; Chronic fatigue syndrome; Diagnosis; Discrimination in medical care; Women authors, American; Women; Women's health services;