Sociopath: A Memoir
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.
“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.
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Community Reviews
I was really interested in the subject matter but quite honestly I was bored to tears reading this one. I put it down and picked it up several times and just never connected with the author at all. I didn't care about her story and I felt like she was so arrogant and privileged. If this wasn't a pick for bookclub I probably wouldn't have finished.
Good insight on delving into the social antiquities of what a Sociopath actually is. Book made me feel a bit emotional but rather left me dry.
This was an interesting read. I have also read some of the reaction/think pieces about whether Patric is really a sociopath or not. Obviously I cannot answer that (nor can anyone that is not treating her), but her account was interesting. I liked the notion that this was an emotional learning disability. I could see that. With regards to the critiques – I also know that so many people/society really hates women and always want to poke holes in their arguments (women do this to other women too). But regardless, if we take her word that she's a sociopath, it's obvious that as an attractive, affluent, white woman she had all the privilege in the world and very few barriers to exploring and finding some treatment that allowed her to live a full life. If 1 in 25 people are truly on the ASD spectrum my AND if some of it is nurture, not nature, I would speculate that less than 1% have the safety net to get adequate treatment. If you're poor or POC, forget about it – you're likely to get wrapped up in the prison industrial complex. So many societal problems would disappear if people's basic needs were met instead of billionaires fleecing us all...
What an amazing book. First of all, so well-read. Knowing it's read by the author made me experience it more deeply. It carries so much important information, must read for everyone. The only way to learn about someone is to listen to their stories.
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