Books like A really good day by Ayelet Waldman

Neurosurgeon Paul Kalanithi’s poignant memoir chronicles his battle with stage IV metastatic lung cancer and his reflections on life, medicine, and mortality.

Sonja Lyubomirsky, a research psychologist at the University of California, reveals a research‑based, step‑by‑step plan to boost happiness in everyday life, drawing on studies with thousands of participants.

Michael Pollan explores how LSD and psilocybin are being used to treat depression, addiction, and anxiety, combining personal experience with scientific research and historical context.

Spinster is a reflective memoir by Kate Bolick that explores her personal journey as a single woman, examining the lives of preceding bold single dames and the evolving attitudes toward women in contemporary society.

A memoir of a physical therapist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center who guides amputee and PTSD patients through Iraq and Afghanistan war injuries, blending humor with penetrating insight into veteran rehabilitation.

Terese Marie Mailhot's memoir follows her journey from a turbulent upbringing on Seabird Island to healing through writing, confronting PTSD and bipolar II while honoring her mother and reconciling with her father.

After a severe head injury at twenty-two, Su Meck loses all memory of herself and her life, rebuilding her identity from observation and routine as she struggles to live as a wife and mother while revisiting the losses of her new existence years later.

Tom Shroder’s *Acid Test* traces the rise of LSD and MDMA, spotlighting pioneers Rick Doblin and Michael Mithoefer and Marine veteran Nicholas Blackston as they champion the therapeutic promise of psychedelics for PTSD and other mental illnesses.

"With candor and humor, a manic-depressive Iranian-American Muslim woman chronicles her experiences with both clinical and cultural bipolarity. Melody Moezzi was born to Persian parents at the height of the Islamic Revolution and raised amid a vibrant, loving, and gossipy Iranian diaspora in the American heartland. When at eighteen, she began battling a severe physical illness, her community stepped up, filling her hospital rooms with roses, lilies, and hyacinths. But when she attempted suicide and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, there were no flowers. Despite several stays in psychiatric hospitals, bombarded with tranquilizers, mood-stabilizers, and antipsychotics, she was encouraged to keep her illness a secret-by both her family and an increasingly callous and indifferent medical establishment. Refusing to be ashamed, Moezzi became an outspoken advocate, determined to fight the stigma surrounding mental illness and reclaim her life along the way. Both an irreverent memoir and a rousing call to action, Haldol and Hyacinths is the moving story of a woman who refused to become torn across cultural and social lines. Moezzi reports from the front lines of the no-man's land between sickness and sanity, and the Midwest and the Middle East. A powerful, funny, and poignant narrative told through a unique and fascinating cultural lens, Haldol and Hyacinths is a tribute to the healing power of hope, humor, and acceptance"-- "Iranian-American activist Melody Moezzi speaks out on behalf of the mentally ill with a bracingly funny and poignant tale of her own suicide attempt, bipolar disorder diagnosis, and reclamation of her life"--

Dale Peck blends memoir, essay, and reportage to chart the 1987‑1996 era of the AIDS crisis, exploring ACT UP, serial killings of gay men, and the shifting fortunes of LGBTQ activism.

A gripping memoir that follows Dr. Damon Tweedy as he confronts racism, bias, and health disparities while navigating medical school and practice, revealing how race shapes both patient care and physicians’ experiences.