"Suzanne O'Sullivan's It's All in Your Head wins Wellcome Book Prize 2016"

[Chrisb]

All that turkey basting seems to have paid off.

I suggest that it may be best just to treat this as one does the Turner Prize, or the Oscars, or the Nobel Peace Prize. Its just an excuse for a party for the select few.

If the Wellcome Trust is happy to have its name brought into disrepute, so be it.

 

[Valentijn]

Also note an article concerning one of the judges views

Wow, what a dick!

 

[halcyon]

The Wellcome Trust is a biomedical research charity. It is not an organization that should support psychobabble somatoform views of disease.

Seriously. They were one of the supporters of Ramsay's ME research group back in the late 1970s. They appear to be suffering from corporate amnesia.

 

[sarah darwins]

Wow, what a dick!

That was Joan Bakewell, who did come out with a grovelling apology after the fact, claiming that "eating disorders are narcissism wasn't really what I meant when I said that eating disorders are narcissism". She must have already read the O'Sullivan book at that stage and it's a good example of just how much damage this sort of crap does.

 

[Woolie]

That was Joan Bakewell, who did come out with a grovelling apology after the fact, claiming that "eating disorders are narcissism wasn't really what I meant when I said that eating disorders are narcissism". She must have already read the O'Sullivan book at that stage and it's a good example of just how much damage this sort of crap does.

Yea, I saw the tweets. She pretty much said, "I'm really sorry I got caught saying that stuff". Not maybe I was wrong, or I realise now that was a simplistic view. No. "This will help stimulate discussion".

Reckon Chris Ferguson had a point in the Psychologist when he said that everyone seems to think its okay to bash today's youth:

https://thepsychologist.bps.org.uk/volume-29/may-2016/our-struggle-between-science-and-pseudoscience

 

[sarah darwins]

Oh, and Joan "eating disorders are narcissism" Bakewell wasn't just one of the judges for this, she was the chair of the judges panel.

 

[Sean]

Just one big endless circle-jerk, isn't it.

 

[Forbin]

I believe it is no doubt a great book... but, keep in mind that I've been told that I have false beliefs....

 

[chipmunk1]

This is a book prize for the fiction genre?

 

[skipskip30]

In the fiction category?

*edit* i see i was beaten to this comment

 

[u&iraok]

A sequel is planned: "It's All in Your Head, You Just Need to Get Moving" Check it out:

Susan's new book incorporates exercise plans to shake those cobwebs out and get neurons firing. It doesn't matter how 'sick' you are, even marching in place once daily for 30 minutes will get oxygen and nutrient-carrying blood to that most important organ, Your Brain. You will find new focus and drive and will be able to get out of bed and join the world, where you belong, you totally physically healthy person you. [picture of Susan winking]

Just kidding.

 

[chipmunk1]

O'Sullivan suggests that we should look beyond a search for a singular cure to psychosomatic illness, and argues that the stigma surrounding the illness prevents patients receiving the psychiatric treatment they need.

Lol. This is a polite way of saying: You ME patient, you are mentally ill!

 

[worldbackwards]

In the Guardian now, with a good first comment that deserves some likes

http://www.theguardian.com/books/20...llness-suzanne-osullivan-its-all-in-your-head

The comments make depressing reading. It's always nice to find your illness up for discussion by a bunch of people who haven't got the first idea what they're talking about, but are determined to share an "opinion" nonetheless. That said, it can't be said they haven't been given encouragement on that score.

 

[alex3619]

 

[Hip]

Seriously. They were one of the supporters of Ramsay's ME research group back in the late 1970s. They appear to be suffering from corporate amnesia.

That's interesting. I would have put that in my email to them had I known.

 

[Hip]

Shouldn't some of the ME charities be writing to the Wellcome Trust Book Prize and expressing their outrage that Suzanne O’Sullivan book was awarded the 2016 prize.

This book portrays the serious neurological disease of ME as one merely caused by the belief system of patients. Such books should be reviled.

 

[Aurator]

It was apparently praised by the judges for being "heartfelt".
Hitler's Mein Kampf was heartfelt, as well as pernicious in its dissemination of lies about groups of people he had unsound and scarcely articulate ideas about. It too was a bestseller.

 

[Kati]

Tweet from James Coyne:

James C.Coyne (@CoyneoftheRealm)
2016-04-26, 1:13 PM
.@wellcomebkprize @art_in_science Evidence-based MH professionals repelled by this antiquated sexist thinking. pic.twitter.com/xs8ArdCqpO

 

[Hip]

I just wrote the following email to the Wellcome Trust company secretary:

Dear Sir

I am appalled to learn that the 2016 Wellcome Book Prize was awarded to Suzanne O’Sullivan for her book "It's All in Your Head: True Stories of Imaginary Illness."

This outrageously inaccurate book insults and misrepresents patients with the devastating neurological disease myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), since O’Sullivan states in her book that ME is simply "all in your head," — ie, a disease that is psychologically caused by the patients' own belief system, and is in effect an imaginary illness.

Myself and other ME patients can assure you that ME is not imaginary, and it is the height of irresponsibly for any medical professional to suggest this horrendous disease is "all in your head."

You can read the myalgic encephalomyelitis charity Invest in ME's critical response to O’Sullivan's book here: Invest in ME: Response To Times Article

ME has a prevalence of around 1 in 500, and whilst patients with only a mild level of ME can struggle on, moderate to severe levels of this illness will destroy much of an individual's life, as ME can severely incapacitate, and often ME continues unabated for decades. This disease is not a joke. Biomedical research into ME is woefully underfunded, in part due to the nonsensical ideas promulgated by O’Sullivan and her ilk, that unfortunately influence some doctors into thinking this disease is imaginary.

The Wellcome Trust is a biomedical research charity, and supports a biomedical view on disease. It should not be advocating the sort of quaint pre-scientific psychological notions that O’Sullivan espouses. I expect Sir Henry Wellcome would be turning in his grave if he knew you gave the Wellcome Book Prize to a promulgator of such hocus-pocus.

In the light of the above, I would like to know the Wellcome Trust's position on this award. Does the Wellcome Trust really want to promote a book containing such a silly, unscientific and insulting idea that all the symptoms of ME are just imagined?

I would be grateful to hear your response to this, because I would like post your views and position online if I may, on various ME patient forums. ME patients are already expressing outrage about this award, which it is felt will only serve to further marginalize and trivialize this serious neurological illness.

I also wrote a similar but shorter email to the Wellcome Trust Book Prize.


I'd suggest that other people also send them emails. The Wellcome Trust company secretary's email is: company.secretary@wellcome.ac.uk . Other Wellcome Trust contact emails given on this page.

The Wellcome Trust Book Prize email is: bookprize@wellcome.ac.uk

 

[K22]

Shouldn't some of the ME charities be writing to the Wellcome Trust Book Prize and expressing their outrage that Suzanne O’Sullivan book was awarded the 2016 prize.

This book portrays the serious neurological disease of ME as one merely caused by the belief system of patients. Such books should be reviled.

Unlikely I think as Wellcome are very establishment, which rarely gets challenged, and also have a place now in the CMRC. There's an AGM today of the CMRC, I wonder if this will be raised if a wellcome rep is there...
It's all very good to be potential funders on one hand but not OK for another wing to be encouraging a psychological view of our illness which is stabbing us in the foot as we try to get walking.