A Beginner's Guide to Being Mental ― From Anxiety to Zero F**ks Given

"Am I normal?"

"What’s an anxiety disorder?"

"Does therapy work?"

These are just a few of the questions Natasha Devon is asked as she travels the UK campaigning for better mental health awareness and provision. Here, Natasha calls upon experts in the fields of psychology, neuroscience, and anthropology to debunk and demystify the full spectrum of mental health. From A (Anxiety) to Z (Zero F**ks Given—or the art of having high self-esteem) via everything from body image and gender to differentiating sadness from depression. Statistically, one in three of us will experience symptoms of a mental illness during our lifetimes. Yet all of us have a brain, and so we ALL have mental health—regardless of age, sexuality, race, or background. The past few years have seen an explosion in awareness, yet it seems there is still widespread confusion. A Beginner's Guide to Being Mental is for anyone who wants to have this essential conversation, written as only Natasha—with her combination of expertise, personal experience and humor—knows how.

Natasha Devon is a campaigner who, for the past decade, has toured schools, universities, and events throughout the UK to raise awareness and teach others about mental health. She has advised politicians, staged protests both on and offline to effect social change, and most recently created the Mental Health Media Charter, to ensure that the landscape of mental health reporting is both responsible and stigma-reducing. Natasha writes regularly for the Guardian and Telegraph and writes a weekly column for the Times Educational Supplement. Natasha is a TV and radio regular, making appearances on programs like This Morning, Channel 4 News, Sky News, LBC, and Woman’s Hour. She also featured in BBC3’s "How to Live with Women," Channel 4’s "Gok’s Teens," and presented BBC iWonder "Why Do I Earn Less than a Man?" Natasha is a fellow of the University of Wales, Cosmopolitan Ultimate Woman of the Year 2012, and in 2015 the Sunday Times and Debretts named her one of the 500 most influential people in Britain.