The Naked Lady Who Stood on her Head: A Psychiatrist's Stories of His Most Bizarre Cases, by Dr. Gary Small and Gigi Vorgan, is a fascinating study of a psychiatrist who learns just how unique the human mind can be. Although there is some artistic license involved, each chapter takes on a new patient who is in much need of professional help. Names and identifying details are changed so as to protect privacy. The dialogue may be slightly altered, but it's real to a certain degree. In other words, nothing is the book is 100% accurate, but not a complete bunch of lies.
Small is just starting his residency when the book begins, so he finds out in a short period of time just how little he actually knows and how much he has to learn. For example, the mentors are not always right. One of these, Dr Lochton, sees most patients as having an issue related to early childhood trauma. What's wrong with that, you ask? The patient with the "Sexy Stare" is better defined as a borderline personality disorder. Teetering between reality and insanity, a moment of inappropriate behavior drives home the lesson of considering other possibilities.
Medication can often help those who require psychiatric care. It is an asset that a psychiatrist has medical training, so he or she can prescribe if necessary. Plenty of cases of mental malfunction are due to some sort of physical cause. In the story where the book title comes from, orange juice clears up the bizarre behavior. Acute hypoglycemia is another term for blood sugar crash, which the juice helps.
"Brain Fog" describes the vicar of a man with a high stress job. He doesn't understands why he keeps having periods of not being able to focus. Small understands only after watching him play a game of racquetball. Using Evian as liquid refreshment makes for salt depletion. Switching to Gatorade is a big help.
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