Mclean Hospital By Susanna Kaysen Summary

Analysis

This book is a memoir by Susanna Kaysen where she describes her time in the psychiatric hospital, McLean Hospital, in Massachusetts. She begins her story by questioning how it is that she ended up in the hospital. She also describes mental illness as a parallel universe and that people gradually catch glimpse of this universe before they fully enter this new world. The novel is not told in a sequential storyline, but rather is a series of events that happen during Kaysen’s time in McLean. It all started when she visited a psychiatrist in Boston, who suggests that she take a rest and go stay in the McLean Hospital. Kaysen describes the other women in the ward and explains some of their diagnoses and why they are in the hospital. She also tells stories of what happens while at the hospital.
Kaysen, herself, was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD), where a person has long-term patterns of unstable emotions, self-image and interpersonal relationships. People with BPD tend to be impulsive and engage in risky sexual behaviors, self-harm and suicide attempts. These people experience intense abandonment fears when faced with limited separation or spontaneous changes in plans. They also have an unclear identity and sense

In the book, she says that she had an affair with her high school English teacher. Also, during a guest visit where her boyfriend came to see her at McLean, she performed oral sex on him. Both of these situations show Kaysen participating in risky sexual behaviors. Also, we learn that she tried to commit suicide by overdosing on aspirin, but was unsuccessful. When explaining her suicide attempt, she says that after taking the aspirin, she regretted her decision and didn’t really want to die, but only wanted to kill the part of her that pushed for suicide. Thus, she says that she was successful in her “partial