Be More Human - by Norman Lamb (Paperback)

About the Book

A call to action to reform our mental health system by focusing on prevention and holistic, compassionate care. Sharing stories of patients and pioneering practitioners, this book is full of inspiring stories and suggestions to enact meaningful change.

Book Synopsis

Why do people with mental health conditions die 15-20 years earlier than people without?
Why is £100 million spent every year placing patients far from their homes?
How did the question, 'What matters to you?' transform mental health care in Norway?

We live in a country in which community is fading, inequality is growing, and discrimination is still far too common. At the same time, services dedicated to our wellbeing and mental health can feel less than human - ignoring or even adding to this growing crisis.

Sir Norman Lamb - former Health Minister, NHS trust chair, and dedicated mental health campaigner - has seen the cracks in the system up close. In this book, he sets out to answer the questions above, and many others, uncovering the real reasons why our mental health services are failing. In its pages you'll read eye-opening stories from patients who have been let down, but you will also hear inspiring tales from trailblazers who are shaking things up with creative, community-first solutions.

Sir Norman is clear - we need a mental health revolution - but what can we do to create mental health care which is more human?

Review Quotes

Exceptional...compelling and compassionate. As a father to a profoundly autistic daughter and a 6'4 black man with experiences in mental health institutions, some sections were tough to read. But the book is full of hope and possibility for different, more human solutions.--Clarke Carlisle, Chair of Mind and former Premier League footballer

This book is a call to arms for those urgently needing help. Mental illness is still the killer of them all and yet it's ignored. Norman continues to fight the good fight.--Ruby Wax OBE, performer, writer and mental health campaigner

Norman Lamb is always worth listening to on mental health. Be More Human confronts the failures of an outdated system and highlights brilliant humane approaches, demonstrating that change is possible. A vital and timely contribution to a debate in need of fresh ideas and energy.--Alastair Campbell, broadcaster, journalist and mental health activist

A timely, persuasive analysis with powerful real-life stories at its heart. Lamb outlines the enduring injustices caused by our ailing mental health system before arguing for a better way through sharing the alternative - more human - approaches and the pioneering community-based projects and people working to transform lives for the better.--Saba Salman, journalist and author of Double Discrimination

Having been a passionate mental health campaigner for nearly 40 years, I feel this book adds a much-needed, respected voice. For too long, we have relegated the importance of mental health and resilience in childhood to the realms of schools and charities. As Norman so rightly attests, instead of just stigmatizing and medicalizing, we need to start creating innovative ways to build resilience and prevent mental ill health in the young. Norman's book is a must read.--Trisha Goddard, mental health campaigner and broadcast journalist

Compelling and compassionate, holistic and humane, Sir Norman Lamb's book is an informed and impassioned call for change in how we treat mental health.--Dr Sian Williams, Chartered Counselling Psychologist, Broadcaster and Author of The Power of Anxiety

Norman Lamb asks all the right questions about mental health provision in this country because he has lived the problems that exist.--Mark Austin, Chief Presenter at Sky News

This book is about how people experience the fragmented, inhuman, and so often harmful mental health services in the UK. True and painful stories of real people will utterly convince you that we cannot go on doing this. And alternatives do exist! This highly recommended book will show you some of the foundations we need to restore the humanity, compassion and the common care all too often absentfrom mental health services today. A must-read for anyone anywhere near mental health services!--Professor Tim Kendall CBE

About the Author

Sir Norman Lamb is a mental health campaigner. He was the Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament (MP) for North Norfolk from 2001 to 2019 and was Minister of State for Care and Support at the Department of Health from 2012 to 2015. He was the Chair of South London and Maudsley Foundation Trust, a specialist Mental Health Trust, from 2019 until 2025. In 2019, Norman received a knighthood for his services to mental health.