Title: The Change Center
Author: Howard D. Blazek
Publisher: Howard D. Blazek
ISBN: 979-8890301444
Pages: 264
Genre: Biographies & Memoirs
Reviewed by: Jack Chambers
Hollywood Book Reviews
In the modern age, one of the most widely discussed, hotly debated, and important topics with which our society focuses on is the state of mental health and its treatment. For centuries mental health was regarded with little or no importance, often resorting to locking patients up in asylums rather than working to treat or cure those suffering with a particular ailment. It hasn’t been until recent years that mental health has been taken seriously by the wider public, and even then, mental wards still persist, hiring people who hold little care or regard for the patients in which they serve.
In author Howard D. Blazek’s The Change Center, mental health becomes the driving force as the author shares their experiences locked away in a closed psychiatric ward. The author’s experiences delve between the psychedelic induced hallucinations and emotions which landed him in the psychiatric ward to begin with; plus the lucid, thought-provoking reactions to his experiences in the moments coming down from the psychedelics, and the recovery which came months and sometimes years later.
The author did a spectacular job of writing in a succinct yet imaginative way. While some of that could be attributed to the hallucinations and altered perception the author was viewing his early moments in, the creativity and the vivid imagery that came with the author’s writing style really caught my attention, driving me to an understanding of the world within this ward. While each patient’s medical needs and experiences in this type of facility may vary, the way the author was able to touch upon both his own mental health journey and the physical and mental toll being in that ward for that week had on him made this such a compelling book.
This is the perfect book for those with an interest in mental health perspectives, especially those books that give readers a first-hand account of what living with mental health illness is like and the treatments which have evolved and grown in wards such as this over time. This is also a great read for those who enjoy memoirs, and getting a personal perspective on an individual’s life. The heart and passion for which the author writes, and the insightful nature of the work as the author conveys each day’s experiences on his mind and body during that week in the ward will keep readers invested in the author’s words.