Paranoia: A Journey Into Extreme Mistrust and Anxiety

Written by Daniel Freeman

Narrated by Robin Laing

'A TRULY IMPORTANT BOOK’ JOHN HUMPHRYS

'FASCINATING… SHOCKING' SPECTATOR

What is paranoia? What makes us mistrustful? How can this be overcome?

Daniel Freeman, Professor of Psychology at Oxford, has spent thirty years at the vanguard of paranoia research and treatment. This remarkable and moving book tells the story of that journey.

For decades, conventional wisdom held that paranoia was only experienced by people with severe mental health problems and little could be done to rectify its disastrous effects. Paranoia gives us a front row seat as Freeman turns the traditional view on its head.

He develops life-changing treatments for clinical paranoia – often using state-of-the-art technology like virtual reality. He reveals that suspicion is rife in society, with paranoia widespread, conspiracy theories rampant and emotion all too often trumping evidence. He discovers the causes of mistrust, including the role of genes, trauma, lack of sleep, worry, low self-confidence, cannabis use and hearing voices, and delves into the murky world of Covid-19 conspiracy theories. Lighting up the narrative throughout are the rarely heard voices of people whose lives have been almost wrecked by paranoia – and then in many cases transformed by Freeman’s groundbreaking treatments.

This is also a practical book. Freeman shows how we can measure our own levels of mistrust. He explains how we can remedy things if those levels are higher than we’d like, because although mistrust can seem engrained, things can change for the better. Ultimately, it can be overcome. Compelling and compassionate, this is a gripping tale from the front line of suspicion – an impassioned plea for the urgent rebuilding of trust between us all.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Release date: Feb 1, 2024
• ISBN: 9780008472610

Daniel Freeman

Dr Daniel Freeman is the leading clinical psychologist of his generation. Still only in his mid-thirties, he is a Wellcome Trust Fellow, a Senior Lecturer at the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, and a consultant clinical psychologist in the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust. He publishes prolifically in leading international journals, makes regular keynote addresses at international conferences and is an Associate Editor of the British Journal of Clinical Psychology. A key figure in the latest developments in cognitive behaviour therapy, he teaches and supervises clinicians across the globe. His work has brought interviews with the likes of Radio 4 and the BBC World Service, and with national newspapers such as The Times, Guardian, and Daily Mail. He is young enough to continue playing five-a-side football twice a week, but old enough to wonder for how much longer.