Brooke Siem

2023 Best Indie Book Award Winner, Memoir An unforgettable memoir about the turmoil of antidepressant withdrawal and the work it takes to unravel the stories we tell ourselves to rationalize our suffering. Brooke Siem was among the first generation of minors to be prescribed antidepressants. Initially diagnosed and treated in the wake of her father's sudden death, this psychiatric intervention sent a message that something was pathologically wrong with her and that the only "fix" was medication. As a teenager, she stepped into the hazy world of antidepressants just at the time when she was forming the foundation of her identity. For the following fifteen years, every situation she faced was seen through the lens of brokenness. A decade and a half later, still on the same cocktail of drugs, Brooke found herself hanging halfway out her Manhattan high-rise window, calculating the time it would take to hit the ground. As she looked for breaks in the pedestrian traffic patterns, a thought dawned on her: "I've spent half my life--and my entire adult life--on antidepressants. Who might I be without them?" Unfurled against a global backdrop, May Cause Side Effects is the gripping story of what happened when, after fifteen years and 32,760 pills, Brooke was faced with a profound choice that plunged her into a year of excruciating antidepressant withdrawal and forced her to rebuild her entire life. An illuminating memoir for those who take, prescribe, or are considering psychiatric drugs, May Cause Side Effects is an honest reminder that the road to true happiness is not mapped on a prescription pad. Instead, Brooke's story reveals the messy reality of how healing begins at the bottomless depth of our suffering, in the deep self-work that pushes us to the edges of who we are.

An unforgettable memoir about the turmoil of antidepressant withdrawal and the work it takes to unravel the stories we tell ourselves to rationalize our suffering—all unfurled against a global backdrop.Brooke Siem was among the first generation of teens to be prescribed antidepressants. Initially prescribed a cocktail of drugs at fifteen years old, she and her mother accepted the recommended ""solution"" with no understanding of how the chemicals might change her developing mind or how she might stop the drugs down the road.A decade and a half later, still on the same set of drugs, Brooke was contemplating suicide. If the antidepressants were working, then why did she still want to take her own life? And if the drugs weren't working, who might she be without them?May Cause Side Effects is the gripping story of what happened when, after fifteen years and 10,000 antidepressants, Siem was forced into harrowing antidepressant withdrawal when an opportunity to travel around the world dropped into her lap.An illuminating memoir for those who take, prescribe, or are considering drugs to blunt the pain and experiences that shape our reality, May Cause Side Effects is an honest reminder that the road to true healing and happiness is not found on a prescription pad, but in deep self-work that pushes us to the agonizing edges of who we are.

These 75 cupcakes have a kick - and they're not for kids! The product of Prohibition Bakery, a downtown hole in the wall, they're simply the best, the booziest treats in Manhattan. Each diminutive cake is a perfect, delicious balance of texture, flavour, and fragrance. That's why an astonishing variety of fans, from Food & Wine to Playboy, Newsweek, and Thrillist.com, have come together to heap praise upon bakers Brooke Siem and Leslie Feinberg for their creations. Make a "Dark & Stormy" (Gosling Rum, ginger beer, and lime), an "Old Fashioned" (whiskey, bitters, orange, and a whiskey-soaked cherry), or other cupcake and you'll become a convert from the very first bite.