Valium. Paxil. Prozac. Prescribed by the millions each year, these medications have been hailed as wonder drugs and vilified as numbing and addictive crutches. Where did this ''blockbuster drug'' phenomenon come from? What factors led to the mass acceptance of tranquilizers and antidepressants? And how has their widespread use affected American culture? David Herzberg addresses these questions by tracing the rise of psychiatric medicines, from Miltown in the 1950s to Valium in the 1970s to Prozac in the 1990s. The result is more than a story of doctors and patients. From bareknuckled marketing campaigns to political activism by feminists and antidrug warriors, the fate of psychopharmacology has been intimately wrapped up in the broader currents of modern American history. Beginning with the emergence of a medical marketplace for psychoactive drugs in the postwar consumer culture, Herzberg traces how ''happy pills'' became embroiled in Cold War gender battles and the explosive politics of the ''war against drugs'' -- and how feminists brought the two issues together in a dramatic campaign against Valium addiction in the 1970s. A final look at antidepressants shows that even the Prozac phenomenon owed as much to commerce and culture as to scientific wizardry.With a barrage of ''ask your doctor about'' advertisements competing for attention with shocking news of drug company malfeasance, Happy Pills is an invaluable look at how the commercialization of medicine has transformed American culture since the end of World War II.
Acknowledgments Introduction: Medicine, Commerce, and Culture 1. Blockbuster Drugs in the Age of Anxiety 2. Listening to Miltown 3. Wonder Drugs and Drug Wars 4. The Valium Panic 5. Prozac and the Incorporation of the Brain Conclusion: Better Living through Chemistry? Appendix A: Medications Mentioned Appendix B: Prescriptions for Psychiatric Drugs, 19552005 Notes Index
""Happy Pills provides readers, especially college-level students, with an excellent historical introduction to the subject of mood-altering prescription drugs as used in the United States in the post-World War II era. Herzberg's clear and readable prose masks in part the depth of his understanding and analysis of the topic. In addition to its classroom potential, this is a serious book with valuable insights for scholars in the field.""
