Persevered

“Kara Zivin brings to this bold and unflinching memoir a scientist’s mind, a storyteller’s art, and a mother’s love. Those with peripartum depression, their families, and their clinical caregivers will be informed and moved by Persevered. I’ll be recommending this wise, compassionate, and much-needed book to friends and colleagues.” - Suzanne Koven, MD, author of Letter to a Young Female Physician: Notes from a Medical Life

“Stunning, heartbreaking, and gorgeous-Persevered took my breath away. Vividly rendered and profoundly moving, this book is a true gift that will do so much good in the world. An unforgettable read I’ll be recommending to so many people.” - Rana Awdish, MD, author of In Shock: My Journey from Death to Recovery and the Redemptive Power of Hope

“Persevered is one of those rare memoirs that seamlessly blends personal journey and scientific expertise to engage and inspire. In the tradition of An Unquiet Mind and 10 Percent Happier, Kara Zivin fearlessly explores her own mental health struggles and the science behind them, offering powerful insights into resilience and healing in the context of a crucially important and deeply human public health issue.” - Ethan Kross, PhD, author of Shift: Managing Your Emotions—So They Don’t Manage You

“Persevered is a brave, lucid examination of maternal mental health that refuses easy answers. Kara Zivin writes with the authority of a researcher and the honesty of a mother, exposing how systems, and not women, are failing. A vital and validating book.” - Pooja Lakshmin, MD, author of Real Self-Care

“Persevered is a compelling fusion of the lyric and the scientific-a difficult balance-and one Kara Zivin pulls off with remarkable skill. This important book breaks long-held silences and speaks to women of all ages who remain hesitant to discuss their bodies and mental health. Zivin is simply brilliant: both as a writer and as a scientist. Her courage in sharing this narrative is deeply admirable.” - Sue William Silverman, MFA, author of Selected Misdemeanors: Essays at the Mercy of the Reader

“Kara Zivin grants language to what so many mothers are taught to hide. Persevered makes readers feel seen and less alone, offering both profound affirmation and a path toward compassion-for clinicians, loved ones, and mothers themselves.” - Jessica Zucker, PhD, author of Normalize It: Upending the Silence, Stigma, and Shame That Shape Women’s Lives and I Had a Miscarriage: A Memoir

“Kara Zivin lays bare the impossible collision of new motherhood, academic ambition, and mental collapse. Persevered is memoir at its most courageous-raw, exacting, and urgently necessary.” - Kelly Sundberg, PhD, MFA, author of Goodbye, Sweet Girl: A Story of Domestic Violence and Survival and The Answer is in the Wound: Trauma, Rage, and Alchemy

“Persevered clearly articulates what every perinatal clinician should know: maternal mental health crises are common, treatable, and deadly if ignored. Kara Zivin’s insightful and brave researcher-patient lens demands that we build better systems of care.” - Samantha Meltzer-Brody, MD, MPH, reproductive psychiatrist and executive dean, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill School of Medicine

“Kara Zivin’s stories of her mother’s and sister’s postpartum depressions illuminate a crucial truth: mental illness is inherited, yet our healthcare system neglects prevention and intervention during pregnancy. Her narrative exposes the denial and stigma that perpetuate this crisis-and shows we know how to fix it, but too often don’t.” - Jane Honikman, MS, founder, Postpartum Support International

Kara Zivin, PhD, MS, MA, MFA, is a professor of psychiatry, obstetrics and gynecology, and health management and policy at the University of Michigan. She aims to increase public awareness about mental health conditions and to influence policy addressing them by combining research expertise (data) and personal narrative (story). She has published over 250 peer-reviewed articles in health and medical journals and led more than $25 million in research grants and contracts.

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