Sociopathy and Anti-Social Personality Disorder

I heard the interview with Patric Gagne on Armchair Expert several months ago and immediately put her book Sociopath: A Memoir on my holds list at the library. Gagne is self-identified sociopath. She identifies herself as a liar, manipulative and emotionally detached. She describes her struggles with sociopathic anxiety and the desire to behave antisocially to treat her uncomfortable apathy. She suggests that sociopathy and anti-social personality disorder be separated into two different diagnoses as she believes that sociopathy can be treated.

Though she references treatment and her own research into sociopathy, the New Yorker could not find any published articles where she is an author. If you’re going to read a book written by a sociopath, she might not be a reliable narrator.

All in all, I thought it was an interesting read. It certainly gave me some empathy for people who struggle with these kinds of emotional challenges. Maybe I was manipulated into feeling that empathy.