On the heels of Dr. Mark McDonald’s bestselling book United States of Fear: How America Fell Victim to a Mass Delusional Psychosis, the acclaimed author and psychiatrist follows up with a practical, personal, twelve-step recovery program to defeat fear addiction worldwide.

The pandemic of fear continues to grip our world long past the clinical effects of COVID-19. Many people cannot let go of the fear fueling the Mass Delusional Psychosis which has plagued millions since early 2020. In his latest book, Freedom from Fear, Dr. Mark McDonald applies his well-honed psychiatric acuity to the undiagnosed epidemic of fear addiction. Just like a drug, fear becomes an unhealthy mental and emotional dependency that must be broken. In Freedom from Fear, Dr. McDonald presents the essential twelve-step guide to personal and worldwide recovery. His precepts include simple but practical steps like “Face the Mirror,” “Don’t be a Sheep,” “Choose Reality,” “Reject Narcissism,” “Think for Yourself,” “Embrace Adulthood,” “Pay Attention,” and “Embrace Fearless Leadership.” Bold and straightforward, Dr. McDonald once again draws on his experience as a psychiatrist and physician to diagnose this worldwide affliction. In this companion book to United States of Fear, he prescribes the consummate treatment plan for eradicating this Mass Delusional Psychosis once and for all.

Psychiatrist Mark McDonald diagnoses our country as suffering from a mass delusional psychosis, driven by a pandemic of fear in response to COVID-19.

As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, LA-based psychiatrist Mark McDonald grew increasingly concerned by the negative mental health effects he witnessed among his patients–and Americans nationwide. These negative effects–stress, anxiety, depression, addiction, domestic violence, suicidal ideation–were all directly traceable to the climate of fear being stoked by public health authorities and irresponsibly amplified by national media. These fears in turn drove a hysterical overreaction from government in the form of draconian lockdowns and mask and vaccine mandates of questionable value. But the fear did not abate and quickly took on a life of its own, becoming an unstoppable force in all our lives.

At last McDonald began to speak out, explaining that America is actually suffering from two pandemics: a viral one and a psychological one, a “pandemic of fear” that is in many ways more dangerous and damaging than the virus itself. Rooted in the natural anxieties of women on behalf of their children and families, inflamed and amplified by sensationalistic media, and driven over the top by hamfisted authoritarian measures from those in power, McDonald diagnoses the country at large as suffering from a mass delusional psychosis. This is not a metaphor. The malady itself is very real. Whether we can regain our collective sanity as a society remains to be seen.