My Lobotomy: A Memoir

My Lobotomy: A Memoir

At twelve, Howard Dully was guilty of the same crimes as other boys his age: he was moody and messy, rambunctious with his brothers, contrary just to prove a point, and perpetually at odds with his parents. Yet somehow, this normal boy became one of the youngest people on whom Dr. Walter Freeman performed his barbaric transorbitalâ€”or ice pickâ€”lobotomy.

Abandoned by his family within a year of the surgery, Howard spent his teen years in mental institutions, his twenties in jail, and his thirties in a bottle. It wasnâ€™t until he was in his forties that Howard began to pull his life together. But even as he began to live the â€œnormalâ€ life he had been denied, Howard struggled with one question: Why?

â€œOctober 8, 1960. I gather that Mrs. Dully is perpetually talking, admonishing, correcting, and getting worked up into a spasm, whereas her husband is impatient, explosive, rather brutal, wonâ€™t let the boy speak for himself, and calls him numbskull, dimwit, and other uncomplimentary names.â€

There were only three people who would know the truth: Freeman, the man who performed the procedure; Lou, his cold and demanding stepmother who brought Howard to the doctorâ€™s attention; and his father, Rodney. Of the three, only Rodney, the man who hadnâ€™t intervened on his sonâ€™s behalf, was still living. Time was running out. Stable and happy for the first time in decades, Howard began to search for answers.

â€œDecember 3, 1960. Mr. and Mrs. Dully have apparently decided to have Howard operated on. I suggested [they] not tell Howard anything about it.â€

Through his research, Howard met other lobotomy patients and their families, talked with one of Freemanâ€™s sons about his fatherâ€™s controversial lifeâ€™s work, and confronted Rodney about his complicity. And, in the archive where the doctorâ€™s files are stored, he finally came face to face with the truth.

Revealing what happened to a child no oneâ€”not his father, not the medical community, not the stateâ€”was willing to protect, My Lobotomy exposes a shameful chapter in the history of the treatment of mental illness. Yet, ultimately, this is a powerful and moving chronicle of the life of one man. Without reticence, Howard Dully shares the story of a painfully dysfunctional childhood, a misspent youth, his struggle to claim the life that was taken from him, and his redemption.

From the Hardcover edition.
Country USA
Manufacturer Crown
Binding Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate 2007-09-04
Format Kindle eBook

Country	USA
Manufacturer	Crown
Binding	Kindle Edition
ReleaseDate	2007-09-04
Format	Kindle eBook

My Lobotomy: A Memoir

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