The idea that oneβs distress is primarily caused by a neurochemical deficiency that can be corrected by a drug is a fiction. The idea that it explains first-person experience or that it offers some exemption from responsibility is a fiction as well. As the interviews made clear, people adopted the biogenetic account because they thought it was based in science. The interviews also show how this account undermines the kinds of introspection and self-examination that can lead to meaningful self-knowledge.
It isn't a chemical imbalance, it's unrealistic expectations and shitty mental models that lead to you not getting what you want out of life. Thus distress due to rejection and failure.