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crowyhead
, May 18, 2007
(view all comments by crowyhead)
Jamison writes with clarity and intensity about what it is like to suffer from manic-depressive, or bipolar, illness (Jamison actually prefers the older term "manic-depressive," because she feels "bipolar" doesn't evoke the dangerous mixed states experienced by those who suffer from the illness). She is especially eloquent about what is difficult for outsiders to understand: why do so many bipolar patients repeatedly stop medication, when it so effectively controls the disease? Another fascinating aspect of this memoir is her discussion of what it is like to be a mental health professional who is "out" as struggling personally with mental illness. Definitely well worth reading, particularly if you have struggled to understand a manic-depressive loved one.
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