"An Unquiet Mind" by Kay Redfield Jamison

Pros

• Clearly describes the condition of severe manic-depressive illness
• Excellent for helping loved ones understand bipolar disorder
• Never boring or difficult - holds attention throughout

Cons

• Sometimes the timeline is muddled - not a serious defect

Description

• Skillfully written, without a trace of self-pity.
• Will greatly increase understanding for those who deal with or love someone with this illness.
• Deals well with tough subjects like denial and medication compliance.

Guide Review - "An Unquiet Mind" by Kay Redfield Jamison

Manic depression (the author dislikes the term "bipolar disorder") is revealed as a creature of many moods: the seductively effortless well-being, confidence and energy of hypomania; the on- or over-the-edge frenzies of mania; the long, narrow gray prison of depression. Readers will feel the lure of a psychotic flight through the rings and moons of Saturn, share the terror of a experiencing a bloody hallucination, and even gain an understanding of the dark obsession with death and the pressures and rationalizations that led the author to a near-fatal suicide attempt. The importance of mixed episodes - the agitated merge of mania and depression - is emphasized in painful detail.

Dr. Jamison makes an excellent case, through her own experiences, for the need to treat manic depression with both medication and psychotherapy. And the precautionary agreement she describes making with her family and psychiatrist in the event she should become a danger to herself is something anyone who has experienced suicidal impulses should consider.

I found this book almost impossible to put down.