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"Depression “is awful beyond words or sounds or images”, while hypomania and mania produce “a different level of sensing and feeling and thinking”."
An unquiet mind is a memoir written by Dr Kay Redfield Jamison .The author is a professor of Psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and the recipient of numerous scientific awards .The author tells the story of her life as a manic-depressive patient ( She prefers this terminology over "Bipolar disease").The beginnings before the initial diagnostic and the evolution including struggles and triumphs over the disease .
Being a healthcare provider ,reading through this book was a way to understand more about manic-depressive illness ,especially from the angle of the patient whose at the same time a specialist at the field .
The book was written in an effort to humanize and destigmatize the disease ,insisting on the complexity of the human being .That she's more than her diagnosis .
Being at both sides didn't make the journey easier .The author through this book takes us in a journey of self discovery ,from her reluctance to taking medicine to being a necessary part of her life .The support from family ,friends and the medical team ,was the constant through the ups and downs .She experienced mild manic episodes to severe episodes and from depression to suicide attempt .She explains that milder manic episodes were of great impact in her life ,she experienced creativity ,efficiency and enjoyed life .Which made her reluctant to use Lithium ,While taking Lithium she felt liveless ,numb and incompetent But the severe episodes and her near death made her realize the importance of medication .
Themes of creativity ,love ,family and academic journey are explored in this book .
I highly recommend reading it to learn more about manic-depressive illness .The descriptions of her episodes are so vivid sometimes scary ,explaining how hard it is talking about it .
Mental health illness deserves more recognition and support .
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