#manicdepression

For my manic-depressive friends

I am so, so sorry

For every time I was manic

When you were depressed

I’ve just met my match

Someone so manic

When I’m so depressed

And gods help me

I want to curl up and hide

So much movement, so much energy

Am I like that?

I’m so, so sorry

If I hurt you when I’m up

Because no one around me

Has ever been

Manic like me, near me

Depressed like me, near me

I noticed that the asks I’ve been receiving lately are about what’s [hypo]mania/what it feels like to be [hypo]manic or related to my treatment/what it’s like to take medication. I started to think about it and I remembered about Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison.

Dr. Kay Redfiel Jamison is a psychologist who is specialized in bipolar disorder and - wait for it - SHE IS BIPOLAR HERSELF. I think those two things combine really well because she spent years studying the disorder and many more years actually living the disorder.

I researched for interviews and lectures that would be nice and informative to bring into a post and I found this one interview that is divided in short videos, I’m gonna post all of them pointing out the topics that were covered in each one of them - if you want to watch the whole interview I’ll be posting that too.   

1. Descent into Madness: the moment when she realized she had bipolar disorder; Mania vs. Depression [what’s each one like];

2. Medicating Mania: when she started her meds; the fear of losing her career because of bipolar disorder; how to identify manic depression.

3. Madness as Muse: the relationship between mental illness and creativity - it doesn’t have to be a choice.

4. Life after diagnosis: [not really about her diagnosis] about her husband’s cancer diagnosis and how she coped with it; the difference between grief and depression.

FULL INTERVIEW HERE:

Psa: I’m not doing this bc I dont want to receive questions anymore. My ask is always open! I just thought it would be nice to bring Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison’s story here because it helped me a lot when I got diagnosed and started reasearching about bipolar.

I hope you find the answers you are looking for.