Right from the start, I did not find this book engaging. Unlike The Quiet Room: A Journey Out of the Torment of Madness which I have recently read and in which your heart absolutely breaks for the author, Ms. Jamison tends to recount her experiences with the cold, clinical eye of science, rather than expressing in what way her illness affects her feelings.

This book reads like a thesis paper. Ms. Jamison "reports" on her illness, with no emotion behind the words. Even as she talks about the death of one of her patients as well as her own suicide attempt and resultant coma, the words are cold and critical, making it hard to empathize with her.

As you read, she suddenly throws in statements such as "I was married by then," and "I was seeing patients by then." There was no mention up to that point that she was even dating someone, or that she was building a client base. I would think there would be some emotional account leading up to these milestones, describing what part her illness played in these important events, but they seem to be an afterthought.

She constantly provides lists of activities and accomplishments. A great deal of the book centers around her research and treatment of patients, and her fears seem to revolve only around whether or not she may be forced to give up her clinical practice and teaching if "found out," rather than providing any details as to how her illness directly affected her otherwise.

I feel she oversimplifies a complex illness which manifests in many different forms. She repeatedly overuses the word "madness," and at one point even uses the phrase "being crazy," which I find totally unsympathetic, especially for someone suffering from the illness. I believe this has unpleasant connotations, and contributes to societal stigma and misunderstanding.

A typical sentence: "In the cold light of day, however, the reality and destructiveness of rekindled illness tend to dampen the evocativeness of such selectively remembered, wistful, intense, and gentle moments." A bit too cerebral for me, bordering on what I might call "difficult to follow." She quotes Eliot, Byron, Melville and Lowell, among others, with whom the casual reader may not be entirely familiar (I am referring to myself).

This account does to some degree open a window into the world of bipolar disorder, but it left me cold without much new understanding into the emotions of the sufferer. It's definitely not the most moving or poignant account I've read about living with this type of illness. It's worth a look, but it's not the first book someone trying to understand this illness needs on his or her shelf.

Right from the start, I did not find this book engaging. Unlike "The Quite Room" which I have recently read and in which your heart absolutely breaks for the author, Ms. Jamison tends to recount her experiences with the cold, clinical eye of science, rather than expressing in what way her illness affects her feelings.

This book reads like a thesis paper. Ms. Jamison "reports" on her illness, with no emotion behind the words. Even as she talks about the death of one of her patients as well as her own suicide attempt and resultant coma, the words are cold and critical, making it hard to empathize with her.

As you read, she suddenly throws in statements such as "I was married by then," and "I was seeing patients by then." There was no mention up to that point that she was even dating someone, or that she was building a client base. I would think there would be some emotional account leading up to these milestones, describing what part her illness played in these important events, but they seem to be an afterthought.

She constantly provides lists of activities and accomplishments. A great deal of the book centers around her research and treatment of patients, and her fears seem to revolve only around whether or not she may be forced to give up her clinical practice and teaching if "found out," rather than providing any details as to how her illness directly affected her otherwise.

I feel she oversimplifies a complex illness which manifests in many different forms. She repeatedly overuses the word "madness," and at one point even uses the phrase "being crazy," which I find totally unsympathetic, especially for someone suffering from the illness. I believe this has unpleasant connotations, and contributes to societal stigma and misunderstanding.

A typical sentence: "In the cold light of day, however, the reality and destructiveness of rekindled illness tend to dampen the evocativeness of such selectively remembered, wistful, intense, and gentle moments." A bit too cerebral for me, bordering on what I might call "difficult to follow." She quotes Eliot, Byron, Melville and Lowell, among others, with whom the casual reader may not be entirely familiar (I am referring to myself).

This account does to some degree open a window into the world of bipolar disorder, but it left me cold without much new understanding into the emotions of the sufferer. It's definitely not the most moving or poignant account I've read about living with this type of illness. It's worth a look, but it's not the first book someone trying to understand this illness needs on his or her shelf.

Kay Redfield Jamison's personal account of suffering from the relentless manic-depressive illness is extremely powerful. Jamison uses unique storytelling techniques to display the disorder in a very accurate light. What may initially seem monotonously repetitive turns out to be Jamison's use of the cycles of repetition in the portrayal of the true nature of manic-depression. Without pausing to think, readers may find the vicious cycle--depression, lithium, stop lithium, depression--to represent a boring storyline; however, after considering this cycle's role in the illness, one should realize its importance to the very essence of its representation.

Jamison opened my eyes to an aspect of manic-depression that I had never before considered; despite the terrible feelings that "black" episodes of depression induce in those suffering from the illness, they are often reluctant to give up the omnipotent feelings they achieve during manic episodes. Upon simply knowing that fact, I might not be convinced that the positives outweigh the negatives. Jamison uses such vivid language to describe the wonderful aspects of mania, however, which puts me, the reader, into the position of manic-depressive people when they are faced with the option to trade in these feelings in order to reduce the feelings of depression. Had the descriptions been only of the depressions, it would seem as though one should want to do anything to eliminate those feelings; however, after reading about the intoxicating feelings, the impossibly productive urges, it is clearer why treating the manias along with the depressions would be a great sacrifice.

Jamison's representations of her relationships with others are essential to both her writing style and the understanding of her experience with the illness. While many writers use somewhat descriptive sex scenes to define relationships with love interests, Jamison tends to only subtly allude to sex, rather than describing the event of it. Jamison describes a scene where she is with David, the man I perceived to be Jamison's deepest love interest throughout the memoir. The two are on a walk together, when David stops to catch his breath. Jamison then proceeds to note David's comment that he had been "getting too much exercise at night," but leaves the reference at that. Someone who is not alert to the possibility of a sexual relationship between the two characters might not even make note of the reference, which seems preferable to the bluntness of a graphic sex scene. This is one of the slim selection of mentions of sex at all throughout the book, and they do not become significantly more obvious than this one.

In the past, I didn't have a particularly clear understanding of the illness; I didn't understand things like why people with this illness stop taking their lithium, why they don't get help--the problem was that I didn't realize how truly out of control the patients' lives become.

I'd just like to correct something is one of the reviews.

Kay Jamison is not a psychiatrist. She is a psychologist who heads a psychiatric department. If you have read this book, you know that.

I've read over a dozen books on Bipolar Disorder. Being Bipolar myself, I really felt a kinship with Kay. My family also read this book and tell me that they now have a better understanding of my illness.

A very good book.

Like others, I came away from this book with a far greater understanding, and more sympathetic view of those people in my life who suffer with manic-depression. I have good friends and cousins who wrestle with this disease, and though I tried to empathize, of course I couldn't.

The one question I have, though, is that I thought people with manic depression who are on lithium should NOT drink alcohol? Certainly, the good doctor doesn't sound like an alcoholic, but there's plenty of mention of drinking... someone, please set me straight...

This was the first stand alone book on Bipolar I have read, and the only one most of my family has read. It is based on the lived experiences of a Bipolar I sufferer (lack of a better word). Kay is a good writter but gets bogged down in accademia speak which is a bit distracting. Unlike the text book she has co written, in comparison, this is easy to read. I still sugest you read it, and keep it on your book shelf, as it promotes bipolar as something normal inteligent successful people can have, instead of the stigma that all people with Bipolar are stupid and dangerous.

A very insightful writing about Bi-Polar illness. I enjoyed the book and it convinced me that the diagnosis is being incorrectly overused.

portrait of a controlable disease . I understand jlalbee manic-depressive illness for the charmed life , but i do not agree . The more learned people know , the better we will be able to be part of the healing process . Some readers might be a bit resentful is not accurate , the lonely and the poor will most likely not read this book . But the more we know , more compasionate we will become and be able to help . Even that i do agree that her case is above the normal person , it takes this kind of person to guide us to the tunnel , so that we can be run over by that train called madness that we all posses in different degrees . So be it .

I found this book to be very helpful in understanding bi polar illness.
My son suffers with bi polar and my mom also suffered with it. I finally
realized that it can never be fully understood by anyone unless they
actually have it, but I have come closer to accepting it and learning how to cope with it.

An interesting product for anyone interested in the workings of the mind. Of particular interest to people with or concerned with people who show symptoms of bipolar disorders.

Mind-Opening. Sad. Comical. Frightening. Genuine. Interesting.
This is an Excellent portrayal of Manic Depressive/Bipolar Disorder. I recommend this book to anyone who has (or loves anyone who has) this illness - - You will either find yourself nodding your head or you will find your eyes opening for the first time about this illness. . . or Both!

Brilliant mind and character candidly exposes memoirs; richly sensitive, the unquiet mind brings clarity and treats a difficult subject with competence and affection.

Not as good as I had heard. A little excessive drama in the descriptive elements of the text. I would have liked more about her feelings and motivations.

It is a very informative book if you want to understand the personal experience of someone with Bipolar illness.

I recommend That's How the Light Gets In: Memoir of a Psychiatrist by Susan Rako, M.D. The title comes from a song by Leonard Cohen: "There is a crack, a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in." Rako's book is really a fascinating -- and inspiring - read. The writing simply flows.

As someone who has only recently been diagnosed, reading this book helped me feel less alone. Because the author so clearly describes her experiences and her feelings about them, it has also helped me better understand which of my symptoms may be attributed to this illness versus other conditions and recognize things that I never thought were out of the norm.

An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness

Having two close relatives with manic-depressive illness, I felt rather compelled to read this title. Moreover, two good acquaintances of mine recommended me to examine it. It turned out to be a great and insightful experience that let me be cognizant of the turmoil that manic-depressive sufferers have to deal with. Dr. Kay Jamison does a superb job at describing the symptoms of this illness and pinpoints the reasons behind its sufferers trying to avoid taking their medication:

First, as Jamison emphasizes, the disease is a hereditary ailment that she inherited from her father. It almost leads one to believe that manic-depressives should not have offspring. This disadvantage is, from my humble opinion and experience, offset by the true love and dedication that these sufferers have for their nieces and nephews as Jamison emphasizes in her work.

Second, the intermittent manic episodes and subsequent depressions make life, on the one hand delightful, and in the other hand dreadful. The manic episodes, she recalls, giving her energy, creativity, more that active sexual life, shopping sprees, and enjoyment in general. The depressions were dreadful, were she could not get out of her bed, enjoy "normal life", and even, at one time, attempted suicide taking an overdose of Lithium.

Third, Jamison was prescribed Lithium for her illnesses, which made her lack concentration, not being able to read or write, not performing well in sports, missing her manic episodes, and severe forms of intoxication. However, Lithium worked for her, so as did the wonderful psychiatrist that she was seeing, her psychotherapy, her incomparable physician friends and loving relationships- including her wonderfully involved family. Later on, she was lowered her dose of the medication to a more accurate one, and was able to continue with an extremely normal life. She emphasizes emphatically the reasons behind why sufferers want to stop taking their medications, albeit they are the rationale behind their wellness.

Being a clinical physician herself, and teaching about mood disorders at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, she was quite uneasy about letting others know about her ailment. Nevertheless, she had the will to do it, and here in this title are the results. Of course, because she was immersed in the psychiatric arena, she had a lot of medical support from physician friends and never in her life went into a psychiatry hospitalization ward, which is utterly common in manic-depressive sufferers.

This is a title a will recommend to relatives, friends and acquaintances of Bipolar I disorder sufferers, but which would never be given to read to a manic-depressive itself.

A sad and yet a beautiful account of a young lady's struggle with bipolar and manic depression. Even in her writing (from the choppyness) you can tell that her mind is struggling with this madness. She lets you know that her mind is not the only thing effected by her condition, that it also consumed her body makeing her weak at times and active at others. Even though I loved to read it I would still like to have read about her theraputic approach to dealing with her condition. It's always nice to know how her family and her collegues reacted to her condition as well.

This book was so helpful in understanding the struggles of people with bipolar. It was very easy to read and understand. I was so impressed by Kay Redfield Jamison's openness in sharing the conflicts and confusions she experienced. Her successes were an encouraging to all of us who love someone with a bipolar disorder.An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness

As newly diagnosed with bipolar disorder, I was initially drawn to the title of the book, because "An Unquiet Mind" was what I felt I had. I am not a stupid person, by any means, but I did not feel like the author spoke to me personally about bipolar disorder or her experiences with it. The author uses clinical language and words most people would have to look up in Webster's Dictionary to understand. I feel as though the author's intended audience are her colleagues in academia. I was insulted by the author's use of the term "madness" in describing bipolar disorder, as I do not feel that I am mad, or ever have been. I do not think I have suffered from the illness to the degree that the author has, but she did not make herself or her experience with the disorder seem human like or real to me at all. In some ways, the author almost seems to have a romantic type fascination with bipolar disorder, and I see nothing even remotely romantic about having this disorder. A truly good author has the ability to be on the same level as her reader, and bring them into the story being told. I did not feel that way while reading this book, and I wasn't able to connect on a level with the author in which she made herself seem vulnerable or to which I felt some sort of empathy for her or her illness; and since I too have bipolar disorder, I find that to be one of the most important reasons why I cannot recommend this book. Come down to Earth, Ms. Jamison; that's where you will find the rest of us.

This is the most "on key" book I have read about an unquiet mind. Jamison's depiction of the disease is easy to read and to the point. If you want an informative read, don't let this one slip away. It is a must have.

I bought this book because I was listening to an Abnormal Psych podcast, and three of the episodes dealt with the book. I haven't listened to those yet, but I did just finish the book.
I found it to be well written, easy to read (despite the occasional need for a dictionary), and most of all : it explains how the disease works and what it feels like without being too scientific about it, and with giving insight into what it feels like to be manic/depressive.
It's got a lot of (her) personality poured onto the pages.
I know no one with manic-depressive illness, I've never really read anything about it, but I feel as if I have a good bit of understanding now.
I found it very interesting to read that the Lithium side effects are very similar to what someone with cfids goes through (obviously minus the manic/depressive episodes and mood swings).
The "severe and prolonged depression" part got really emphasized in the book which after the 10th time had me sigh a "yeah, I got it the 5th time", but maybe that was because she wanted to make it really clear that this was not the usual kind of low-serotonin depression.

I bought this book like most people, because I was told it was great. Nothing could be more remote from the reality of the book. Let's see why.

For one, Kay is an over-achiever. Despite the fact that some people could classify me as one, I know it's not the reality of most people with bipolar, although she keeps on repeating it over and over.

For two, the poor woman lives in a world that doesn't exist: perfect childhood, perfect lovers, perfect friends. Of course there is something that she either doctored up or didn't have the courage to admit.

For three, the scene of her in lingerie in her bathroom cutting her veins after sex - I'm sorry - it's ludicrous. During most of her "psychotic episodes" she is much more together than I am in a bad day LOL

But the thing that really yucked me out is how she said that love is what saved her and - especially - how she rationalized the fact that her husband didn't want children from a mentally ill wife.

The only point I could relate to was her missing her productive, happy highs which - again - aren't what most bipolars experience.

In short, her book could be written by Danielle Steel if it wasn't that Danielle Steel did write a book on her late son who did have bipolar, and did a spectacular job. Read that one instead!

Redfield Jamison gifted the world with her memoir about bipolar which targets the disorder from two angles: the professional and the personal. Story is always profound and powerful, and I greatly appreciated her commitment to honesty of what it means to live with bipolar. She truly combined the best of two worlds - the world of truth and the facts about bipolar, juxtaposed against her own story.

Possibly the most eye-opening part of the book is her struggle with lithium, and she covers the pros and cons, and wonderfully illustrates the lifesaving effects of the drug. Although she explains the many side effects and the disadvantages of the drug, she also reveals how many times it has saved her life...for better or worse.

If this isn't a unique book, I'd like to read a counterpart. Ms. Jamison pours it all out with a high level of intensity about her (nearly) life-long struggle with manic depressive illness. Her role as a victim, beneficiary and student of the illness, with a rare intelligence and gift to survive and explain, makes this an exceptional story. What an impressive history for a young woman!

The book partially develops a theme that the author covered in a separate book: how moderate illness may spark true creativity and contribute to unusual results. She clearly claims that for her own productivity, with slight mania and its juiced feeling driving many of her most memorable periods that she cannot reproduce when "normal". Jamison even comments on the common question of the tradeoff of extra spark for bouts of depression. What would we give up ourselves for special moments of talent?

The very idea is where Jamison risked being somewhat tiresome, with the "I was so talented" attitude, in combination with how wonderful so many of her friends, lovers and associates were. Gee, it's great that all the guys were so handsome and smart.

Obviously, her own abilities brought Jamison in contact with exceptionally talented people who probably saved her life. How can one not think of all the other sufferers without such access and insight? How many of those did not survive or never even understood their problem? Ms. Jamison certainly understands that and her decades of research, while certainly beneficial to herself, have helped the general population. To her credit, she not only survived, she has contributed well beyond the norm.

That ultimate (mostly) successful result sets this apart from a "crash and burn" suicidal story. I wouldn't say it's a happy ending, because she never solves the ultimate problem. There's a bit of "rope a dope" where Jamison is still the eventual victor of the match on points.

A new edition would be nice with an updated personal history, an update on current thinking about the illness, and a current view on lithium and other drugs as treatment.

4.5 stars

When I read "An Unquiet Mind" I saw my father, a house painter and furniture maker sharing the same experience as Dr. Jamison. Now there are so many things I finally understand. My father was put on Lithium by the Veteran's Administration. The VA had no communication with us. Thank you for this enlightening text.

"An Unquiet Mind" was one of the first books I read when my teens were diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder. Reading Jamison's words not only enabled me to understand my childrens' inner processes, but also helped me to parent them more compassionately.

I am bipolar and this book was recommended by my doctor. I was hoping for a book that shared thoughts and experiences similar to what I have been through; instead I feel that she focused too much on her relationships and how people responded to her illness rather than her actual experiences with it. She is an academic and I felt that she was writing to other academics rather than the average person. Her language choice sometimes made the book cumbersome and boring and I never felt the connection with her as a person that I had been looking for. While I appreciate her honesty and willingness to share something so personal, and there were bits here and there that I could relate to, I did not really enjoy reading this book as much as I thought I would.

The author is a specialist is this disorder, having suffered from it all of her life and is also a Psychiatrist and author of numerous materials and books on the subject. Great insight into the mind of the bi-polar person. A must read.

K. Jamison has done a great service with her informative book and self-revelations about bipolar disease. Helpful to both therapists and others to better understand the severity of the disease.

High quality writing and information. Candid and powerful. A very important book by an excellent writer and expert in her field.

R. Hight

In general I found the book easily readable, yet wish there was a clearer chronology in the book about her experiences. I also would have liked to have more information laid out either at the beginning or the middle of the book that explains in one place the symptoms of manic-depressive illness. Another thing that I would have liked to hear more about is her assertion that M-D illness was related, if not fully, to genetics.

Overall her story is inspirational for a person trying to learn or live with manic-depressive episodes.

I commend this author for sharing her difficult, personal, but ultimately altruistic account of diagnosis and journey to wellness. With this diagnosis in my family, reading the book made me feel not so alone, yet assisted in my understanding. I've since recommended it to several of my friends and family.

I see that the other reviewers of this book have done a careful and creditable job of giving Ms. Jamison the level of review this book deserves. It is a magnificent book that I found inspiring to read, terribly useful for thinking about people all around me, including loved ones, and surprisingly valuable for thinking about my own place and navigation in the world. I highly recommend the book.
Thank you Ms. Jamison

Since my daughter was recently diagnosed as manic-depressive, I found the book extremely helpful in deciding the 'next steps' toward healing. I also bought the book for her and it has definitely helped.

This book is amazing it deals with the issue I'm facing and describes options on how to surpass it!

The best thing about this book is the title. Beyond that, I found the writing rambling and repetitive. The utter lack of situational details and contradictory statements makes me wonder if this author really does suffer from manic depressive disorder to the extent she claims. I find her pretentious and condescending, and sense that the book is written primarily for the purposes of self-glorification rather than to give an honest depiction of life in unique circumstances; something I expect from a good memoir.

I have read many books over the past few years but none have been as influential as this one. It was as if I was reading my own autobiography. I have since bought copies for all of my friends and relatives who suffer from bipolar disorder and recommended to my psychiatrist that he read and recommend it to his patients. Of all of the books that I have read, I can honestly say that I could relate to the situation she describes almost exactly. It's a great read and useful even to people without bipolar disorder.

Kay Redfield Jamison's apathetic memoir, An Unquiet Mind, vividly captures the devastating effects of manic depression, yet unfortunately, fails to connect with the reader on a personal level. This textbook-style read presents the reader with clear and specific explanations of her illness, yet in doing so, distracts the reader with big words and a lack of emotion.
Jamison wastes no time in revealing depression in her childhood, with a malfunctioning-jet crashing just feet from the playground where she plays. Jamison explains that she "never again looked at the sky and saw only vastness and beauty. From that afternoon on I saw that death was also and always there"(13). From this point on, depression is riddled throughout her life of extremes, as we learn that with every high comes a disastrous low.
Jamison's quiet and rigid lifestyle as the daughter of an Air Force officer allowed for a simple and modest existence. It was all she knew, which was why the move to California was so much more difficult. In Pacific Palisades, Jamison's manic-depressive tendencies snowballed as her father's depression spiraled even deeper, and at this point, Jamison the author starts to struggle with her character's ethos, interestingly due to a lack of pathos. She describes her bouts of depression sans her emotions, speaking solely of her illness in a medical sense, and because of this, it is hard to relate with her. This only proliferates as she enters UCLA, and seemingly important events are hardly touched-upon: "I was married, too, by this point"(57). And curiously, just reading about her mania became tedious and unenjoyable; I experienced, what she calls "medical-student syndrome, where students become convinced that they have whatever disease it is they are studying"(56). I often felt depressed myself after reading about her depression, a unique side-effect that made each time I sat down to read a struggle to stay focused.
As Jamison matures, ambivalence becomes a constant battle, and the decision to take drugs or not is strained. Jamison also makes note of how difficult it was to come public with her disease, and I applaud her and how she has become to an inspiration to the manic depressed in recent years. Also, her epilogue struggles with Byron's quote in the beginning: "I doubt sometimes whether a quiet and unagitated life would have suited me - yet I sometimes long for it," allowing insights forgotten in the actual memoir to surface here, concluding with a reflective understanding that, personally, should of been included throughout the memoir.
However, being someone without the disease, I feel as if something was missing when I read this memoir, where the deepest connection can only be established with those relating to her message. Though it is a great read in itself, and her personal accounts are all bold-faced and honest, victims of manic depression will experience a greater connection with Jamison's theme of perseverance and medication than those without.

"It was a loopy but intense life: marvelous, ghastly, dreadful, indescribably difficult, gloriously and unexpectedly easy, complicated, great fun, and a no-exit nightmare" (Jamison, 132).
In an "Unquiet Mind" Kay Redfield Jamison points out the entire spectrum of moods with manic-depression. Readers can understand her unbelievable manic highs, and her darkest depressions, and how she discovered love and passion through experience.
The memoir is about more than just the medical illness, "it has somehow turned out to be very much a book about love as well: love as a sustainer, as renewer, and as protector" (Jamison, 215). Jamison owes her life not only to the countless doses of lithium, but to love as well.
The memoir opens with Jamison and her co-worker running psychotically around the UCLA Medical Center's parking lot late at night, which is an activity that is abnormal to society. Soon after this however, Jamison humanizes herself to readers by showing her capabilities for loving. Readers may find her medical terminology very foreign, but her encounters with difficult relationships connect her to her readers since love is a universal language. Love taught her how to deal with manic-depression, however it is by no means a substitution for medication. "Love can help, it can make the pain more tolerable" (Jamison, 174).
If Jamison chose only to write about how love got her through her manic-depression she would be sugarcoating the battle of manic-depression because lithium was the main factor as to why she's still alive today. Her brutal honesty about how her "lack of judgment about the necessity to take lithium proved to be an exceedingly costly one" (Jamison, 89) shows manic-depression is no game, and readers and patients should understand that rejection of medication is harmful. Similar to other famous memoirs like "This Boy's Life" by Tobias Wolff, both authors are publishing all aspects of their life including times when they disobeyed. Toby confesses that he was a thief, and Jamison openly admits that refusing to take medication had many negative consequences for her. Jamison's honesty makes readers understand her pain.
However, she is never looking for pity from her readers, but she wants to educate readers on what life is like being manic-depressive and a physiatrist. She poses the tough ethical questions to her readers that manic-depressives have to ask such as, "Do I really think that someone with mental illness should be allowed to treat patients?" (Jamison, 204) or should I have a baby knowing I could perpetuate the manic-depression gene? During scenes of her unbearable depression she clearly illustrates her series of dark thoughts and questions. She explains how people would constantly repeat during these dark times, " It's only temporary, it will pass, you will get over it" (Jamison, 111). But in Jamison's mind she rebuttaled, " If I can't feel, if I can't move, if I can't think, and I can't care then what conceivable point is there in living" (Jamison, 111).
The memoir could very well have ended with Jamison feeling hopeless within her manic-depression, but she acknowledges that she "cannot imagine becoming jaded to life, because I [Jamison] know of those limitless corners, with their limitless views" (Jamison, 219). "An Unquiet Mind," was inspirational, to say the least because Jamison saw through the darkest, scariest moments, the power of love.

I really got sucked into this book. I have depression and OCD. Although I'm not Manic Depressive, I could still relate to some of what this woman went through. In a strange way it makes me feel comforted that Im not alone. She goes into great detail and uses simple language to describe what her bouts with mania were like. So Im sure it will make the reader more able to imagine what it was like in her shoes.

Jamison describes with utter passion and depth the horror of her disease to the point that you suffer for her and want to cry and reach out and give her support. However as the book continues it becomes less personal life instances, and more of a list of her life accomplishments and increasingly hard to comprehend where she had the time for the massive amounts of activities she is apparently involved with when seemingly absorbed by this overpowering mood disorder simultaneously.
Also it is difficult to feel at all sympathetic when she so stubbornly supports her inability to feel objectified by this disease. She writes as if she is begging for sympathy and compassion for manic-depressives but yet determinately supports its benefits and her overall gratitude to it in her life. She describes the disorder as if living with satan himself while she is tripping on acid and then states the phenomenal accomplishments she has accumulated while under his suicidal influence. It's hard to feel bad, and hard to believe. Not well written, she misses details as to her relationships and time periods when detailing her list of projects which makes it hard to gauge and follow not only periodically but developmentally. The feeling of reading a list of achievements one might include on a college application is the overall emotion I relate to this memoir.

Ok, Kay Redfield Jamison has manic-depression. This is a horrible disease. However, she underscores time and time again its association with creative genius. The accounts of her highs and lows are superficial - it is mostly a memoir of her, her academic career, and her various boyfriends (and husbands)- all tall, or handsome, or wonderful dancers or artists. Dr Jamison appears smug, and not a little full of herself. The disease which she has is glamorized and sanitized, and minimized. The basic story is unremarkable. I am sorry I bought this book.

This is an informative, empathetic book.

I just wanted to clarify something in response to the review by "not to be mean but...talkinsmack":

While some psychiatric drugs should not be mixed with alcohol (for example, MAOI inhibitors cannot be mixed with fermented drinks, like wine and beer), this is not true of all or even most psychiatric drugs. Unless the patient taking them is an alcoholic or has other health issues, there is usually no reason why he or she cannot drink in moderation. Of course, individual patients' circumstances may differ.

To say that Kay Redfield Jamison belongs "inpatient" is ignorant and incorrect. If that's meant to be a joke, it isn't funny.

Sorry to go off on a tangent, but incorrect and sweeping generalizations like talkinsmack's about psychiatric drugs and the people who take them undermine the author's (excellent) work.

If a bipolar patient needs to know that he/she is not alone in suffering, this is the book. I have had two close friends diagnosed as bipolar, and both said this book was amazing to them. It put into words what they were feeling when they felt no words described it.

I read the book as well, hoping to gain some understanding into their mental health issues and also felt it was very well written by someone that obviously knew what it was like.

I am bipolor and really appreciated this book. I will share it with my family.

Kay Redfield Jamison tells the story of her battle with bipolar disorder with amazing candor. This book is hard to put down because Jamison is so clearsighted and analytical about the effects of her condition on her life. "An Unquiet Mind" reads like literature. Jamison is a very evocative and poetic author. The book will also make you think. Jamison writes of a conversation in which she and a colleague each chart their family histories of depression and suicide. Jamison's family is full of such history on her father's side. Then, in her acknowledgements, Jamison thanks her family for their help and support. As she lists the members of her family, it is interesting and amusing that almost every member carries the title "doctor". This brings to mind another book I recently read entitled "In My Blood" by John Sedgewick. Mr. Sedgewick comes from a family similarly blessed and cursed by bipolar disorder. In the book he traces the heights of success and creativity to which the members of his family have soared, as well as the depths of despair and destruction. If you read "An Unquiet Mind" and are fascinated by this pattern, you should try Mr. Sedgewick's book too.

especially if you have a friend or relative with mental disease. It certainly helped to hear first hand explanations of what goes on in the mind of those affected by it.

I cannot recall how I came to find out about this book, but it was one of the best I have read on mental health because it admits and advocates for something that is often shunned, and that is well prescribed medication for a legitimate mental illness. What it did for me was come to grips with having to make a choice between side effects or the better quality of life from certain medications. I have fibromyalgia and if I don't take Wellbutrin my mind totally fogs up on me, but I get jittery from the medicine. So I stopped taking it at times and then I realized that maybe I was not taking a high enough of a dose. So now the jitters are gone, for the most part and the brain is clear--well, it never clears, but it is not like trying to see through the fog. For sure the quality of my life has improved. I have given away two copies of this book to others. In their case they are manic-depressive (bipolar) and it has made a world of difference in how they approach their illness. This is a great book, and simply how she overcame her adversity--which at first was outside of her--is amazing. I think it is must reading for anyone who is exposed to or interfaces with others who are mentally ill. The author did us a great thing by revealing her story. The ironical thing, and what really woke me up was when she described the side effects she was experiencing from lithium--which for me is almost how life is for me without taking meds. A great help and a great blessing--could not put it down until I finished it.

I have manic depressive illness; this is a fabulous book. It gave me powerful insight into multiple aspects of the disease. Through her memoirs Jamison helped me understand events in my past. As a result it makes me significantly more accepting of my disorder.

Jamison makes it clear throughout of the dangers of discontinuing one's medication. I stopped taking mine a year ago, with results similar to Jamison's spending sprees. Using the bifurcated approach of talk and drug therapy is a point clearly made in this book.
With the help of an excellent psychologist and psychiatrist I put my life back together and am better than I've been in 30 years.

The correlation and triggers for mania or hypomania and depression are wonderfully described both from a personal and clinical perspective. The point there is a broad spectrum of facets of this disease comes across clearly.

This book should be read by anyone with manic depressive illness, anyone that cares about someone with the disease, or is interested in its many manifestations. I will continue to recommend it to anyone interested. Thank you Kay Redfield Jamison for helping me better understand my life and manage my disease.