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March 8, 2006, 6:31 am PST
03/07 Extreme Highs and Lows
Quote From: adoanneMy sister was diagnosed as Manic-Depressed after 20 years of a roller-coaster lifestyle that took her family and friends with her. Truth be told.....it was harder on her family than it was on her. When she was on the straight and narrow, she held a job, lived on her own, and then decided that she was cured and stopped taking her medicine. Then the high..........debts, job loss, weight gain. Then soon after, the inevitable "crash". Regrets, tears, pit of despair. My parents would rush in, clean up her mess and ready the world for her next appearance. She would emerge from the hospital....hopeful, confident and ready to start all over. They would be worn down with worry and financial woes. Then it would start all over!
The major reason for all all this? She would self diagnose and decide on her own that she didn't need the medications. You could ask her if she was taking her medicine and she would look you in the eye and lie every time. As soon as she started laughing too loud, everyone would brace themselves.
From my experience, the family and friends of the "bi-polar" person suffers much more than they ever do. Though it is an extreme, as many things that are popular tend to be, Electro-boy is a good book if you want to read about the crap from either side.
It is one of my favorite books and I have found that a lot of people have been able to relate to it, simply because the narration is very honest and clear. The writer doesn't try to segregate the audience because he wants people to understand what he experienced, what he did, and what he is doing.
Goes through all the chaos to meds and electro shock and the sensations of psychosis and the social effects of hypomania and the effects of meds and the cognitive dulling and some of the social outcast type feelings...
Again, it is a book written to make money.
I did like it though. And I do recommend it, though it is not indicative of all with bipolar. It does talk about, from the perspective of regrets, responsibility, etc, what families and those who have the disorder deal with.
I heard it is going to be a movie though. And it will probably be made all bizarre and the important logistical information will be taken out so it's a ''rollercoaster ride of emotions''... or something..
so if that happens, read the book first.
With several grains of salt.
and a bag of chips.
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