Untreated Manic-Depressive Illness
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison says that, when the illness goes untreated, there is a tendency over time for manic-depressive episodes to get more frequent, more extreme and more difficult to treat.
Early Therapy
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison talks about her early therapy experiences and discusses the impact of medications she was taking. "I was in and out of being very psychotic," Dr. Jamison recalls. "I think I was desperate to fe...
Suicide
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison explains that the decision to commit suicide is usually the result of prolonged depression and hopelessness. In some cases, Dr. Jamison notes, those who make this choice do so because they don'...
Suicide and Psychiatric Disorders
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison talks about the irrefutable link between psychiatric disorders and suicide, especially among young people.
Getting It Together: Biomedical Therapies
In recent years biomedical therapies have joined psychotherapies to revolutionize treatment for severe mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. The first antipsychotic drug Thorazine, discovered accidentally, caused side effects,...
Family Reaction to Manic-Depressive Illness
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison reveals that, although manic-depressive illness runs rampant in her family, nobody discussed it when her own symptoms first appeared.
Bipolar Illness or Manic-Depressive Illness?
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison explains that "manic-depressive illness" is a more exact and descriptive term than "bipolar disorder." Dr. Jamison acknowledges, however, that some people prefer to use the term "bipolar" becau...
Bipolar Illness and Depression
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison talks about the confusion that sometimes occurs during attempts to diagnose or characterize psychiatric illnesses. "The evidence has been clear for a long time," Dr. Jamison explains, "that the...
Decision To Stop Treating Patients, The
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison talks about her decision to stop seeing patients after her book was published and she went public about her illness. "I had written a very personal book," Dr. Jamison says, "and I felt very str...
Helping Those In Need
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison explains that getting someone with a psychiatric disorder into treatment is very hard, and keeping them there can be even harder. A related challenge, Dr. Jamison notes, is convincing patients ...