Staying On Medication
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison explains that it's very difficult to convince patients to continue with their medications, particularly given the side effects some experience. "I certainly went on and off my medications," Dr....
Seductiveness of Mania, The
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison explains that the drive to continue experiencing the rush of mania in its early stages is very powerful.
Response From Family
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison talks about sharing with her family the manuscript that details her story, because "...it's a genetic illness and I didn't want anybody to...be uncomfortable with the idea at all, because it's ...
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.
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.
Genetic and Bipolar Illness
Professor of psychiatry and author Kay Redfield Jamison explains that an individual who has one parent with bipolar illness has a one in fifteen chance of having bipolar illness. The odds go up enormously if both parents have bipolar illness. "If yo...
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...
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 ...