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Kay Redfield Jamison

Kay Redfield Jamison Quotes

Psychologist

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Famous Kay Redfield Jamison Quotes

“I compare myself with my former self, not with others. Not only that, I tend to compare my current self with the best I have been, which is when I have been midly manic. When I am my present "normal" self, I am far removed from when I have been my liveliest, most productive, most intense, most outgoing and effervescent. In short, for myself, I am a hard act to follow.”

PsychologyMental IllnessBipolarManicMania
Book:An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness
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“Her parents, she said, has put a pinball machine inside her head when she was five years old. The red balls told her when she should laugh, the blue ones when she should be silent and keep away from other people; the green balls told her that she should start multiplying by three. Every few days a silver ball would make its way through the pins of the machine. At this point her head turned and she stared at me; I assumed she was checking to see if I was still listening. I was, of course. How could one not? The whole thing was bizarre but riveting. I asked her, What does the silver ball mean? She looked at me intently, and then everything went dead in her eyes. She stared off into space, caught up in some internal world. I never found out what the silver ball meant.”

PsychologyDepressionMental IllnessBipolarManicManiaMental DisorderBipolar DisorderPsychopathologyManic Depression
Book:An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness
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“Far too many doctors-many of them excellent physicians-commit suicide each year; one recent study concluded that, until quite recently, the United States lost annually the equivalent of a medium-sized medical school class from suicide alone. Most physician suicides are due to depression or manic-depressive illness, both of which are eminently treatable. Physicians, unfortunately, not only suffer from a higher rate of mood disorders than the general population, they also have a greater access to very effective means of suicide.”

YearsMeanStatesSchoolSufferingLostUnitedClassUnited StatesStudyGreaterHigherDoctorsSuicideRatePopulationIllnessDuesAccessMedicalMoodCommitMediumsExcellentDisorderPhysiciansManicMedical SchoolDepressiveYear OneMood Disorders
Book:An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness
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“I compare myself with my former self, not with others. Not only that, I tend to compare my current self with the best I have been, which is when I have been midly manic. When I am my present "normal" self, I am far removed from when I have been my liveliest, most productive, most intense, most outgoing and effervescent. In sort, for myself, I am a hard act to follow.”

InspirationalHas BeensSelfHardNormalCurrentsIntenseFormerCompareProductiveBipolarManicOutgoing
Book:An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness
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“Manic-depression distorts moods and thoughts, incites dreadful behaviors, destroys the basis of rational thought, and too often erodes the desire and will to live. It is an illness that is biological in its origins, yet one that feels psychological in the experience of it, an illness that is unique in conferring advantage and pleasure, yet one that brings in its wake almost unendurable suffering and, not infrequently, suicide.”

FeelsDesireSufferingPleasureBehaviorUniqueAdvantageBasesSuicideIllnessMoodRationalPsychologicalBipolarManicErodeWill To LiveRational ThoughtUnendurableManic Depression
Book:An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness
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“But then back on lithium and rotating on the planet at the same pace as everyone else, you find your credit is decimated, your mortification complete: mania is not a luxury one can easily afford. It is devastating to have the illness and aggravating to have to pay for medications, blood tests, and psychotherapy. They, at least, are partially deductible. But money spent while manic doesn't fit into the Internal Revenue Service concept of medical expense or business loss. So after mania, when most depressed, you're given excellent reason to be even more so.”

ReasonGivenLossPayBloodPlanetsFitDepressionConceptsTestsIllnessCreditMedicalLuxuryExcellentInternalsExpensesPaceRevenueMedicationPsychotherapyManicManiaMortificationAggravatingRotatingLithiumBlood Tests
Book:Manic-Depressive Illness: Bipolar Disorders and Recurrent Depression
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“I have often asked myself whether, given the choice, I would choose to have manic-depressive illness. If lithium were not available to me, or didn't work for me, the answer would be a simple no... and it would be an answer laced with terror. But lithium does work for me, and therefore I can afford to pose the question. Strangely enough, I think I would choose to have it. It's complicated.”

IfsThinkingDoeI CanEnoughWould BeChoicesGivenSimpleAnswersIllnessTerrorAvailableComplicatedBipolarManicDepressiveLithium
Book:An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness
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“The Chinese believe that before you can conquer a beast you first must make it beautiful. In some strange way, I have tried to do that with manic-depressive illness. It has been a fascinating, albeit deadly, enemy and companion; I have found it to be seductively complicated, a distillation both of what is finest in our natures, and of what is most dangerous.”

WayFirstsBelieveHas BeensBeautifulFoundEnemyDangerousStrangeIllnessComplicatedConquerChineseBeastFascinatingCompanionFinestManicDepressiveDistillation
Book:An Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness
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