[.ca] Bipolar Disorder: A Guide for Patients and Families (ISBN 0801861187)

Very Good Info:
This book is a must-have for people with bipolar &/or family members of a loved one with bipolar disorder. The book explains things really well and helps you understand the illness.

Good resource but to much medical jargon:
Buying this book should depend on what you are looking for. This book has a lot of medical stuff like how each medication works in the body. It has pages of info on the synapse of a nerve. I really just wanted some basic info on what this disorder is and how to treat it. I skiped tons of pages because knowing how every drug works wasn't my main objecitve and the doctor decideds what to use on my son anyway. I guess it was to in depth for me and I would have liked more help with "how to handle the manic times with my 8 year old than the synapse of a nerve" I needed symptoms of the disease so I could feel more confidant about the doctors diagnosis. I think this book was ok but it didn't make me convinced of my sons diagnosis. I wanted info on how to help my loved ones deal with my son running around the house in 80 degree weather and a snow suit. When your child is manic and wild at times it seems to others that you are just not strict enough on them but in reality your very hard on the child and it seems that they are out of control and you just have to let the mania run its course. I found that hot baths has helped my son when he is in a fit of rage but this book never told me that!

GREAT BOOK!:
I thought this book was great. I have bipolar disorder and I am currently going to school to become a psychiatric nurse. This book helped give me insight into my own disorder (and my family history of bipolar disorder). This book goes into some of the pathophysiology of the disease. I thought it was great!

An excellent book about the illness:
Mondimore has assembled an impressive book- pretty well-written, well-organized, generally easy to read, and filled with useful information. Much of the information is practical, though I don't believe it is as practical as Miklowitz's "Bipolar Disorder Survival Guide". It is quite comprehensive though, and in this regard is similar to Torrey's "Surviving Manic Depression". Overall, this is important reading material for the afflicted and their family and friends. I recommend that those who want to develop a fundamental understanding of the illness read all three of these books. Avery Z. Conner, author of "Fevers of the Mind".

A Good Guide:
This is an all-around good guide for patients with bipolar disorder and their families. About the only thing I disagree with the author on is the need for psychotherapy. About the only psychotherapy I get is an occasional visit to a local support group, but I'm doing pretty well. Furthermore, like a very high percentage of manic depressives, I have a low income and my insurance covers only visits to the psychiatrist and meds. The author has a very interesting chapter on schizoaffective disorder and expresses an opinion on it that I don't believe I've read elsewhere.