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Bipolar Disorder And Manic Depressive Disorder

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Bipolar disorder, previously manic depressive disorder, is a disorder that has a myriad common misconceptions surrounding it within the general public. Unless one has taken the time to research what Bipolar Disorder is/entails or is suffering from the disorder itself, knowledge about the disorder typically comes from hearsay. Before reading Kay Redfield Jamison 's novel, most of what I knew or had learned about Bipolar Disorder was from other individuals. I knew it was some form of disorder but the details eluded me. Many times you will hear teenagers say things like "Oh, she is so bipolar" when a friend shifts from happy one minute to mad the next or "The weather is so bipolar" when it shifts from sunny to raining rapidly. From this, I assumed that Bipolar Disorder had something to do with a rapid shift in moods. However, other than looking up on one occasion whether Bipolar Disorder and Manic Depressive Disorder are the same thing, I did not pay much more attention to what Bipolar Disorder was or what those suffering from the disorder dealt with on a daily basis. It was not until I came to college where we briefly covered the disorder in classes, like intro, and read Jamison 's memoir for another course that I really began to understand what Bipolar Disorder is and how it affects those who suffer from it. After having read Jamison 's memoir, the life of those suffering with Bipolar Disorder became a little easier to imagine. It most certainly is not an easy

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