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Kindle Notes & Highlights
What makes Matthew a killer educator, among other things, is the fact that he’s an insatiable learner.
Nothing escapes his curiosity.
I’m free to say, write and do pretty much anything I want as an American, but I’m not free to feel fully at home anywhere.
War on Error, in an effort to both tackle the errors about Islam that infected the minds
you can’t distinguish genius from crap.
Unless you’ve experienced and recovered from full-on psychosis, it’s nearly impossible to realize that you need help or that you have a disorder.
the boundless euphoria and wicked agitation that overcame me from time to time were completely normal, things that everyone experienced.
It’s hard to trust a therapist when you’ve gone to so many others who failed to make even a proper diagnosis.
Melody Moezzi War on Error: Real Stories of American Muslims
side effects about which patients are frequently uninformed. Things like seizures, tics, drooling, blackouts, diabetes, obesity, vomiting, memory loss, “fogginess,” tardive dyskinesia
I’ve never taken lithium, despite the fact that it’s the “gold standard, first-line treatment” for bipolar;
I’ve known way too many others who’ve gone on their meds, gotten better, thought they were cured, gone off their meds, then deteriorated.
Dude, you’re so weird—I have no idea how the hell your brain works, but who knows.
She didn’t realize how close I was to the edge. No one did. I’d always been “eccentric”:
don’t worry, be happy
Persian Sufi poet Rumi (whom we refer to as Molana or “The Master”)
“You see, everyone is so worried about themself that no one even notices something as crazy as that! It doesn’t matter if you make mistake, Melody jan—no one will notice. But I know you will be perfect. I could never do such a speech.”
he was accustomed to my depressive episodes. They often stop by for an unwelcome visit in the fall, but they tend to fade by December, if not sooner.
unstoppable Happiness Factory, churning out more ideas, plans and aspirations
I’m always making new plans and adjusting and restructuring my life, self and surroundings for maximum efficiency.
Helen Keller on it, “We can do anything we want to do if we stick to it long enough”:
Live like you’re always on vacation. Do what you want. Do everything for a reason. Study happiness.
Be consciously selfish. Slow down. Do it right the first time. Slow down to be faster. Study mindfulness.
The consensus was that I was in the midst of a manic episode, highly delusional and possibly psychotic.
When full-blown, acute insanity sets in, however, it carries a ruthless thoughtlessness with it.
Robin Williams is bipolar.”
The Haldol wasn’t doing anything to calm me down,
solitary confinement can and does induce insanity
I’ve never been the object of more vicious indifference in my life, and I’ve never felt more invisible and worthless.
Bipolar disorder is a chronic illness.
The key to treatment is prevention, and the key to prevention is awareness.
Still in the eye of the storm, I couldn’t see past the flying debris.
I would recover on my own terms, in my own time.
deinstitutionalization, countless mentally ill patients were left to fend for themselves.
mind-boggling how much mothers are willing and able to endure at the hands of their own ungrateful offspring.
I was slowly beginning to accept that there was something seriously wrong with me, and I wanted to fix it.
nothing is wrong with you. We told you what’s happening. You have what is called bipolar—manic depression,
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Bipolar Disorder, An Unquiet Mind (my favorite)
I sat Matthew down and gave him permission to leave me. “You didn’t sign up for this,” I said, holding back tears. “I totally get it if you need to leave. I wouldn’t hold it against you for a second.” “Are you kidding?” Matthew replied. “I knew you were crazy from day one. I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me.”
made a serious effort—more than ever before. I was committed.
stress triggers mania, so you need to reduce your stress. Get out of the house. Take a break.
diagnosis (and there were over half a dozen) suggested I lower my expectations for myself—that I accept my “disability.”
racing thoughts, insomnia, anxiety and agitation I’d been experiencing.
We left with a new prescription, an antipsychotic: Zyprexa.
my thoughts were racing too fast to compose
Fear not. Fear not. We are all united.”]
if I stay here long enough to figure out what’s causing this, then maybe I’ll be able to fix it myself, without drugs or shrinks.
All I need to do is figure out the formula for my crazy.
Perhaps he’s right, and I am more resilient than I give myself credit for.
Sanity isn’t promised to anyone,
