Posted by Atticus on December 11, 2004, at 21:08:34
In reply to sometimes I feel heavy, posted by alexandra_k on December 11, 2004, at 20:47:16
Hi Alex,
This is like reading my own thoughts. I'm on a trippy hypomanic high right now, but the depressive cycles of bipolar disorder with rapid cycling hit like a sledgehammer. I've lain in bed for entire weekends. I'll wish I could just turn into a big stone in a field of wild grasses and impassively watch the world go by without wanting so much to be a part of the motion, the passion of living things. People accuse me of being stand-offish or stuck-up, but at those times I want nothing more than to frolic with them. I'm getting my frolic at the moment, but deep down I know this moment will pass. Did you ever read the book "Flowers for Algernon"? It's about a mentally handicapped man who is turned into a genius by radical surgery, but the surgery doesn't hold, and he feels his intelligence relentlessly slipping away again. He gives a heartbreaking speech at the end. It was also made into a film way back in the '60s, I think, called "Charley". What I call the "Flowers for Algernon Effect" is always lurking in the back of my mind during a manic phase. I know I'm going to come down extra hard. I really feel for you. What can I do to distract you? Atticus
poster:Atticus
thread:427968
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/write/20041210/msgs/427984.html