I feel biographies are particularly helpful to mental illness sufferers. Depression, from my own experience, is an isolating illness. It's a great comfort to read someone else's story and to realize that you are not alone.
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Darkness
Visible: A Memoir of Madness by William Styron Paperback - 84 pages The first book I read on depression. It had an enormous impact on me, and opened my eyes to my own depression. I keep going back to it again and again to help me explain depression to others, since Styron is so eloquent.
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Willow
Weep for Me: A Black Woman's Journey Through Depression by Meri Nana-Ama Danquah Paperback - 272 pages
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His
Bright Light: The Story of Nick Traina by Danielle Steel Paperback - 303 pages The story of Danielle Steel's son Nick, who was bipolar.
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An
Unquiet Mind: A Memoir of Moods and Madness The story of an expert on manic-depression who suffers from it herself.
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Undercurrents:
A Life Beneath the Surface by Martha Manning Paperback - 208 pages The author, a clinical psychologist, describes her descent into depression, leading eventually to the hospital and ECT. Her point of view as first a therapist and then a patient is unique and often humorous.
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The
Beast: A Journey Through Depression by Tracy Thompson Paperback
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Girl,
Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen Paperback - 168 pages
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Prozac
Nation: Young and Depressed in America by Elizabeth Wurtzel Paperback - 368 pages |