Customer Reviews

The Years of Silence Are Past: My Father's Life with Bipolar Disorder

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is one of the best books on any topic I have read lately. Anyone who knows anyone with a psychological problem (that's all of you with a pulse, by the way), should read The Years of Silence are Past. The title refers to the silence that descended on Stephen Hinshaw's family in the face of his father's bipolar illness (manic-depression). The book is so resonant because countless families with a mentally ill family member live with the same deafening silence. Hinshaw manages to tell the story of his father's battle with bipolar disorder in a compelling, compassionate, unflinching way while also communicating clearly and thus educating about this devastating illness. This book puts a human face on a problem that is too often still stigmatized in our society. I hope this book will help put an end to the collective silence that amplifies the stigma and associated pain for people with mental illness and their famlies. I also hope it leads people with mental illness to seek and benefit from treatment.

As the other reviews here accurately explain, this slim volume encompasses much more than an insightful look at how his father's long-misdiagnosed mental illness affected the author and his family. That would be quite enough.

Yet, while some scholarly writers have one idea and puff it out in volume after volume, Dr. Hinshaw deftly delivers much more than the title suggests, weaving autobiography and biography, this country's checkered history in diagnosing and treating bi-polar disorder, the genetic and environmental factors of brain disorders, personal insights and scientific data, and much more.

That Dr. Hinshaw pulls this off so cogently and compellingly for the layperson strikes me as remarkable, given that he is a highly respected academic, clinical scientist, and professor who chairs the prestigious department of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley.

As a lay volunteer in the AD/HD community, I first learned of Dr. Hinshaw through his contributions to a landmark study on ADHD in children. In my experience, it is rare to find a psychologist who can help the average person bridge the knowledge gap between behavior and neuroscience, and I am grateful for this window to understanding.

This is the first in Dr. Hinshaw's outstanding trilogy examining stigma around mental illness--and how our society might go about easing it. The other two books are The Mark of Shame: Stigma of Mental Illness and an Agenda for Change and Breaking the Silence: Mental Health Professionals Disclose Their Personal and Family Experiences of Mental Illness

Gina Pera

Stephen Hinshaw demonstrated exceptional courage and scholarship in this passionately written portrayal of his father's struggle with bipolar disorder. Blending scientific perspectives with personal insights, Hinshaw provides a tour of his father's obstacles and triumphs. It is a compelling story about the far reaching implications of severe psychopathology yet it is firmly rooted in inspiring messages of hope and resilience. Hinshaw somehow manages to find the appropriate "voice" with personal accounts narrated within a larger context of science, philosophy, and public policy. It is exemplary in its passion, analysis, and vision for the future.

This is an excellent book that anyone interested in bipolar disorder or mental illness in general should read. Hinshaw is an excellent writer and brings the details of his father's struggle with bipolar disorder richly to life. The effects of the disease on his father's entire existence are profound and complex- many details and nuances of the illness are described. The book is partly an indictment of the entire mental health field for not providing better care for his father. An interesting and complex read. Avery Z. Conner, author of "Fevers of the Mind".

Picked up some valuable insights from the author's experiences, views, and recounting of his father's life. Much of it was quite dry and wordy (written by a Professor) so it took a while to get through. Inevitably, his father's story is tied to the history of diagnosing and treating bipolar and schizophrenia. I found this interesting. I was intrigued and inspired by some ideas...such as the importance of speaking openly about such things so as to destigmatize it. it was helpful to me to see that his father had been driven to psychotic states, identifies himself as "a psychotic," but had also managed to live a useful life. The author's conclusion that medication can help manage symptoms (not cure the disorder) and may not stop an episode but make it manageable...well I appreciate that insight very much. It helps me to frame my own goals for my life. I wish i had read this book 15 years ago. I have never been in the severe states as the subject...but have experiences a degree of them. For the author to take the time to tell his story and conclusions is a great gift. My only criticism is that it isn't an easy read...it often feels like a textbook, extremely clinical and at times overly scientific. As a layperson just looking for that most personal recounting it's a challenge. Worth it to wade through but at times I had to force myself to plod along and finish.