Journey into the Heart of Bipolarity

This is both a book on art and a psychiatric manual and at the same time it is neither. It takes a radically different approach by setting out to describe subjective viewpoints: those of works of art, those of patients and those of the reader. The aim is to achieve an understanding of the psychological world of bipolar patients through a subtle interplay of connections between the subjectivity of those three protagonists. Subjectivity also prevailed in the authors' choices: which clinical aspects of bipolarity to present, and which works of art to select. So far from setting out to be exhaustive and definitive, the book proposes a number of openings. Doctors will view these openings differently depending on their own sensitivity and practice. But the book is not just for doctors; it is aimed at a wider readership. It is important for the general public to be aware that subjective movements in the psychological life of bipolar patients have their own specific identity, which is as much a subject worthy of attention as it is a source of suffering. Sensitive reading of this book will also guide bipolar patients and their families to a better understanding of the nature of the condition, and therefore to play a fuller part in the treatment offered to them.