Postsecondary Students and Bipolar Disorder:
Final Frontier or Lethal Cocktail?
  Karen Reynolds

Mental illness is leaving the closet. Films like "A Beautiful Mind" and "Girl Interrupted" promoted empathy for individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia and depression. Television shows such as "CSI," "Law and Order," and "Six Feet Under" portray victims of bipolar disorder in a relatively sympathetic manner. In contrast, movies like "Silence of the Lambs" and the "Psycho" series characterized mentally ill individuals as crazed and dangerous. Stigma associated with mental illness ranges from blatant discrimination to veiled tolerance. According to Simmie and Nunnes (2001) the most devastating aspect of stigma is that it pre-judges an individual with little or no knowledge of the person.

In this paper, I explore experiences of a group of postsecondary students diagnosed with bipolar disorder and examine how stigma associated with mental illness impacts identity, learning, and achievement. In addition, I look at ways in which faculty might support students diagnosed with bipolar disorder. The study took place at the University of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. The University of Regina is committed to equity for academically qualified special needs students in terms of access to educational opportunity.    full text >>>

The Reality of Bipolar Disorder: Living with Depression, Mania, and Medication
  Jennifer DeHayes-Rice

Depression joined my life shortly after I entered middle school and tagged on persistently through my adolescent years. At first, my sullen moods were brushed off as mere hormonal changes, but I quickly became aware there was something more behind them. The severity of depression is difficult to explain without personal thoughts and examples. I know that my depression is coming long before it sets in. There is a cloud of forewarning that starts to move in on the vibrancy of my thoughts and vision; the world becomes distorted and negative. ... The thoughts of negativity drag me deeper and deeper until I am convinced there is no bottom; they separate me from the outside world. ... Without medication, death was always a daunting possibility of ending this horrid affair. The cycling of depression became a constant part of my life leaving me always afraid of what was around the corner.   full text >>>

Imagine My Emotions: Helping Students Get Past Pathos and Into Logos
  Ed Comber

Manic-Depression, also known as Bipolar Disorder, is passed on genetically and can be very debilitating, more so if the poor soul plagued with it either refuses to admit their problem or refuses to seek help, guidance, and medication. There is no cure--although recently the medical field has miraculously been able to isolate the gene that causes the disorder--and only medication and hard work and determination minimize its effects, not drinking or drugs, as many afflicted believe (that's called self-medicating). But what does all this have to do with teaching? Or with academics? Everything.    full text >>>