--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have often asked myself whether, given…" description: "\"I have often asked myself whether, given the choice, I would choose to have manic-depressive illness. If lithium were not available to me, or didn't wo..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f1/kay-redfield-jamison-1826_answers_i-have-often-asked-myself-whether-given_1563272.jpg" --- # I have often asked myself whether, given the choice, I… ![“I have often asked myself whether, given the choice, I would choose to have manic-depressive illness. If lithium were not available to me, or didn't work for me, the answer would be a simple no... and it would be an answer laced with terror. But lithium does work for me, and therefore I can afford…” quote by Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f1/kay-redfield-jamison-1826_answers_i-have-often-asked-myself-whether-given_1563272.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f1/kay-redfield-jamison-1826_answers_i-have-often-asked-myself-whether-given_1563272.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9f1/kay-redfield-jamison-1826_answers_i-have-often-asked-myself-whether-given_1563272.jpg) > “I have often asked myself whether, given the choice, I would choose to have manic-depressive illness. If lithium were not available to me, or didn't work for me, the answer would be a simple no... and it would be an answer laced with terror. But lithium does work for me, and therefore I can afford to pose the question. Strangely enough, I think I would choose to have it. It's complicated...” [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author reflects on the paradox of living with bipolar disorder, noting that effective treatment can make the condition tolerable and even meaningful, while without it the prospect is terrifying. **In simple terms:** Effective treatment can make a severe illness feel manageable and possibly valuable. Key Takeaway Consider how treatment changes perception of illness. Themes mental health treatment identity choice Mood reflective hopeful complex Type personal philosophical psychological When to use this quote - clinical therapy - personal reflection - support groups - advocacy Key Concepts bipolar disorder pharmacology existential choice Questions to Reflect On - How does medication alter your view of a mental condition? - What aspects of the illness might be seen as positive? A Different Perspective Without effective medication, the illness would be overwhelming and frightening. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Answers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/answers/) [Available](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/available/) [Bipolar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bipolar/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Choose Manic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choose-manic-5600737/) [Complicated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/complicated/) [Depressive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depressive/) [Doe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doe/) [Enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enough/) [Given](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/given/) [I can](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-can/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Illness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illness/) [Illness Lithium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illness-lithium-5869485/) [Lithium](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lithium/) [Lithium Available](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lithium-available-5869483/) [Lithium Does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lithium-does-5869484/) [Manic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/manic/) [Simple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/simple/) [Terror](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terror/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Would be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would-be/) ## Related quotes > [It's the luxury of time that lets me in some ways now spoil myself. I get my workout in every day. I get a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-ballmer/it-s-the-luxury-of-time-that-lets-me-in-some-ways-now-spoil-myself-i/) [Steve Ballmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-ballmer/) > [But then back on lithium and rotating on the planet at the same pace as everyone else, you find your credit is decimated, your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/but-then-back-on-lithium-and-rotating-on-the-planet-at-the-same-pace/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [Lithium remains the gold standard, but many drugs now treat bipolar disorder. Medication is critical and should be combined with psychotherapy. Compliance is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/lithium-remains-the-gold-standard-but-many-drugs-now-treat-bipolar/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [Lithium prevents my seductive but disastrous highs, diminishes my depressions, clears out the wool and webbing from my disordered thinking, slows me down, gentles…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/lithium-prevents-my-seductive-but-disastrous-highs-diminishes-my/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [“I occasionally laugh and tell him that his imperturbability is worth three hundred milligrams of lithium a day to me, and it is probably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/i-occasionally-laugh-and-tell-him-that-his-imperturbability-is-worth/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [I think that for thousands of years people have made the observation that there are certain kinds of extreme depressive states that seem to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/i-think-that-for-thousands-of-years-people-have-made-the-observation/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [I have had manic-depressive illness, also known as bipolar disorder, since I was 18 years old. It is an illness that ensures that those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/i-have-had-manic-depressive-illness-also-known-as-bipolar-disorder/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [Far too many doctors-many of them excellent physicians-commit suicide each year; one recent study concluded that, until quite recently, the United States lost annually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/far-too-many-doctors-many-of-them-excellent-physicians-commit-suicide/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [There is no common standard for education about diagnosis. Distinguishing between bipolar depression and major depressive disorder, for example, can be difficult, and mistakes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/there-is-no-common-standard-for-education-about-diagnosis/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [The Chinese believe that before you can conquer a beast you first must make it beautiful. 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It quickly came down to a choice between seeing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/i-decided-early-in-graduate-school-that-i-needed-to-do-something/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [When I'm talking about depression, I'm talking about the more severe forms of depression, and I think that conceptualising as a form of grief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/when-i-m-talking-about-depression-i-m-talking-about-the-more-severe/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [An ardent temperament makes one very vulnerable to dreamkillers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/an-ardent-temperament-makes-one-very-vulnerable-to-dreamkillers/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [the intensity, glory, and absolute assuredness if my mind's flight made it very difficult for me to believe once i was better, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/the-intensity-glory-and-absolute-assuredness-if-my-mind-s-flight-made/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [I wish I could explain it so someone could understand it. 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If lithium were not available to me, or didn't work for me, the answer would be a simple no... and it would be an answer laced with terror. But lithium does work for me, and therefore I can afford to pose the question. Strangely enough, I think I would choose to have it. 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