When Vanessa is first introduced in the book she is into self-mutilation--she can't help but to cut herself. This action helps her cope with all her problems at home. It's her way of dealing with the pain. "Cutters" tend to feel hatred toward themselves and the only way to take out that hatred is to hurt themselves. To help her the therapists prescribe her prozac--"a white, crystalline psychoactive drug, CHFNO HCl, used to treat depression, eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive neurosis, ect..." (yourdictionary.com/prozac). However, after 6 weeks of taking the drug Vanessa still doesn't feel better. She complains that she tosses and turns during the night and can't get to sleep. She talks about her blue to white back to blue phases: "...why is mania bad, if it means you're on top of the world, where everything is white" (73). She went back and forth from manic episodes to mania episodes. During manic episodes people feel hyperactive, rushed, agreesive, and angry. During mania episodes people feel more depressed and lonely.
Her mother had bipolar disorder (BPD) and schizophrenia. Since her mother had BPD Vanessa is more likly to have it because it is a genetic disorder. Vanessa's therapist finally hears about her mother and prescribes her lithium. This drug has many side effects like nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, drowsiness, muscle weakness, and ringing in the ear. Vanessa experiences vomiting and diarrhea after starting the lithium; however, she keeps taking it and after more then 8 weeks she starts to feel a lot better.
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Vanessa’s problem with bipolar disorder is sad. I can kind of relate to that because sometimes I question if I’m bipolar. It has to be difficult for one second to be happier than you can ever imagine then the next second you want to scream at someone. I’m glad you read that book and talked about Vanessa’s problem so when people read your blog they can see that there is help for their problems if they have any. Your blog also shows that it’s not bad to talk to a therapist if you need help, it could be the best thing to do.
ReplyDeleteLynsey--
ReplyDeleteIt really isn't bad to talk to someone about fears that you may have if you find the right person to talk to. Many people get the wrong idea thinking that they are "crazy" because they may act different or have different feelings than someone else. It's not true though. If it were I think this topic would be called CRAZY BEHAVIOR instead of ABNORMAL BEHAVIOR.
Thanks for the comment!