Depression Analysis in An Unquiet Mind

A psychological state most frequently marked by lethargy, fatigue, loss of interest in work and leisure activities, a flat emotional affect, and suicidal ideation or attempts at committing suicide. When Kay Redfield Jamison writes of her experience with states of depression, she describes feelings of “blackness,” “doom,” and physical pain and exhaustion.

Depression Quotes in An Unquiet Mind

The An Unquiet Mind quotes below are all either spoken by Depression or refer to Depression. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

I genuinely believed […] I ought to be able to handle whatever difficulties came my way without having to rely upon crutches such as medication.

I was not the only one who felt this way. When I became ill, my sister was adamant that I should not take lithium... […] She made it clear that she thought I should “weather it through” my depressions and manias, and that my soul would wither if I chose to dampen the intensity and pain of my experiences by using medication. […] One evening, now many years ago, she tore into me for […] “lithiumizing away my feelings.”

Related Characters: Kay Redfield Jamison (speaker), Kay’s Sister (speaker)

Page Number and Citation: 99

Explanation and Analysis:

Depression Term Timeline in An Unquiet Mind

The timeline below shows where the term Depression appears in An Unquiet Mind. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...been nervous about writing a book which “so explicitly” delves into her experiences with mania, depression, and psychosis—but she knows that “whatever the consequences” may be in her personal and professional... (full context)

...to everything in her life. After weeks of mania, she came to a “grinding halt.” Depressed, lethargic, and plagued by brain fog and exhaustion, she felt her mind had turned against... (full context)

These bouts of mania inevitably gave way to depressions which numbed Kay to the world around her, filled her with an unspecific but “profound”... (full context)

...see that she was in remission from manic-depressive illness, largely free from the manias and depressions that had defined the previous several years of her life. She got married to a... (full context)

...support would keep her alive “a thousand times over” as he helped her through mania, depression, madness, and despair. Through her sessions with her psychiatrist, Kay learned the totality of “the... (full context)

...effects of resisting psychiatric treatment. Still, it would take many more journeys through manias and depression for Kay to admit that she needed medication. Giving up her “high flights of mind... (full context)

Authenticity in the Professional World Theme Icon

...see her psychiatrist—but she went on and off of lithium, cycling through manias and severe depressions as she did. Every time the medication made her feel better, she felt she no... (full context)

...half. Though she was miserable each and every day whether she was experiencing mania or depression, she was unable to commit to taking the medication. Her thoughts became dark, desolate, and... (full context)

...suicide was the only way out of the unrelenting agony that was an eighteen-month-long suicidal depression. After taking an anti-emetic to keep herself from vomiting up the lithium, she swallowed her... (full context)

Jamison describes her experience with the violence that her manias and depressions alike inspired in her—she admits to having been “physically assaultive” as well as verbally abusive... (full context)

...a fine line, she writes, between her passionate personality and her manic alter ego. The depressions she experienced were “more in line with society’s notions of what women are all about,”... (full context)

...time. Hers was a “tidal existence,” still largely defined by frequent bouts of mania and depression. Still, she maintained an active social life and found that her friends and colleagues accepted... (full context)

...remained on lithium and found that, though her moods were still intense and periods of depression still visited her, her life had a more even keel. Things were stable and good,... (full context)

...there are still times when he fails to fully understand her experiences of mania or depression—and there are times when she fails to be capable of explaining to him what she’s... (full context)

Jamison still feels the effects of waves of mania and depression, even having been on lithium for decades—she is well for now, but she often cannot... (full context)

Depression Term Analysis

Depression Quotes in An Unquiet Mind

Depression Term Timeline in An Unquiet Mind