Mind Race Review: Insights into Bipolar Disorder and Treatment

This report provides a comprehensive review of Patrick Jamieson's 'Mind Race: A Firsthand Account of One Teenager's Experience with Bipolar Disorder.' The book offers an empathetic and informative perspective on bipolar disorder, drawing from Jamieson's personal experiences and current research. The review highlights the book's effectiveness in guiding young adults through diagnosis, treatment options, and coping strategies. It also explores the challenges faced by those with bipolar disorder and the importance of seeking medical attention and support. The reviewer emphasizes the book's value for teenagers, young adults, and their families, recommending it as a significant resource for understanding and managing bipolar disorder, along with other related materials.

Running head: REVIEW OF MIND RACE
REVIEW OF MIND RACE
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author note

1
REVIEW OF MIND RACE
Mind Race is the book written in first-person account to make it effective, based on
young adults who have experienced recent diagnosis of bipolar disorder, it is an informative,
empathetic and amiable. Jamieson relates to his own challenges and winnings, and provides
guidance on overcoming with expanding indications to understand the starting of the disease
(Jamieson & Rynn, 2006). Adding the first-person account with learning along with knowledge
about famous psychotherapists and counsellors, the author shall give as such important
information on diagnosis, about new treatment options attainable, and how to fight with
cognitive sickness at surroundings including home and school. Both personal narrative and
recent research forms a unique combination to help teenagers and tender adults handle
successfully with diseases and also to authorize with power to act instantly and honestly to get
the best possible medical attention. This can be true reflection of a person from the world of
bipolar disorder. Most of the people who are diagnosed with this disorder are people aging to
adults and people from young generation who encounters generation gap and often fail to
manage interpersonal relationships. This can be the reason they feel much of in securities
(Jamieson & Rynn, 2006). Patrick Jamieson has been diagnosed at his very early age of fifteen
years with the bipolar disorder and hence is well aware of the ups and downs and shares what he
has gone through in Mind Race. The versatile book Mind Race provides insights of teens who
have undergone diagnosis of having bipolar disorder, the story guides the readers in a very
informative way along with positive tint of humors, yet in a bureaucratic manner. Jamieson
discusses both his personal defiance and victory, and gives relevant suggestions on handling with
emerging symptoms of how to identify the onset of regular mood swings (Jamieson & Rynn,
2006). In common terms to create an uniformity, he offers the all new scientific researches of the
similar disorder, remedial options to cure, and ways to save oneself with the harmful

2
REVIEW OF MIND RACE
consequences of various therapies and medicaments. He also involves an elaborative frequently
asked questions which answers the queries of a recently examined adolescent and also offers
suggestions on how to express the feelings to family and friends about the encounter of bipolar
disorder. In Mind Race, Jamieson motivates teenagers and young generation by creating hopes in
them for staying with bipolar disorder, managing them to cope up with their sufferance and
painful situations so that they can live freely and a blessed life (Jamieson & Rynn, 2006).
Mind race is the book from which I learned many things and what I searched for there is
the term in thrilling sense that was endlessly propelled throughout life out of persevering and
giddy on certain moments, then all of a sudden sinking and horrified after a sleepless night and
hardly could able to response due to the numbness hovered on mind (Jamieson & Rynn, 2006).
These symptoms lead to the bipolar disorder which is indeed a life-long yet treatable disease.
Person affected with the bipolar disorder can be ruthless and the life becomes treacherous.
Having read this book, I learned that in the state of mania the person develops a thinking that he
is incurable, have to be bed ridden for hours with nostalgic words and sounds in the ears, also a
night without sleep makes person reluctant and increases the possibilities of hospitalization.
When depressed, it is quite problematic aligning thoughts together (Jamieson & Rynn, 2006).
Possibilities are there to slow down mentally as if a minute seems like an hour, an hour seems
like a day and a day feels like a month. The peace of mind is snatched, and person stops reliving
and remembering fantasies. This is written in first-person account on people headed towards
adolescence and especially tender adults facing bipolar disorder excessively. It is also a note for
those parents, siblings and friends who have a person with them challenged with bipolar disorder
(Jamieson & Rynn, 2006). It is like an addition rather than an alternative for many other books
that are easily obtainable on bipolar disorder. Mind race describes the way how life changes from

3
REVIEW OF MIND RACE
the usual hormonal disaster, an adolescent transformed to a prolonged, mental changing
condition.
There are several books available on bipolar disorder that one can prefer reading. Few are
worth mentioning ones which are written by Frederick Goodwin and Kay Redfield Jamison’s
Maniac-Depressive Illness; Peter Whybrow’s A Mood Apart: Depression, Mania and other
Afflictions of the Self; and E. Fuller Torrey and M.B. Knable’s Surviving Manic Depression.
Rest are autobiographies of adults with their respective disorders. For instance, Electro boy: A
Memoir of Mania by Andy Behrman which is a popular and offers good knowledge. But, the
kind of perseverance shown in the Mind Race is commendable. The compassion used and the
humor implemented in the story made it the heart throb for the avid readers and made this book a
successful (Jamieson & Rynn, 2006). This book has always been in demand to the readers
because of its conciseness and informative genre and ending with a good note unlike others that
have anguished accounts of ailments ended up in suicidal cases, such as Danielle Steele’s His
Bright Light or family guides written by parents and siblings of those with the disorder.
Therefore, in my opinion I would recommend Mind Race as a significant reading material for
readers who wants to develop ideas on the way to think for themselves and the world.

4
REVIEW OF MIND RACE
Reference
Jamieson, P. E., & Rynn, M. A. (2006). Mind Race: A Firsthand Account of One Teenager's
Experience with Bipolar Disorder. Oxford University Press.