The Daily Novel

You probably know several, because research has proved that there are a lot of them about. But they do not walk around with badges labelled ‘Help the manics’ or ‘Manic depressives of the world unite’. They do not go around in gangs with other manic depressives. Nor do they walk Hampstead Heath at night looking for other manic depressives to bond with.

So the first thing you need to realise about manic depressives is that they are difficult to spot. This is because there is still a taboo about mental illness in our socitey, so the manic depressives themselves do not advertise their condition. For very good reality reasons of self preservation.

Not a few journalists are manic depressives but I cannot remember a single case in the hundreds of would-be journalists I have interviewed of anyone outing themselves at the interview stage. Contrast them with the gays, who have gradually over my lifetime been accepted by most people as being different, rather than sick or wicked. These days they even boast on their application forms of membership of gay societies. 

Some manic depressives do not even realise themselves that they are manic depressives. They are all aware that they have swings in mood, between elation and sadness that are greater than most people they know. But they do not consider themselves to be suffering from mental illness. Unless they have been sectioned and officially diagnosed by the hospital psychiartrists. Or unless they have talked about their condition to a listening GP who has helped them to understand and manage their condition either with the help of the talking therapies, or, as a last resort, pills.

Many manic depressives develop their own kind of coping strategies for surviving, even prospering. So, if the extended family is still with you, look at them afresh. Odds are there is at least one who will score very high on this ten point scale. There are likely to be several amongst your friends and neighbours. And when you go back to work keep your eyes and ears open as you go to the water cooler. Lots of manic depressives actually do quite well in the work world. Your boss might even be a manic depressive.