The book Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me, the author offers insight into her life as an artist and writer while living day to day with bipolar disorder. At first the author, Ellen Forney, has trouble believing the psychiatrist that diagnosed her with bipolar and doubts that she has the medical condition. After numerous visits to a psychiatrist and having the symptoms pointed out to her, she finally comes to an understanding with the psychiatrist that she does indeed have bipolar disorder. After finding out that she has bipolar, Ellen Forney ponders about what her life will be like after. The author mentions “Bipolar disorder is infamous for its suicide rate.” (Forney 44). What the author is claiming is that many individuals…show more content… Forney documents her entire experience starting from being diagnosed with bipolar and the struggles that ensued to her state of mind while under medication. She documents her difficulty with trying to find balance in her life while on medication. For example, she stated “I’ll plan various comics projects to do when I’m depressed! The manic-me-now will take care of the depressed-me-then!!” (Forney 29). Forney gives good reasons for her not to take medication by researching various artist of the past that had bipolar disorder and weren’t medicated. She shows her psychiatrist that many artists lived pretty normal lives without medication. Her refusal to take medication for her disorder stems from her experience at a psychiatric facility that she had volunteered at previously. Forney is well aware of what side effects medication has on a individual who has a mood disorder. For instance, she describes the reaction of one of her bipolar patients that responded with enthusiasm before receiving medication and then after medication the individual’s reaction displayed lack of