My Interview With Dr. Frederick Goodwin

Many thanks. Four more videos are on the way. I'm very glad I had a chance to present Dr Goodwin to the very audience who would appreciate him the most.

Scratch that part about the book "Bipolar Disorder" being written by Dr. Goodwin.  I just happened to remember:  it was written by Francis Mondimere.  Anyway, I got a plug in for a very good book.  Sorry about the screwup.

Judy

Oops! I replied to your main post before I read this. The Mondimore book is excellent, too, especially for those new to the diagnosis.

There are 4 general bipolar books I recommend for patients and their families:

Mondimore: Bipolar Disorder - A Guide for Patients and Families

Miklowitz: The Bipolar Disorder Survival Guide

Phelps: Whiy Am I Still Depressed

McManamy: Living Well with Depression and Bipolar Disorder

Note - these are the general overview books. Then we get more specialized how-to books such as Basco's The Bipolar Workbook and Copeland's books on WRAP, plus various nutrition and yoga and lifestyle and mindfulness books, plus biographies such as Shenk's Lincoln's Melancholy, plus books that shed insight into our illness such as Gartner's The Hypomanic Edge, plus books such as Papolos' The Bipolar Child, plus memoirs such as Jamison's An Unquiet Mind.

Hey, Judy. You're hired as my PR agent. Maybe we can shoot a big budget horror movie based on my blog here. Seriously, very glad you enjoyed the videos.

I think the book you're thinking of is by David Miklowitz, who pioneered family therapy for bipolar, which I highly recommend to readers. The Goodwin-Jamison book is 1,200 pages of technical material intended for clinicians, but I do highly recommend it for any patient who is interested in educating themselves by reading what the doctors read. The book is THE authority, bar none.

Hey, Kathy. Thank you so much. This wouldn't have happened without you.

To readers:

Kathy arranged for Dr Goodwin to speak to the Capital Region DBSA at the auditorium at George Washington University Hospital, then helped arrange the taping afterwards. Kathy picked me up at my hotel in Arlington, VA and promptly got us on the road headed in the opposite direction to Dulles Airport. Eventually, we got on the correct side of the Potomac and had hot dogs in a pub close to the venue.

Then Kathy and I arrived at the venue well ahead of time to set up. This involved lugging refreshments and brochures from her vehicle, as well as checking with the AV people that we had the right mikes, etc. As well, Kathy was involved in the pre-event planning and publicity.

Then, while I found a quiet space to prepare my list of questions for Dr Goodwin, Kathy set up the display area in the foyer, and made sure the auditorium was good to go.

Some time earlier, Dr Goodwin had suffered a severe leg fracture. Kathy was in constant contact with Dr Goodwin's office, in case she had to reschedule the event.

All over the country are people like Kathy, volunteers who get things done. These are the heart and soul of DBSA. They show up early. They unlock doors, they turn on lights, they set up tables and chairs, they put out brochures and other educational material. They provide a welcoming atmosphere. They are there to greet arrivals. Then they make sure meetings and events run smoothly. Finally, they are the ones who turn out the lights.

In between meetings, they are fielding phone queries, planning events, making outreaches to the community, getting things photocopied ... The list goes on and on.

And they don't get paid a dime for this. To the contrary - they are usually picking up expenses out of their own pocket.

And they don't get glory. They labor in anonymity. Their only reward is the satifaction of knowing they are helping others. When things are running smoothly, you don't even know they are there. It is only when things go wrong that you notice them - and that is inevitably because they are for some reason not present (sickness, retirement, etc).

So, many many thanks, Kathy. You and thousands of others like you are the backbone of the mental health movement. I'm especially happy for you that these videos came out so great. It wouldn't have happened without you.

Awww, that's very kind of you, John!

You're correct that we do it for the satisfaction of knowing we've contributed to a cause that is too often neglected, and even shunned.

Dr. Goodwin hopes to return in April, 2009. I'll keep you posted.

Kathy

Hi, Anonymous. No, Dr Goodwin did not fall into the Biederman and Nemeroff conflict scandal. A very different set of facts are involved. Drs Biederman and Nemeroff made clear ethical breaches in academic cover-ups with clear legal implications. With Dr Goodwin, Infinite Mind looks like it's trying to save its neck over what just about everyone knew, it seems, but Infinite Mind.

The NY Times also appears to be tarring Dr Goodwin with the same brush as the others. Significantly, the NY Times neglects to mention that Dr Goodwin is highly critical of the drug industry, and that the med he champions most is lithium, which is not promoted by any drug company. Also, that if pdocs listened to Dr Goodwin, prescriptions for antidepressants would be way down.

I have been critical of the corrupt influence of drug industry largesse ever since I began reporting on mental health in 1999. But there is a such thing as responsible journalism, and the NY Times article today fell way short of the mark.

I will have a blog out on the topic fairly soon. Stay tuned ...