For generations, there’s been

a cultural assumption that cre-

ative people are more mentally

unstable than everybody else. In

his 1936 essay, The Crack-Up, F.

Scott Fitzgerald detailed his own

personal battles with depression

and alcoholism. Just four years

prior, German psychiatrist Wil-

helm Lang-Eichbaum examined

800 “geniuses,” and found that

they showed higher tendencies

toward “nervous tensions” than

the general population.

In 2005, a study of 30 writers

from the prestigious Iowa Writ-

er’s Workshop were compared

with 30 people of similar IQ and

comparable educational ad-

vancement. The writers--and

their immediate relatives--had

a higher rate of mood disorders

than the controls. And, for add-

ed measure, let’s throw in the

fact that of America’s 11 Nobel

laureates in literature, four of

them were “clearly alcoholics”

(Sinclair Lewis, Eugene O’Neill,

William Faulkner, and Ernest

Hemingway), and one of them

(Steinbeck) “probably was,” ac-

cording to Donald W. Goodwin,

MD, who wrote a book on the

subject.

This fall, the first statistically signif-

icant study linking creativity and

mental illness was published

in the Journal of Psychiatric

Research. “Mental Illness, Sui-

cide, And Creativity: 40-Year

Prospective Total Population

Study,” examined 1.2 million

Swedish patients from the coun-

try’s national registry and com-

pared this sample against the

entire Swedish population.

Here’s what they found:

Overall, creative professionals

were about 8% more likely to

suffer from bipolar disorder than

the general population. The

study found this to be true for

artists (practitioners of everything

DOES CREATIVITY COME WITH A PRICE? NEW INSIGHT ON CREATIVES

AND MENTAL ILLNESSBY JENNIFER MILLER

A new study says creative types--writers, in particular--are more likely to suffer from certain kinds of mental illness. The lead re-searcher discusses the reasons for the link and why we may want to rethink assumptions about sickness and treatment.

from photography to choreog-

raphy) and scientists (profes-

sors and researchers). The most

startling results, however, related

to authors. Writers were a whop-

ping 121% more likely to suffer

from bipolar disorder than the

general population. Moreover,

Simon Kyaga, the study’s lead re-

searcher, says that authors had a

“statistically significant increase”

in anxiety disorders--38% to be

exact. Rates of alcoholism, drug

addiction, and suicide also in-

creased among writers.

So what, exactly, is going on

here? And why the particular

increase in bipolar?

Simon Kyaga, the study’s lead

author, explains that first

you have to address

the tricky problem

of defining cre-

ativity. He does

so by examining

three as-

pects: per-

sonality (traits

like curiosity that

are associated

with creativity),

process (what

actually hap-

pens in the

brain during a

creative act),

and product.

In short, he says

that creativity is

the production of

something new

and meaningful.

Sure, these terms are

subjective. But research

has sh

own that the greater the cre-

ative person’s output, the more

likely she is to hit on something

innovative or revolutionary.

“When you’re manic, you get

more things done, but you also

get more and wider ideas. And

the more ideas you have, the

more creative you are,” says

Kyaga. It’s certainly possible for

a manic person to create an ex-

cess of crappy art. But Kyaga’s

team has also seen a link be-

tween bipolar disorder and am-

bition. If you’re truly ambitious,

then you’re actively trying to

create new and meaningful

work. In other words, your art

is more than a by-product of

your inability to sit still.

But this doesn’t

explain why the

rates of bipolar

disorder are so

much higher for

authors. Kyaga’s

study discovered that

authors are really overrun

with psychological illness--from

anxiety disorders to alcoholism.

In fact, this was the opposite of

what Kyaga found among oth-

er creative professionals. Visual

artists, dancers, directors, and

scientists suffered from these

disorders at significantly lower

rates than the general popula-

tion. Kyaga theorizes that writ-

ers are particularly plagued by

environmental factors. “It takes a

long time before you get some-

thing published and a long time

to get feedback,” he says. “That

waiting isn’t present to the same

extent in other occupations.”

(As an author, I will attest to the

truth of Kyaga’s observation

about the agony of waiting, but

I’m not sure the struggling paint-

ers, dancers, or, for that matter,

the scientists who work for years

without a breakthrough, fare any

better.)

In any case, the important ques-

tion raised by the Swedish study

relates to treatment. Can this

new diagnosis change the way

that doctors help their patients?

Kyaga says absolutely. “Patients

cannot be reduced to a diag-

nosis, and these results point to

that.”

He argues against the tendency

to look at patients as either sick

Hypomaniasymptoms:

Hypomania is a less severe

form of mania. People in a

hypomanic state feel euphoric,

energetic, and productive, but

they are able to carry on with

their day-to-day lives and they

never lose touch with reality. To

others, it may seem as if people

with hypomania are merely in

an unusually good mood. How-

ever, hypomania can result in

bad decisions that harm rela-

tionships, careers, and reputa-

tions. In addition, hypomania

often escalates to full-blown

mania or is followed by a major

depressive episode.

R e a d m o r e a b o u t B i p o l a r o n

p a g e 3

1 2

Did You know?

or

well,

because even

“sickness” has its upsides.

“The underlying traits [of these

illnesses] might confer advantag-

es, e.g. creativity,” he says. And

because of this, Kyaga says that

doctors need to think twice be-

fore administering standard drug

treatments. Drugs can stabilize

but in so doing, they can alter

a creative person’s personality,

process, and product. On the

flip side, Kyaga says that some

studies have shown an increase

in creative output among pa-

tients who are taking lithium, a

common treatment for bipolar

disorder. He points to an old

one (1979) in the British Journal

of Psychiatry, which examined

the effects of Lithium treatment

on 24 manic-depressive artists.

Half of the sample reported an

increase in artistic productivity.

“Treatments need to be based

on sound clinical trails,” says

Kyaga. “And this calls for using

large databases of information.”

Say, 1.2 million Swedes.

The different faces of bipolar disorder:

Bipolar I Disorder (mania

or a mixed episode) –

The classic manic-depressive

form of the illness, character-

ized by at least one manic

episode or mixed episode. Usu-

ally—but not always—Bipolar I

Disorder also involves at least

one episode of depression.

Bipolar II Disorder (hypo-

mania and depression) –

In Bipolar II disorder, the person

doesn’t experience full-blown

manic episodes. Instead, the

illness involves episodes of

hypomania and severe depres-

sion.

Cyclothymia (hypomania

and mild depression) –

Cyclothymia is a milder form

of bipolar disorder. It consists

of cyclical mood swings. How-

ever, the symptoms are less

severe than full-blown mania or

depression.-

Treatment for bipolar

disorder

If you spot the symp-

toms of bipolar de-

pression in yourself or

someone else, don’t

wait to get help.

Ignoring the problem

won’t make it go awa

y; in fact, it will almost

certainly get worse. Liv-

ing with untreated bipolar

disorder can lead to problems

in everything from your career to

your relationships to your health. Diag-

nosing the problem as early as possible and

getting into treatment can help prevent these com-

plications.

If you’re reluctant to seek treatment because you like the way you feel

when you’re manic, remember that the energy and euphoria come

with a price. Mania and hypomania often turn destructive, hurting you

and the people around you.

Basics of bipolar disorder treatment:

Bipolar disorder requires long-term treatment. Since bipolar disorder is

a chronic, relapsing illness, it’s important to continue treatment even

when you’re feeling better. Most people with bipolar disorder need

medication to prevent new episodes and stay symptom-free.

There is more to treatment than medication. Medication alone is usually

not enough to fully control the symptoms of bipolar disorder. The most

effective treatment strategy for bipolar disorder involves a combination

of medication, therapy, lifestyle changes, and social support.

It’s best to work with an experienced psychiatrist. Bipolar disorder is

a complex condition. Diagnosis can be tricky and treatment is often

difficult. For safety reasons, medication should be closely monitored.

A psychiatrist who is skilled in bipolar disorder treatment can help you

navigate these twists and turns.

4

Did You know?

10 Stunning Illustrations From Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales

by Carey Dunne

Every Little Mermaid Hallow-

een costume, every reference

to “Ugly Duckling Syndrome,”

and every use of “the Emper-

or’s New Clothes” as an idiom

ultimately has its roots in the

fairy tales of Hans Christian

Andersen. Though he died in

1875, Andersen’s contemporary

mythology is alive and well.

Art book powerhouse Taschen

pays homage to this legacy

with a new book, The Fairy

Tales of Hans Christian Ander-

sen, which features 23 of his

beloved stories. There are the

big hits, like The Little Mermaid,

Thumbelina, and The Princess

and the Pea, as well as less-

er-known gems, like The Farm-

yard Cock and the Weather

Cock (Andersen can even

make a chicken coop dra-

matic) and Five Peas in a Pod

(Andersen, apparently, had a

thing for peas--they appear in

five of these stories).

The book is filled with hundreds

of beautiful illustrations by

famous artists from the 1840s

to the 1980s, including Maurice

Sendak, Kay Nielsen, and the

eccentric Tom Seidmann-Freud

(Sigmund’s niece). There are

also newly commissioned

silhouettes depicting char-

acters and scenes from the

stories. Yellow and red ribbon

bookmarks give it the feel of a

spell book that might be lying

around in one of Andersen's

fictional apothecaries.

Book editor Noel Daniel points

out in her introduction that the

Ugly Duckling story was an apt

parable for Andersen’s own

rags-to-riches life.

He was born into poverty in

1805 to a shoemaker father

and a washerwoman mother

and vowed in his diary, “I will

become famous.” He made

his way out of the slums of

Odense, Denmark, by writing

stories inspired women who

had been committed to the

local lunatic asylum, where

Andersen’s grandmother was a

gardener. Andersen would sit in

the spinning room as the wom-

en spun both yarn and stories,

the latter of which were full

of goblins, trolls, witches, and

water spirits.

“Andersen’s characters are hu-

manlike in their passions as well

as their frailties, and often have

a slightly kinked perspective,

unable to see their real fate

or position, as if Andersen was

shining a light on the limitations

of our own human subjectivi-

ty,” Daniel writes. “In this way,

perhaps the real subject of his

tales is the inescapable condi-

tion of subjectivity as the es-

sence of human experience.”

hese fairy tales aren’t neces-

sarily for children. These are the

The Snow Queen illustration by Katharine Beverley and Elizabeth Ellender (nationalities unknown), 1929.

The Princess and the Pea by German artist Tom Seidmann-Freud (niece of Sigmund Freud), 1921.“A NEW BOOK FEATURES THE MYSTICAL, DARK--AND

UNEDITED--WORLD OF ANDERSEN VIA ILLUSTRATIONS FROM WORLD-FAMOUS ARTISTS.”

- NewYork Times

The Ugly Duckling illustration by revered Dutch artist Theo van Hoyetma, 1893.

The Ugly Duckling illustration by Theo van Hoyetma, 1893.

original, uncensored versions,

pre-Disney airbrushing. Sorry,

kids, the Little Mermaid does

not live happily ever after with

Prince Charming--she hurls her-

self into the ocean and turns

into sea foam, after the Evil

65

New Arrivals

Witch tells her she must kill the

prince if she wants to live. (But

don’t worry. She eventually be-

comes a Daughter of the Air.)