Book review: 'Manic' by Terri Cheney

Thursday, April 2, 2009

For Terri Cheney, normalcy isn’t found in the mishaps of everyday life. It’s found in doses of Prozac and bottles of tequila, which is her own personal remedy concocted to combat extreme depression. In her memoir, Manic, Cheney painfully outlines the continuous idiosyncrasies and subconscious desires of a life with bipolar disorder.

Her entries occur episodically instead of chronologically, mirroring the chaotic feelings of her depressing condition. The rhythmic flow of her prose sharply contrasts with the edgy episodes she describes. Cheney’s memoir illuminates much-needed light on a disorder kept strictly in the shadows.

Aside from the admiration I felt from reading truly honest and compelling thoughts, I was in awe at the author’s ability to hide her condition from the outside world. Living a life as a highly esteemed practicing lawyer is one thing, but doing it all and repressing emotions so heavy they seem to nail her feet to the ground is another. Cheney describes her mania and depression as completely debilitating, but at times entirely invigorating. During “manic” episodes, she becomes radiant, instantly flirtatious and in pursuit of any sort of affection. Her agonizing and wrenching memoir investigates the validity of love and happiness, and shows “true beauty is not the absence of ugliness, but the acceptance of it.”

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