Living with bipolar. A guide to understanding and managing the disorder. Lesley Berk, Michael Berk, David Castle, Sue Lauder. Sydney: Allen and Unwin, 2008 (xiv + 298 pp). ISBN 978 1 74175 425 4.

Over the past decade there has been a palpable surge of fascination with bipolar disorder in this country, generated at least in part by the moving testimonies of high-profile patients, and a resurgence of academic and pharmaceutical interest in the condition. This increasingly transparent public discourse has been a boon to those who have suffered in silence for so many years, and who now demand and expect quality information and guidance on understanding and living with the highly disabling illness. Consequently, there is now a healthy, growing market for well written, informative self-help books targeting bipolar disorder, for sufferers, their families and the lay community.

Living with bipolar, written by an impressive team of Australian researchers and psychologists, is an excellent addition to the genre, complementing an Australian canon of quality books. Others include Sarah Russell’s A lifelong journey: staying well with manic depression/bipolar disorder (a self-help manual written by a researcher who has experienced bipolar disorder), Penelope and Jessica Rowe’s The best of times, the worst of times (a frank account of a family’s struggles dealing with bipolar), and Mastering bipolar disorder, a compilation of individuals’ accounts of managing their mood swings, edited by Kerrie Eyers and Gordon Parker.

Living with bipolar, unlike the others, is both a highly palatable mini-monograph on bipolar disorder for the layperson, and rich, common-sense advice for managing the condition. I particularly enjoyed the chapters on modern psychological strategies that patients can use to manage symptoms, including specific guidance on “catching symptoms early” and “managing your triggers”.

This is no anti-medical treatise, finishing rather with advice encouraging patients to establish a collaborative relationship with their medical practitioner. A highly recommended book for your bipolar patients.