Kay Redfield Jamison

An international authority and researcher on mood disorders and a recipient of the prestigious MacArthur Fellowship, Kay Redfield Jamison has unique insight into the world of mental illness. She has been there herself. A Professor of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University, Dr. Jamison shocked her colleagues by going public with her own struggle with manic-depression in a 1995 Washington Post article and subsequent book, An Unquiet Mind. The book became a New York Times bestseller and was cited by several major publications as one of the best of the year. According to Oliver Sacks, "It stands alone in the literature of manic depression for its bravery, billiance, and beauty." Since the release of An Unquiet Mind, Dr. Jamison has become a trusted spokesperson for millions of people who suffer from mental illness. Audiences describe her lectures as profound educational experiences. She addresses the clinical and personal realities of depression and bipolar disorder in a manner that encourages dialogue, empathy and hope. Her national bestseller, Night Falls Fast: Understanding Suicide, was chosen by The New York Times as a "Notable Book of 1999." Jamison, explaining her reasons for writing the book, said, "I have become increasingly optimistic about the possibilities of suicide prevention but deeply frustrated by the lack of public and professional awareness of the terrible toll it takes." Suicide is the third leading cause of death in 19 to 24-year olds and, globally, kills over one million people a year. Her latest book is Exuberance: The Passion for Life, an exploration of exuberance and how it fuels our most important creative and scientific achievements. Jamison completed her undergraduate and graduate work at UCLA, where she was a National Science Foundation Research Fellow, a John F. Kennedy Scholar, and UCLA Graduate Woman of the Year. She became Director of the UCLA Affective Disorders Clinic, was selected as one of five individuals for the PBS-TV series Great Minds of Medicine and was chosen by TIME as a "Hero of Medicine." She also published Touched With Fire, a groundbreaking study of manic-depression and creativity. Dr. Jamison has published over 100 articles in academic journals and has authored or co-authored five books. She is co-author of the standard medical textbook on manic-depression, which was chosen in 1990 as the most outstanding book in Biomedical Sciences by the American Association of Publishers. Jamison's rigorous yet compassionate approach is an offshoot of her own journey from suffering to sharing. She offers a powerful message of hope to those who most need it.