Hobbsy09, it has taken quite a while to get mine under control, and I have had quite a few medication changes. It is worth persevering to do this.
Amyjo, I had the exact same experience with 'The Bell Jar'. It was extremely disturbing and 'suffocating' to me. I was not as perceptive as you, because I did not realize that it was too close to home.
To get back to the topic at hand, I bought "The Bipolar Handbook" by Wes Burgess and refer to it all the time. It is very readable and set out in a logical manner.