I, too, had a bipolar mother who was in & out of mental institutions & she finally committed suicide when I was 15. I tended to be the uber mom described in the article (trying desperately not to be like my mother who was often abusive & just didn't care about us at all. She often said she wished I had died at birth.) My kids grew up with no tv (poisoning the mind & dampens creativity as well as sends societal messages that are unrealistic (like how thin & attractive you should be).

I homeschooled them so they could learn at their own pace & basically was consumed with not being like my mother. Yet, I had terrible depressions where I was crying a lot (have been diagnosed with bipolar) & had to explain to them that Mommy was just sad & she didn't know why & it had nothing to do with them.

But I also did some really bad things in regards to my kids like drinking & smoking with my first so she was premature.

My "kids" are now 30 & 27. Both have had bouts of depression, but seem to be doing fine now. One is a lawyer & the other is a civil engineer. Sometimes I think they succeeded DESPITE me, because of my rigidity & periodic bouts of depression. They had a great, warm, involved &loving father, though, & I think that counts a
lot.--Suzy P.S. I heard a quote somewhere that has stuck with me: "Love doesn't hurt."