I apologize, I can't put this as a link, but this comes from a book review in NYTimes of various bestselling authors and it just hit me.
Author Michael Lewis: "When I'm working on a book I'm in a very agitated state. My sleep is disrupted. I only dream about the project. My sex drive goes up. My need for exercise, and the catharsis I get from it, is greater. I take a blank pad and pen and write hundreds of notes through the day."

Sound familiar? But no one in the review says, oh btw, this author is bp. I guess he's special, he's an 'author'. Seriously? Meh.

[AnxietyGirl916]

Interesting indeed.

[BipolaRNurse]

A lot of writers (and other artistic types) are/have bipolar. Myself among them, although I'm certainly not famous yet.

I just find it interesting that for us these behaviors are pathology but in this context "it must just be what writers do to get in the zone" like its sort of an accepted thing because he's a writer. I agree that many writers, artists and the like have bipolar or some other MI.

[LonelyJoe]

I think those of us who endure/suffer from mental health issues, also have just as much potential and power to create and achieve amazing things in our lives and those around us

it's a shame though that the stigma still exists in general society, so that a writer is a writer (who exhibits MH behaviours), whereas an MH sufferer is sometimes totally written off being anything useful or a high achiever - if anything our downsides (the MH) are more than compensated by our brilliance, but we have to fight against the stigma to show that, rather than be seen to have both extremes, the MH and the potential for great success!

I hope this changes one day though, we deserve to be acknowledged for all our amazing strengths too, not just the obstacles we have to constantly battle with

It would be so helpful to not have to excuse the MH stuff and just be given the empathy we deserve without the pity/doubts over our huge potential...