stuck

I am listening to NPR, to Studio 360, and Kay Jamison is being interviewed about bipolar disorder, depression and creativity. She explains that in mild manic states a person is disinhibited, and creativity explodes. There is a wild urge to create. Creative people tend to be introspective to begin with, and the creative person who has episodes of hypomania which lead to the creation of new work. I know that this is true of me. Such is the dilemma that confronts people with bipolar disorder and/or depression. Does the medication I take reduce my imagination? I know that before I was on meds I wrote a lot more. But I was also utterly tormented so much of the time that I found it harder to get through the days. When I am depressed, I am not productive. What do I do? This is something I have been thinking about a lot lately.

Yesterday I had a great meeting with my collaborators on OEDIPUS AT COLONUS. It was nice being back at Vassar, although the weather sucked. I realize how lucky I am to have been a student there. It was life-changing. And now, to be working as a peer with two of my favorite professors, is a thrill. So it was a fruitful trip. And I am energized to get back to work.