I chose to write about Virginia Woolf, a British writer who wrote A Room of One's Own, To the Lighthouse, and Orlando, to name a few of her works. Virginia Woolf was my first introduction to feminist type books. I chose Woolf because she is a fantastic writer and also one of my favorites. His unique writing style, which became known as stream of consciousness, was influenced by the symptoms he experienced through his bipolar disorder. Many people have heard the word “bipolar,” but don't understand its full implications. People who know someone with this disorder may view their erratic behavior as a character flaw, without realizing that people with bipolar mental illness have no control over their moods. Virginia Woolf's illness was not understood during her lifetime. He committed suicide in 1941. There are several theories about what could lead a person to develop bipolar disorder. In the case of Virginia Woolf, many scholars have linked her illness to childhood sexual abuse by her older half-siblings, based on Freudian theory (Carmango, 1992). Uebelacker (2006) researches correlations between family functioning and the course of bipolar disorder and finds that stable family relationships would likely make it easier for bipolar family members to manage their symptoms. In Woolf's case, family problems may have played an important role, not in the development of the disease, but in the onset of her episodes (Carmango, 1992). A person's environmental forces do not cause bipolar disorder. Bipolar disorder is a lifelong mood disorder characterized by periods of mania, depression, or a mixed manic-depressive state. The condition can seriously affect a person's reasoning, understanding, awareness and behavior. Acco...... middle of the paper ......c Depressive illness. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. Frances, A., & Ross, R. (1996). DSM-IV case studies a clinical guide to differential diagnosis. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press, Inc. Miklowitz, D. G., & Otto, M. W. (2006). New psychosocial interventions for bipolar disorder: a literature review and systematic treatment improvement program introduction. Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy. 20, 214-230. National Institute of Mental Health. (2007) Bipolar disorder. Bethesda, MD: US Department of Health and Human Services. Schleicher, J. (2007). Mental illness and the creative process. Retrieved from http://www.onu.edu/node/26779Uebelacker, L.A., Miller, I.W., Keitner, G.I., Ryan, C., & Solomon, D.A. (2006). The impact of family treatment on family functioning in bipolar disorder I. Journal of family psychology. 20, 701-704.