Next to Normal: Is Bipolar a Dysphemism for Life?

If you thought this Broadway musical was just about Bipolar Disorder, I won't spoil the surprise. It is a tribute to the strength and resilience of patients and families who must cope as best they can with serious mental illness on top of everything else life can throw at us. And with less help from psychiatry than we would like to offer.

I found the view of modern psychiatry balanced and accurate. Broadway has finally moved past it's obsession with psychoanalysis, but still seems stuck on individual psychotherapy. How might this story have unfolded with a family psychotherapist? There was one glaring omission: How might this story have unfolded under managed care?

Take heart psychiatrists. As Diana tells her Dr. Madden, "You're not a scary rock star anymore."

Next to Normal