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Vincent
van Gogh
(1853–1890)
This talented artist may be as
well-known for cutting off his ear as for
his paintings inspired by the south of
France. Historians agree that Van Gogh
suffered from unstable mood, had recurrent
psychotic episodes during the last two
years of his extraordinary life, and
committed suicide at the age of 37 (severe
depression and severe mania are both
associated with psychosis). Although there
is some disagreement as to whether his
mood swings during the last years of his
life were from epilepsy, Bipolar Disorder,
or both, his earlier history provides some
strong indications that he suffered from a
mood disorder.
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Abraham
Lincoln (1809 - 1865)
The 16th President of the United
States, Lincoln was often depressed and
had suicidal thoughts.
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Ludwig
van Beethoven (1770 -
1827)
The brilliant composer suffered from
Bipolar Disorder, as indicated by his
correspondence to others, and his erratic
and occasionally "raging" behavior.
Interestingly, recent analysis of strands
of his hair found "unusually high" levels
of lead, and the researchers feel that the
unusual lead levels were responsible for
his illness.
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Patty
Duke (1946 - )
A famous child actress, her long battle
with Bipolar Disorder is related in her
autobiography, Call Me Anna and her
book, A Brilliant Madness: Living with
Manic-Depressive Illness.
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Buzz
Aldrin (1930 - )
This astronaut flew to the moon in
1969, but was later hospitalized for
depression.
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Sir
Isaac Newton (1643-
1727)
No one would have predicted that
Isaac Newton would ever amount to much. He
had a miserable childhood with poor family
relationships and didn't do well as a
student. In fact, he didn't do well at
anything until he got interested in
mathematics. From that point on, he went
on to become a brilliant mathematician and
scientist. He co-invented calculus,
discovered laws of physics, discovered the
law of gravity, composition of light, and
planetary motion. He suffered periods of
severe depression and bouts of intense
creativity and productivity.
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