A quick rant...
So Amy Winehouse died Saturday and I know I shouldn't let it get to me but I'm a little sad about it. I was just thinking about her the night before wondering when if ever she would put out another album.
People are saying it's so tragic because she was so talented and young and had her whole life ahead of her and all that. While all that is true, would it be less tragic if she couldn't sing and was just some freaky looking chick walking down the street? Probably not.
The reason why I am upset about it is because it is just an example of the mentally ill not getting the help they need. More specifically, Ms. Winehouse claimed to be diagnosed with bipolar disorder. It clarifies why she acted the way she did. She was impulsive, erratic, moody and all the things that the DSM categorizes as hallmarks of the disorder. Yes, these characteristics can totally be applied to alcohol/drug abusers too.
Here's my armchair analysis of the situation:
As someone suffering from bipolar I, I believe she may have had the same type. People with bipolar I often times do not get diagnosed or if they do they often refuse treatment. Having bipolar I means that you have more manic cycles or much more intense ones that those with bipolar II. Bipolar I people are the life of the party, often very animated and social. They are impulsive but in an often viewed romantic way. They are the type of people knocking on your door at two o' clock in the morning wanting to take a roadtrip to Mexico. Neal Cassady suffered from bipolar I and look at all the wonderful adventures and characters he spawned.
But people with bipolar I crash too and have devastating lows. Even these downswings occur, many refuse treatment in fear of losing their manic episodes or "highs."
Rather than giving Amy Winehouse a hard time for not seeking treatment and treating herself so badly, I seek to understand her motives. She was very talented and fame came to her at a young age. People suffering from bipolar disorder often to not have their first episodes until their early twenties. Bipolar people are also impetuous and self destructive. With fame comes a wealth of any kind of drug you would like either for free or easily purchasable with the money being raked in. Not only having drugs at one's disposal but also money and fame could mess with a "sane" person's head. Drugs can interact with moodswings, making mania more intesnse or staving off depression. Bipolars like to self medicate most often not with drugs that will actually help them.
Being under public scrutiny could not have helped her either. Every fuck up, every detail of her life all over the tabloids making her a worldwide joke. She should have had help offered to her rather than encouragement of her destructive behavior because it made good gossip. Even if she said, "No no no" to rehab, someting could have been done.
To all those haters, she was just a young woman with problems not some skeezy crack whore. And that is what is truly sad