ABSTRACT
Imagine a young woman whose mother is a prominent politician. She is depressed and has trouble sleeping. Her rapid mood shifts make it hard for her to control her thinking. She spends too much money and is anxious about her credit card debt. She knows she needs help but is afraid to get it. Her mother is in the midst of a highly publicized race for Congress. She recalls the stories her parents told her about a Democratic senator from Missouri, Thomas Eagleton, who had to withdraw as George McGovern’s vice-presidential running mate when people discovered he was being treated for manic-depressive illness. More recent press coverage makes her wonder if she has the same problems as Eagleton (Associated Press, 1997; Time, 1996). What if she gets therapy and someone with a political axe to grind finds out and uses it against her mother? She wants nothing to stand in the way of her mother’s chances of winning that seat her mother has wanted for years. She decides to suffer alone, even if it means fighting off those disturbing thoughts of suicide.
