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Maggie is Interviewed by Mama Shirley

  on Tell Mama All About It

Maggie is Interviewed by Neseret for The Journey of Hope Mental Health Telesummit -

  On Mental Health TeleSummit (go to Neseret for full summit)

Click here for Free Sample Chapter of Maggie’s Book!
What if you always knew you were special…and then one day you found that being “special” wasn’t a good thing?  In fact, it was very, very bad.I was a cross-country track star on a full-ride scholarship to the college of my choice when I was hit hard with the most severe form of bipolar disorder (manic depressive illness).  Little did I know then that the only way my speed was going to help me was to escape from a maximum-security mental institution!Bipolar.  On one hand, the word is loaded with stigma.  On the other, so many celebrities, star athletes and other notable people have it, that it’s often used as a buzz-word on the front pages of newspapers.  The fact is over 3% of people have bipolar disorder – and its onset almost always hits during the fragile teenage years.I am sharing my personal story, including my shocking extremes of behavior, to help other families understand what is happening to their loved ones.  When my parents tried to understand what was happening to me, the only books they found were dry, clinical accounts of sad, mad, lost people – not exactly encouraging words for a mom and dad desperately clutching at straws.Most people find it hard to believe what I experienced, how I managed to survive that, and want to know how I can be thriving now.  My story proves that you can go away and come back again, and that no matter how bad things look, there is hope for a better future.

Praise and Recognition for Runaway Mind

In Runaway Mind, Maggie Reese invites us to climb aboard for a unique journey into the mind of a bipolar woman. Maggie’s account of her experience with this insidious illness is both courageous and terrifying and a testament of a woman and her family forced to face the reality of bipolar disorder. Everybody with mental illness and their family should read this inspiring book. It is a book that should passed on to those who have still not come to terms with their diagnosis or who may still not have been diagnosed. Runaway Mind is a book that will save lives.  Andy Behrman, author, Electroboy: A Memoir of Mania

Without question, Maggie is one of the most articulate, passionate, informed, and personable bipolar advocates I have had the pleasure to meet. Runaway Mind fairly leaps with insight, the kind that made me remark, “Yes, exactly!” and “No way!” – often in reaction to the same insight. Way to go, Maggie!  John McManamy, author, Living Well with Depression and Bipolar Disorder

Runaway Mind is as courageous as it is terrifying…Maggie inspires and educates her readers…Written with precision and without hesitation… Runaway Mind challenges the stigma associated with bipolar disorder and it does so exceptionally well” - Natalie Jeanne Champagne, Author of The Third Sunrise: A Memoir of Madness

As I read the pages of Runaway Mind I find that the raw nature of its revelation truths at once compelling and disturbing yet in an unexpected way, liberating. … Chances are everyone has in some way been touched by mental illness either personally, or through the trials of a loved one, friend or even just an acquaintance, and as result Runaway Mind is a must read! - Jon W. Hansen – Blog Talk Radio

This was so well written. You cannot put this book down! It is such a remarkable journey that Maggie went through. How admirable of Maggie to disclose her private life to all that reads this book. She is truly an inspiration to others that suffer from bipolar. I know this book will help others and their families to understand the journey of being bipolar. As you will read…there is hope. Thank you Maggie for writing this book. God be with you and your family, you are truly blessed. I hope someday they will make a movie about “RUNAWAY MIND“- Jill Kaplan (San Diego, CA)

As I read the pages of Runaway Mind I find that the raw nature of its revelation truths at once compelling and disturbing yet in an unexpected way, liberating. … Chances are everyone has in some way been touched by mental illness either personally, or through the trials of a loved one, friend or even just an acquaintance, and as result Runaway Mind is a must read! - Jon W. Hansen – Blog Talk Radio

This was so well written. You cannot put this book down! It is such a remarkable journey that Maggie went through. How admirable of Maggie to disclose her private life to all that reads this book. She is truly an inspiration to others that suffer from bipolar. I know this book will help others and their families to understand the journey of being bipolar. As you will read…there is hope. Thank you Maggie for writing this book. God be with you and your family, you are truly blessed. I hope someday they will make a movie about “RUNAWAY MIND“- Jill Kaplan (San Diego, CA)

As Maggie and her family share the story it is a disorder that is very difficult to wrap our minds around… Like a “cancer” mental illness gets so much more invasive than people can imagine and there is no pill to cure you”. Bipolar is cunning, baffling, and can be a “life” handicap and Maggie does it all in a short period of time. She is smart and talented and pretty. - Vicky D (Las Vegas NV)

This is the journey of a real person, someone who has taken what they have been given in life and learns to make the best of it. The realness of this story is that Maggie is not “cured” of her disorder but has learned to manage it and create a fulfilling life for herself. A true story of inspiration to those who have the ability to see the story for what it is. - April Stemler

First off I would like to say…. If you are Bipolar or have a family member or friend that is …. this book is for you. Runaway Mind chronicles the life of a young woman and her struggles coping with the disorder. Her story is quite captivating and I am sure readers will be able to relate to her experiences. There is also a unique look at the points of view from her mother, best friend, sister and mother-in-law. It provides an invaluable look at not only what a person goes through but also what a family endures. - Amy Hurst-Kownacki (San Diego, CA)

This is a well-written, well-documented book on the agonies and triumphs of living with mental illness, specifically, bipolar disorder. I love the way that not only Maggie writes about her experiences, but also has her mother and sister and even her best friend write chapters on their feelings about her illness. There are also very helpful and well-researched footnotes in each chapter that document additional facts and resources about mental illness. This book truly shows that mental illness can happen to anyone, even the fresh-faced track star who has everything going for her. It is a biological brain disorder that does not discriminate and does not happen because of a lack of willpower, character, or intelligence or integrity. It is a medical illness like any other and needs to be treated as such. Thank you Maggie for keeping those journals throughout your hospitalizations and being brave enough to share them with the world. Most of all, thank you for putting a human face on mental illness. May your book inspire compassion and understanding of this stigmatized disease in everyone who reads it. - Jules “the word nerd”