Fire Burning in My Head

Written by a professor of clinical of psychology, this book is accessible to thoughtful readers who seek to be better informed on how to harness the creative energy of madness to enrich one’s life. It comprises two main parts: The first part tells the story of how a psychologist-cum-patient performs a self-study of "madness" in great detail. It belongs to the long tradition of ideographic studies that attend to the uniqueness of each individual. The author says: "During episodes, manic symptoms are manifest. Yet, I become more colorful, sensitive, generous, and loving. I see beauty everywhere and delight in the simple things of life. I glimpse into mystical magnanimity. My mind explodes: Creative thoughts rain down fast. Now, I can bear testimony that on balance the creative energy of madness may enrich rather than damage one’s life, and that it is possible to retain a measure of madness in dignified living and of dignity even in a state of madness." The second part gives extensive coverage to various aspects of mental disorders from a scientific perspective. Adhering to the nomothetic tradition of knowledge generation, it provides the psychiatric as well as ethical, political, and sociocultural contexts for understanding mental disorders in general and the author’s own case in particular. The two parts are linked together and integrated in a dialectical fashion, with the interplay between nomothetic and idiographic methods leading to a deeper understanding that neither one may obtain alone.