The Story of My Book

The book is about my life with my husband, Robin, and our life together. Robin was diagnosed as schizophrenic when he was in the Air Force due to his erratic behavior. He was flagging down airplanes, wanting a ride home to where he lived in Long Beach, CA. He was extremely agitated and wanted to leave the Air Force. He was given shock treatments when back in Long Beach, which he claimed were very painful but which returned him to normal.

I met him shortly thereafter and found him to be well-groomed, articulate, and frankly, very desirable as a person. We dated and we got very close and had a sizzling love affair. I hope my wording in the book passes the critique when it finally is screened. My description of this affair is very explicit and honest and not intended to be “raunchy”; it was always loving, not expressed for shock value.

I became pregnant and we got married. I had two children with Robin. Well, I didn't think Robin would get sick again, but he did when our first baby was 2 months old. His behavior during another attack of schizophrenia was extremely aggressive, nasty, careless, and impossible to live with. He was hospitalized for 6 months, and when he came back to me, I could not have been more excited and happy... he was back to his old self. They discovered a medication that settled him down, and it worked for a while until he had his second attack of schizophrenia.

Turns out he was really manic depressive, not schizophrenic, and was suffering with the manic end of bipolar, the new word for manic depression. The book describes his illnesses in great detail and our attempts to treat him. Part of it might be interesting to a pre-med student or someone studying to be a pharmacist or psychiatrist.

A major part of the book is my extreme love for Robin, which I describe in great detail, and my joy when he finally returned to normal. I was so happy when he was normal, after about 2 months of being sick, that there was no way I could have left him at that point. At the end of the book, I ask the reader what she would do if she found herself in such a situation.

The purpose of my book is to have anyone whose husband is mentally ill think about what she plans to do before she marries him. It would be very reassuring to such a reader who might be struggling with the same feelings that I struggled with while living with madness. It has some very poignant moments and some humor. I think you will find my book very honest; I don't hold anything back. You can be sure that, for the most part, the story is absolutely true.