(Cracked Not Broken Final Summary)
At the age of 19, Kevin Hines jumped from the Golden Gate Bridge in an attempt to end the pain and torment he was experiencing associated with his diagnosed bipolar disorder. I thought Bipolar disorders were just really bad mood swings but it’s much more serious than that. Kevin survived the jump and his memoirs are a chilling account of the despair, pain and tragedies he faced.
Bipolar disorder affects the brain and causes changes to a persons mood, energy and their ability to function. People diagnosed with Bipolar disorder live with intense, sometimes extreme emotional states refered to as “mood episodes.” Kevin’s story gives us an inside look into his fight against the voices that drove him to jump from the bridge that day. There are 3 catagorized mood episodes: manic, hypomanic, and depressive. Those diagnosed with bipolar disorder will experience periods of normal mood as well. There are 2 types of bipolar disorder, bipolar 1 and bipolar 2. Bipolar 1 is usualy diagnosed and characturized by manic episodes. These episodes may cause the person to feel on-top of the world one day followed by feelings of sadness and hopelessness. Bipolar 2 is diagnosed when there is at least one major depressive episode and one hypomanic episode with periods of normal mood in between episodes.
Kevin’s story is important to share because it has the ability to inspire and cultivate hope and courage for those experiencing mental health and inspire them to seek help, but also for those people who have lost loved ones to suicide. Kevin’s description of being denied his medication was heart breaking to read and was a sad reminder that the mental health system is broken.
“‘Mr. Hines, your insurance does not cover these medications.’
My jaw literally dropped and my eyes watered with near-tears.”
“I envisioned my life without my treatment: all that I worked so hard for falling off of a monstrous cliff back into great depression, psychosis, and I heard the footsteps of fear grasping at my soul.”
“I will die without these medications, I could die, please is there anything you can do to help me, I need my meds.’ She swiftly replied without feeling that: ‘You need to take that up with your insurance carrier.”
This is quite common but none the less a reality for many individuals trying to survive and recover from neurobiological brain conditions like bipolar disorder. Kevin places great importance on his self wellness plan that includes his friends, family, diet & exercise, therapy and medication. Overall, I enjoyed the book. However, I did start to find it quite repetitive throughout the second half and think Kevin’s book would have been better if had been written by a professional writer and I found some of Kevin’s thoughts hard to follow. That being said, it is hard to be critical of this book because it does a great job explaining the symptoms and struggles associated with his bipolar disorder diagnosis.
Today, Kevin is married and is a champion for mental health awareness and suicide prevention. Together with his wife, they run the Kevin and Margaret Hines Foundation and he now believes his life has purpose and he continues to spread his message that its ok to not be ok and its ok to ask for help.
Cracked, Not Broken 