Southern grad details battle with mental illness in new book

New author Terri Whitley's struggle to become a success while battling bipolar disorder is captured in her book, The Madness Within (The Journey of a Future Doctor, An Autobiography).

Whitley, a 1995 Southern University honor graduate, discussed her 15-year struggle with mental illness in early April in the Royal Cotillion Ballroom of the Smith-Brown Union on the Baton Rouge campus.

The book details how her lifelong goal of becoming a medical doctor was derailed because of battles with mental illness.

"I wrote the book because the public needs to get insight on the illness. They need to gain insight on what a mental disorder entails and what the life of a person with a mental disorder is about," Whitley said. "I want people to see the truth."

Whitley, a Baton Rouge native and graduate of Baton Rouge Magnet High, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder when she was 17. Her symptoms began with crying spells that led to a delusional stage. She describes in great detail how she went on to struggle with the dangerous manic and depressive phases of the disorder.

"The Madness Within" delves into how her strong religious convictions helped her to deal with mental illness and continue pursuing an education. It also includes journal entries and accounts of array of medications taken after each of her hospitalizations.

Whitley describes her heartbreaking failures at Meharry Medical College in Nashville. She entered the school twice and but was able to complete only one year each time before taking medical leave because of bipolar episodes. She had to retake the first year when she returned.

The last time in 2000 was the worse. "I was so devastated in 2000. I went into a shell," she said.

In 2001 she got back into life after receiving encouragement from her mother. She started a job at a pharmacy and was quickly promoted as an assistant to the pharmacist. She applied and was accepted to pharmacy school at Xavier University in New Orleans in 2003. After graduation she became a licensed pharmacist and was promoted to manager at a pharmacy in Baton Rouge.

"Even though I didn't succeed as an M.D., God allowed me to succeed in another way…," she said.