The Best Of... discussion

http://flavorwire.com/539159/christin...

Cool! Poor Zelda!

She should have become the new Isadora Duncan, but something held her back.

Philip wrote: "She should have become the new Isadora Duncan, but something held her back."

Mental illness

I have a hunch snobbery may have played a part, since she turned down offers to dance commercially - work Duncan was happy to do - and was obsessed with joining Diaghilev's ballet company. There may have even been racism, as the black dancer Josephine Baker was also a hit in Europe at the same time. I would want the series to explore the pathways to her confinement in mental hospitals - rather than just putting it down to some feebleness of mind.

I don't know that much about her, but I do know that she was obsessed with ballet- part of her manic behavior was becoming obsessed, and practicing ballet dancing to the point of exhaustion. Of course both Zelda and F. Scott were obsessed with excesses and drinking, which did not help either of them.
Very sad.

I thought Nancy Milford's biography was very good. To me it indicated (this is subjective of course) that something disturbing happened to Zelda very early in her life and that she went wild ('acted out') as a result, as a way not to be simply victimized. Whatever happened to her could have taken so many forms. Hard to say. She reminds me of a lot of people now labeled 'bi-polar.' Which is just that, a label for behavior we don't understand, a way to drug people. I felt very sorry for her reading Milford's bio and that she simply did not get the help she needed. And that F. Scott Fitzgerald was too narcissistic with too many problems of his own to help her, however much he probably loved her. The character Nicole, in 'Tender Is the Night' is probably a very close portrait of Zelda.

Oh, and I think Ricci is a good choice to play her. Helen Bonham Carter would have been but is not young enough now.

Kallie wrote:
"Whatever happened to her could have taken so many forms. Hard to say. She reminds me of a lot of people now labeled 'bi-polar.' Which is just that, a label for behavior we don't understand, a way to drug people."

Bipolar isn't a label, correctly diagnosed it is a serious psychiatric illness which requires medication. My son has schizoaffective illness, which is debilitating without anti-psychotic medication. Perhaps you are referring to people who are incorrectly diagnosed with bipolar.

Karen wrote: "Kallie wrote:
"Whatever happened to her could have taken so many forms. Hard to say. She reminds me of a lot of people now labeled 'bi-polar.' Which is just that, a label for behavior we don't und..."

Well, yes, that is what I am talking about and it happens. Zelda may have been bi-polar, or what is and has been called schizophrenic. But Janet Frame was so diagnosed, subjected to shock treatments, and told it was a progressive illness from which she would never recover. Another doctor decided that was not true, for her, and she in fact recovered. So I guess a case-by-case evaluation is called for, that that would have included Zelda although sounds (from the Milford bio) as if she were really ill. I may sound unduly negative about diagnoses and drug treatment, but I have reason since my mother was diagnosed with dementia, and prescribed xanax in high doses (a relatively new drug) and according to some recent research, xanax can cause dementia. What I know is that her symptoms, though first alleviated, got much worse with high doses of xanax. And she got much better when her meds were adjusted. I am not dismissing the diagnoses 'bi-polar'. I have family members diagnosed bi-polar. If I said bipolar was merely a label, I misspoke. What I meant to say is that psychiatrists sometimes and maybe too often get things wrong and make peoples' conditions worse with drugs and labels. "Magic Bullets" by Nick Savoy, or "The Medicalization of American Society" by Peter Conrad, or "White Coat Black Hat"all discuss this problem. Conrad's book is particularly well-researched.

Thanks for your response. I too think there are some not so great psychiatric diagnoses, but I think that severe illness that is obvious (homeless, people committing bizarre crimes due to severe delusions) is quite different than people diagnosed as bipolar but who can function pretty well in society.
As one who has advocated for the severely mentally ill, I have seen people get well enough (due to medications) to function adequately in society, with limitations.
My father has Parkinson's with dementia and he too was prescribed a Xanax type drug! Ugh! My mother is his advocate.

Karen wrote: "Thanks for your response. I too think there are some not so great psychiatric diagnoses, but I think that severe illness that is obvious (homeless, people committing bizarre crimes due to severe de..."

Good for your mom. People with these conditions need an advocate, someone monitoring them and making sure they are not over-prescribed, or that the drug doesn't combine badly with other prescribed drugs. I have heard of so many negative reactions to Xanax, really makes me wonder how many people respond well to that drug.

My mother is amazing, completely devoted to my father. She thinks I am amazing for taking care of my son, and I think she is amazing for taking care of her husband. And we didn't get along for a long time. Doing what is right brought us together- and it's not that hard to advocate for those you love. What other choices are there? We should all be grateful to have someone we can care for. :)

I don't know if either of you have taken Xanax, or abused it, but Xanax literally blacks you out where you can't even remember details of what happened when you were taking them. It's an extremely powerful medication. I thought it was only prescribed to patients with severe anxiety disorders like frequent panic attacks.

Will wrote: "I don't know if either of you have taken Xanax, or abused it, but Xanax literally blacks you out where you can't even remember details of what happened when you were taking them. It's an extremely ..."

It is a powerful drug and should not be prescribed for the elderly. I have never taken it, but have heard about blackouts, scary.

Karen wrote: It is a powerful drug and should not be prescribed for the elderly. I have never taken it, but have heard about blackouts, scary.
"..."

And then they are 'diagnosed' with dementia. I have wondered how much better the quality of my mother's life would have been before her death were she not taking Xanax. I also wondered if there were also physical issues, such as affected balance (crucial).

Very possible Xanax can cause balancing issues. And a very low dose is enough to get a normal person high on it. Like 2mg is a high dose and would probably get anyone who doesn't take it regularly high and have the time travel, blackout affect.

Will wrote: "I don't know if either of you have taken Xanax, or abused it, but Xanax literally blacks you out where you can't even remember details of what happened when you were taking them. It's an extremely ..."

I have never taken Xanax, and no one looking out for my mother had any idea of these effects. She was a worrier and had an anxiety disorder but not a severe one (she worked most of her life as an office/personnel manager and enjoyed working with people). Grrrrr. They just wanted to keep her quiet and biddable -- yet it does not work that way in my experience. Rather, Xanax exacerbates anxiety.

Kallie wrote;
"I have never taken Xanax, and no one looking out for my mother had any idea of these effects. She was a worrier and had an anxiety disorder but not a severe one (she worked most of her life as an office/personnel manager and enjoyed working with people). Grrrrr. They just wanted to keep her quiet and biddable -- yet it does not work that way in my experience. Rather, Xanax exacerbates anxiety."

Sorry :( sad.

I think that it may exacerbate anxiety for some people. But it certainly relaxed me. I abused them long ago but was also self-medicating my own anxiety issues at the time. My mom occasionally has panic attacks and she'll break a .25mg pill in half if she has one or feels one maybe coming on and she says it helps her every time. But I imagine it affects everyone differently.

I have occasionally had panic attacks, which can be painful. I don't know why this works (for me) but it does. When I feel that tightness in my chest I drink a cold glass of water, fairly fast, at least 8 ounces maybe more. So far I have been lucky with that.

That's great that you found a natural remedy! And a cheap one at that ha. Much preferred over having to chemically alter your brain with an expensive pill.

Karen wrote: "I have occasionally had panic attacks, which can be painful. I don't know why this works (for me) but it does. When I feel that tightness in my chest I drink a cold glass of water, fairly fast, at ..."

That is great. I've had them driving. Singing or crying helps.

Driving! Oh dear! I've heard that directing your attention to something else, in a physical way, does help, so I guess that could mean a lot of things we do could work.