The local NAMI chapter has literature all over a counter at my local library. One of the pieces of literature actually was a 5×7 index card with a list of famous people who struggled with mental illness. It was kind of interesting so I figured I’d share it. Some I’d already known about; others were a bit of a surprise. How did they figure out who had bipolar disorder back in the 1800s?
Depression
Abraham Lincoln — 16th president
Billy Joel — musician, singer
Charles Dickens — author (pic shown)
Courtney Love — singer
Drew Carey — show host
Elton John — singer, composer
Eric Clapton — musician, singer
Harrison Ford — actor
Janet Jackson — singer
Jim Carrey — actor, comedian
Kurt Cobain — singer
Mark Twain — author, humorist
Marlon Brando — actor
Mike Wallace — news correspondent
Princess Diana — princess of Wales
Ray Charles — singer
Sheryl Crow — singer
Terry Bradshaw — football great
Trent Reznor — musician (pic shown)
Postpartum depression
Brooke Shields —actress
Marie Osmond — singer
Eating disorder
Alanis Morissette — singer (pic shown)
Paula Abdul — dancer, singer
Princess Diana — princess of Wales
Bipolar disorder
Edgar Allen Poe — poet, writer
Ludwig Von Beethoven — composer
Patty Duke — actress
Vincent Van Gogh — artist
Schizophrenia
John Nash — Nobel Prize winner (pic shown)
depression introspection 
Lotsa creative types on that list. I didn’t realize Beethoven suffered from bipolar disorder, although I did read somewhere he may have been schizophrenic.
A Beautiful Mind is a great movie, and I’m glad you included John Nash here.
John Nash recovered and lived drug free for most of his life—something that is completely misrepresented in the movie.
I was led to believe he recognised and lived with the symptoms
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Tiffani Lawton
Struggling with mental problems doesn’t mean that one has a sickness of the brain. These problems are a reaction to spiritual problems, unbearable circumstances, and bad things that people put in their bodies and brains.
actually tiffany, mental illness is directly related to your brain and your brain chemistry, so do some research next time.