For Kyle Bishop making wrong choices was just a way of life. But as a young girl she had no idea these bad decisions were a direct result of living with bipolar disorder. The life she recounts in Bipolar Barbie is one marked by poor judgment-until a proper diagnosis and medication changed Benson s life. Benson tells of a life filled with chaos. Born of a sixteen-year-old mother into a dysfunctional family Bishop must cope with her own marriage at age sixteen and divorce just weeks later; six subsequent marriages; a destructive lifestyle of two- or three-day parties; her confinement in a mental institution-and her eventual diagnosis of bipolar disorder. Bipolar Barbie provides an intimate understanding of the disorder s effects distills the stigma attached to bipolar disorder and shows that with proper medical treatment there can be hope for those who are afflicted with this disease.