This is a captivating and enlightening true-to-life story. It is a sensitive, sad and at times even humorous, story about a woman's lifetime battle with Bipolar Illness. Let it be known that this was the author's real experience on all accounts. However, it is not necessarily the usual course this illness takes. The author's case was exceptional in that her response to most treatments was unsuccessful or did not last more than a year or two at most. I am Michelle Longo-Bloom and at age 21 I was diagnosed with mild depression. In my early to mid-thirties, I was diagnosed with Bipolar 11 Disorder, an illness characterized by episodes of severe chronic depression and mild mania. I was also diagnosed with Atypical Refractory Treatment-Resistant Depression (TRD). Unfortunately, TRD is becoming more prevalent among people who suffer from this illness which compelled me even more to tell my story. When feeling good and finally functioning normally, I vowed to myself NEVER to use the expression put me out of my misery in a casual sense again. This is because I learned the meaning of true misery. Finally, people ask, do we continue to have hope for this illness because there are always new discoveries, treatments and medications surfacing, or do we just accept this illness as a way of life. In my final realizations and convictions, I chose both and in doing so, I chose HOPE!