Depression Visible

Diana Alishouse, author of Farm Wife Stories: A Memoir, was raised in an Air Force family. She learned early to adapt to the frequent moves and to use her mathematical intelligence and her artistic abilities to solve life's problems. Having lived in many states and traveled abroad, she was ready finally to settle into the farm life that her new husband offered her. While working as a farm wife, Diana was eventually diagnosed with bipolar disorder, a fact that she does not explore in her memoir Farm Wife Stories. In between her numerous farm chores, she created a series of fabric art pieces that show what depression feels like. At the urging of her sister, she wrote a book about them. If you wish more information, feel free to check out her book, Depression Visible: The Ragged Edge. If you have a depressive illness, know that you are not alone. She uses her art and her book to educate people about depression and bipolar illnesses. "They can be treated," she says, "but the symptoms must be recognized as symptoms, not as lack of willpower or a character defect." Diana is an artist. She is, as well, a farm wife (retired).