The Impact of Mental Health on Jazz Legend Thelonious Monk
Thelonious Monk, a jazz icon, faced struggles with mental health, including an involuntary hospitalization and a misdiagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia. Later diagnosed with bipolar disorder, his symptoms affected his music career and personal life, highlighting the intersection of creativity and mental illness in the jazz world.
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BLUE MONK: MENTAL HEALTH, SUBSTANCE ABUSE, AND THE JAZZ PRESS 1945-1959
Monk was first hospitalized in 1957 at Bellevue in NYC. It was an involuntary admission He was considered a danger to himself and others so was held for observation It felt like a prison to Monk Conditions were overcrowded: 650 patients were jammed into the 630-bed facility After three weeks, a physician who was a family friend successfully negotiated Monk s release He was released without a diagnosis He was fortunate to have escaped being misdiagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic as were some of fellow jazz musicians Including Charles Mingus and Bud Powell. Paranoid schizophrenic was a label often applied to black patients and nonconformist artists.
DIAGNOSIS Nearly twenty years later, Monk was accurately diagnosed with bipolar disorder. His depressive symptoms included: Falling asleep at the piano Staring into space, lost in thought, seemingly unable to recognize people around him Not leaving his home for weeks at a time His symptoms of hypomania included: Staying awake for 2-3 days at a time Frenetic pacing Going without eating so as not to interrupt other activities
MAD MONK: REPRESENTING MENTAL ILLNESS IN THE JAZZ PRESS Many friends, colleagues, and journalists interpreted Monk s symptoms as his trademark eccentricities. Although some speculated that his madness was intrinsic to his creative genius, his bipolar disorder interfered with Monk s ability to create and retain jobs. It also negatively impacted his family.
