Bipolar Bear and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Health Insurance: A Fable for Grown-Ups

by Kathleen Founds

Synopsis:

Theodore is a bear with wild mood swings. When he is up, he carves epic poetry into tree trunks. When he is down, he paints sad faces on rocks and turtle shells. In search of prescription medications that will bring stability to his life, Theodore finds a job with health insurance benefits. He gets the meds, but when he can't pay the psychiatrist's bill, he becomes lost in the Labyrinth of Health Insurance Claims.

This witty and colorful tale follows the comical exploits of Theodore, a lovable and relatable bear, as he copes with bipolar disorder, navigates the inequities of capitalist society, founds a commune, and becomes an activist, all the while accompanied by a memorable cast of characters--fat-cat insurance CEOs, a wrongfully convicted snake, raccoons with tommy guns, and an unemployed old dog who cannot learn new tricks.

Entertaining, whimsical, and bitingly satirical, Bipolar Bear is a fable for grownups that manages the delicate balance of addressing society's ills while simultaneously presenting a hopeful vision for the world.

Bipolar Bear and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Health Insurance is an awesome concept, and it’s worth paying attention to the subtitle too (“A Fable for Grownups”), because it very much is a fable, and aimed at adults (definitely not kids). Kathleen Founds is writing with experience, very clearly, addressing some of the experiences of bipolar disorder, but also of navigating an insurance-based health system (and how bipolar disorder can add its own pitfalls to that).

Obviously it does feel very, very American; some of these problems don’t apply here in the UK, though (as I understand it from my mother, who is a psychiatrist) the problem of e.g. someone deciding they feel well and going off their medication (which is, of course, the reason they felt well) certainly does cause problems here too.

It felt maybe a little long for me, because I could see where it was going; being a fable, it could probably have simplified even more and made its point very well. Still, it’s a fun idea, and I suspect for some it would also be a way of seeing that they’re not alone.

Rating: 3/5 (“liked it”)