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Bipolar Burns

18th June 2018

Researchers at the University of Glasgow have concluded after a four year study that Robert Burns was probably bipolar. Academics studied over 800 letters and journals dated between 1786 and 1795 and also looked at the bard’s personal relationships. Bipolar disorder sees the sufferer swinging between great euphoria, marked by intense creativity, and then melancholia or depression. Burns used the term Blue devilism to refer to his periods of depression. Researchers will continue their research in order to chart very closely how the bard’s moods swung back and forward over the years.