Testimonials

We are grateful for the following endorsements and testimonials.


Rachel Kelly, author of Black Rainbow: How words healed me: my journey through depression and Walking on Sunshine: 52 Small Steps to Happiness, journalist, mental health campaigner, Ambassador for SANE and Rethink Mental Illness.

This book is a brilliant practical guide to understanding your friend’s diagnosis and symptoms, the reality of treatments and therapies, and how to overcome the challenges of long-distance communication. More than that, it is a book about what friendship means.


Julie A. Fast, author of Loving Someone with Bipolar Disorder, Take Charge of Bipolar Disorder, and Get it Done When You’re Depressed, critically acclaimed speaker, family and partner coach.

You are changing the world with your book because you help friends stay together.

Friendship soothes the soul and provides hope for people with bipolar disorder and yet the illness creates unique challenges to the friendships we so desperately want and need. Marty and Fran specifically address these challenges in this bright, uplifting and brutally honest book. Filled with stories and practical tips, there is more laughter than sorrow as the reader learns to cultivate a loving, kind and caring friendship that transcends the illness and creates a lasting bond.

I really believe this book can help siblings who grew up with a brother or sister who has bipolar disorder. Sibling relationships are often like friendships.

We need this book. There are thousands of books on bipolar disorder. This is the only one that teaches friends how to help. High Tide, Low Tide provides me with a tool I can share with my coaching clients. Friends matter so much, but they need tools just like all of us!


Diane Atwood, Freelance health writer/blogger, Catching Health with Diane Atwood.

A touching as well as a practical guide to supporting a friend with bipolar disorder. It defines the true meaning of friendship.


Sarah Fader, Founder and CEO, Stigma Fighters.

This is an inspirational tale for anybody living with mental illness and their loved ones. As the founder of a mental health nonprofit I highly recommend it.


Gary Pollard, Founder, Men Tell Health.

I thought I knew what this book would be, but I was proved wrong in the best possible way. It does one thing that most books can neither claim nor manage, it makes you feel better about people, about humanity and about friendship.


Sharon Sutton, Founder, Me, Bipolar & I.

Martin and Fran’s book gives a great insight into how they care for each other across the pond. Distance is no issue to them and it’s refreshing to see from their experience as friends that nobody is too far away to be cared for. It’s fantastic how they’ve united to share their story and help people understand more about friends with mental illness.


Cheryl Ramsay, Community Development Specialist, NAMI Maine.

Marty and Fran are best buds who have an unbelievable story of friendship, resiliency and what it means to have someone in your life who says “I hear you and I am here for you.”


Stefanie Cary, Outreach Coordinator, NoStigmas.

It is possible to be a stable, supportive force in someone’s life while they are facing mental health challenges. It seems like we all know someone who is suffering from afar. Marty, who resides in the UK, gathers his insight firsthand from the beautiful caregiving relationship that he’s established with his best friend, Fran, who lives in the US with a bipolar diagnosis.


Donna Betts, Executive Director, Family Hope.

Marty and Fran’s story is a great example of how crucial friends and family are to someone living with a mental health disorder.


Megan Cyrulewski, Mediator and author of Who Am I?: How My Daughter Taught Me to Let Go and Live Again.

I love the concept of this book because rarely do we hear how our mental diseases affect those who love us. Having had anxiety disorder for fifteen years and also experiencing postpartum depression after my daughter was born, I often wondered how my family and friends felt during my ups and downs. If there was a waiting list for this book, my name would be at the top!


Jackie Charley, Parenting Coach and author of the best selling book, Unlock the Cage: Empowering parents to step out of fear into freedom.

The honesty Marty and Fran express is refreshing and full of hope.


Bridget Woodhead, Director, Traincon. Certified Mental Health First Aid instructor. Recognised at the annual MHFA England awards 2012 and 2014.

A deeply honest and detailed account of two people’s journey as friends, which reminds us that mental illness doesn’t change what friendship is all about: being there for those we love.


Anne Pringle, Member of Board of Trustees, Maine Mental Health Partners 2009–2015 (Chair 2010-2012); Past Chair, “It Takes a Community” initiative, Spring Harbor Hospital and Maine Mental Health Partners; Former Mayor of Portland, Maine.

Extraordinarily well-written and powerful. I know from my own personal experience with friends living with mental illness, that meaningful two-way relationships are a key factor in attaining life balance and recovery. This is a very important book and could be helpful to many people.


Bob Keyes, Arts Reporter, Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram.

This book opened my eyes to a world close at hand, and yet somehow far away. Well written, focused and direct, it is an invaluable resource and tool for those whose lives are touched by friends living with illness.