I cringed when Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr.’s staff announced two weeks after the fact that the Chicago Democrat was on medical leave for “exhaustion.”

He was being treated at an undisclosed facility. Staff then announced he was being treated for “physical and emotional ailments.” It was becoming more obvious. Then an unnamed doctor said Jackson was being treated for “a mood disorder.”

Mood disorders are mental illnesses. They include major depression, bipolar disorder, seasonal affective disorder and mania. They all can be treated successfully. People who have mental illnesses can, and do, recover. People who have mental illnesses are expected to recover.