Anyone Ever Deal With A Person with Bipolar?

[limichelle]

I should have rephrased what I put as well. As somebody with both disorders just more schizo effective I didn't mean to generally say people with bipolar are that way just like with any illness you get people that are more difficult then others. Whether it's diabetes, cancer, any other ailment.

 

Ive met nice people with borderline and horrific people with borderline. I've known many compassionate people with bipolar and have family members with bipolar.

 

I agree with the not wanting to be normal. I actually find my illness helps me have a strong creative outlet.

 

Victoria I can also see where you are coming from with your dad as well.

 

That's why I chimed in with what I saw at the mental hospital.

 

I would rather tell people I'm bipolar then schizo -effective.

 

Schizo the word scares people thinking I'm some kind of sociopath.

 

The stigma is all too real!

 

Lisa

[Seraphim]

Absolutely ,stigma of mental illness is alive and well . Unfortunately . And like every crowd of people there's going to be a few bad apples and the rest are just perfectly nice people .

[SooSad33]

Yes, I appreciate the correction re: the title. A person with 'Bipolar'.

 

I only came on here today, as I mentioned to inquire on whether anyone else is familiar with it.. as I am not. This was a first encounter and a rough one for me.

 

I deal with depression/anxiety, myself and was deeply affected within a short amt of time.

 

I know that it's not pointing EVERYONE out as a 'bad seed', but was just inquiring as to those who have some knowledge or familiarity on the subject.

 

Thanks for everyone's response.

[Capricorn3]

Yes, I appreciate the correction re: the title. A person with 'Bipolar'..

I have fixed the title for you so as to avoid upsetting people. I know you didn't mean bad and it was an honest mistake. I'm sure people can understand that.

[Ms Darcy]

It is in ways sad.. but yet, IF they can ever come to realize, accept & work on things.. they can be half normal again, where their outbursts, etc wouldnt be so severe.

 

I think this might have been the hurtful statement.

 

I don't think you meant it at all. I just recognize the stigma - especially around here - of mental illness. My ex was erratic and crazy so I am going to diagnose her as bipolar.

 

This whole situation makes me also think that multiple things can be going on. He can be bipolar AND a complete jerk.

[SooSad33]

Yes, MsDarcy.. Iwas speaking in terms of MY own experience with someone I was involved with.. as I mentioned, it was all new to me and wasn't good.. so I came on here to *ask* of anyone else's xprience..

 

I also mentioned how I do also deal with mental health issues. Depression/anxiety. So, I DO understand. No stigma intended. Just trying to understand it all...

 

What you quoted above was more towards the one I experienced.

[lucidious]

I had an ex once who had depression and bipolar 1. It didn't end up working out because I could not handle his outbursts and his paranoia. He always blew up me and accused me of outrageous things. I have bipolar 2, so I thought maybe we could help each other at first. I was so wrong, it seemed like he didn't want to get help, like he gave up and would always take things to such an extreme dark place. He would yell at me, I try not to say anything to escalate the situation but it does because I am frozen and I guess not saying anything made it worse. He would throw things and threaten to hurt his dog He started accusing me of cheating on him because I was working as a game tester and sometimes would have to do overtime because it was crunch time for the game to be done. He wanted me to quit my job and stay with him all day everyday. I have a tendency to linger in bad relationships because I often try to see if it can be saved. But after him telling me to quit my job, I left.

 

I was told when I was first diagnosed that bipolar is supposed to get easier to deal with as one gets older. For some people it does, for some it doesn't. How did I get better? I decided that I wanted to be more in control. I started to become more aware of my thoughts/moods by tracking it which made it easier to foresee hypomania and the crash. Staying medicated and majoring in psychology helped a lot as well.

 

It is possible for someone with bipolar to live a functional and fulfilling life, just like a "normal" person with the occasional highs and lows. Every case is different and no journey is the same when learning to deal and live with a mental illness.