If you could pick one thing that you wanted everyone to know about Bipolar what would it be? And why would you want everyone to know it?

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I thought a fun way to go about answering this one was to get a few different answers. None of us read the other’s answers before we wrote our own, so it should be interesting!!!

SHARI’S ANSWER

After much thought to this question this is what I came up with! Are you ready?

If there’s one thing I want people to know about Bipolar Disorder it would be that people afflicted with this disease are just people struggling to stay stable and live normal lives like everyone else on the planet. We are not weird, strange or indifferent. We have a chemical imbalance in our brain that causes mood swings we choose not to have, but they happen and they often frustrate us.

For years, I have been hiding the fact that I have a mental illness. I finally decided to break out of my bubble and starting telling people and writing about it. We are doing our best to stay “stable” and live our lives. The word “stable” is different for every patient, too. My stable may look different than someone else’s stable. I may have all kinds of mood swings where someone else doesn’t have many.

People with Bipolar Disorder work, have families including children, do activities, have friends, and live life. We try to live it to the best of our ability. We want to live a normal life like those who aren’t afflicted. It is not fun for us when we wake up in a low (depression) or if we are rapid cycling and having many mood swings a day. It’s hard to live life like that, but that’s our reality.

Everyday people forget that we have houses, cars, and other belongings. We have to take care of those things like everybody else. Sometimes, due to mood swings, our house may get in disarray and other things may get discombobulated. We don’t like it, but it happens. What people with Bipolar Disorder need are people who understand. People who will not judge them. People who will support them in the way they live their lives.

And yes, our lives sometimes are very complicated. We often have to try and figure out if are moods and feelings are related to something situational or is it really the Bipolar Disorder acting up? We have to be “on guard” sometimes to determine if we are doing OK. This “on guard” gets pretty old. I have learned how to tell if my moods are off or needs attention by my psychiatrist. However, it took me a long time to get to that point.

So, next time you meet somebody who has this disease, embrace them! Don’t push them away! People with this disease are secretly begging inside sometimes for people to like and accept them. We want to be recognized as people, too. We are people who are living life, raising families, working jobs, and juggling a disease that can be very unpredictable.

JON’S ANSWER

What do I think is the most important thing to know about Bipolar Disorder? Um… Uh… well… THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS.

Realistically though, I urge every sufferer of Bipolar Disorder, and any mental illness for that matter, to know this: treatment is always happening.

You are going through treatment when you are doing the dishes at home, when you are standing in line at the grocery store, and when you are running late. Treatment is 100% about you, and is ongoing. Do not box in your treatment and think about it only on days you visit the doctor. Have conversations with family and friends. Read books, both fiction and non-fiction, that pertain to your mental illness. Keep a treatment journal and a journal about your feelings. Monitor your ups and downs and all-over-the-places.

Treatment is 100% about you, and likewise, it is 100% within your grasp.

SAMMI’S ANSWER

I think I’d like everyone one to know that bipolar is an illness that can be managed and you can live a happy life with it… More importantly, you can manage it in POSITIVE ways…

MARYBETH’S ANSWER

Though there are MANY things I wish everyone knew about bipolar, I suppose the most prominent would be that … it’s OK to be/have bipolar. Those with bipolar aren’t lepers. We aren’t contagious. We aren’t crazy. And it’s not like we WANTED to be bipolar. BUT that’s ok. It’s who we are. There is nothing to be ashamed of. We are who we are. And let me tell you what, we are one damn strong group of people! (Though I may be biased…)

Why do I wish everyone knew this? Well, for me, if I had known that it’s OK to be/have bipolar, I would have sought help way sooner. I wouldn’t have been so ashamed of being me. And life would have been at least a tiny bit easier.

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