Questions Answered...
Wow! I want to thank everyone that has subscribed to this site already! I will do my utmost best to provide you a well-rounded view of what bipolar is along with education, information and anything else that I can think of to add.
If more people were like you that are reading here now, the world would be better off. There wouldn't be as much stigmatism attached to mental illness, people would understand a little more, there would be more help to suffers and the people that love them and everything else. Thank you for reading, from the bottom of my heart.
Today, I want to start with a couple of questions that you, the reader, have posted. I will do this as often as I can... my goal is to do it daily. So if you have questions, please feel free to post them in the comment area or email them if you want to stay anonymous.
"How bad is bipolar?" archangel_blu53 asked.
Bipolar Disorder is a "variable" disorder... in that it doesn't affect all suffers the same way. Everyone is different and handles it different, but overall, bipolar disorder is a very debilitating disorder that can take suffers and the people that love them on a terrifying rollercoaster ride throughout life that can even be fatal.
The one with bipolar suffers from highs and lows called Mania and Depression. During a manic or hypomanic phase the person is so full of *jazzed-up* energy that they can't think straight. We often go on spending sprees, even when we can't afford it, our speech can become rapid (talking a mile a minute) and hard to understand, we can't sit still, literally, we can fly off in unexplainable rage attacks, we often engage ourselves in risky activities --- driving at high speeds is a good example and basically we just can't slow down, we can't sleep, we can't eat (or we eat all the time). It's like being the Tazmania Devil on speed. Another thing we can experience during a mania is hypersexuality. While this may sound good, it's not. All too often bipolars in a manic cycle will become reckless with sex. It can become quite a problem. There are STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) to think about, unwanted pregnancy... all the bad things from sex... but that is another post entirely.
The other pole of this disorder is depression. When we fall into the black abyss of depression we can and often do become suicidal. We hurt ourselves. We sleep constantly (but here again, everyone is different, others may not sleep at all), we lose interest in everything that once gave us joy, we find that getting dressed even takes more energy then we have. We have crying spells and we can't explain it. We feel worthless and our self-esteem is zero. We find it hard to even get out of bed. Our personal hygene can suffer, we forget to care about our surroundings, we find it hard to find hope or happiness in anything. We hurt all over, both pysically and emotionally. We avoid people.
Either end of the spectrum -- depression or mania -- is not a good place to be. In mania, we often enjoy it for awhile because we're so hyped up, but we always crash and burn.
The ideal place for bipolars to be on that spectrum is in the middle on a even keel, balanced (explanation for the yin yang eprops here on this site, btw). Medications help us to balance. When we are balanced, we can function normally and are quite *average* appearing. I know I am always hoping to be on that middle ground. When there, I feel my best... I feel like *me*.
Very, very good question there Aaron. Thank you.
Do your parents support you? liloxwaity asked.
Even though I hate the answer, I'll tell you. I was dx'ed (diagnosed) when I was 17 years old, right after my first son was born. My mother, whom I was living with at the time since my father had died while I was pregnant (12-23-85; 5 months before his grandson was born) told me that my doctor was full of shit. She didn't believe that Bipolar Disorder was a REAL mental disorder and told me to "just get over it already." My brother, who is 16 years older then me was the same way. "There's nothing really wrong with you." So many things were said such as, "Pull yourself up by your bootstraps and get on with your life," "Snap out of it," "Get off your ass and deal with your problems," "If you would just get moving you would have energy and be happy," Things like that. Sounds insensitive, I know, but I dealt with it. Actually I didn't deal with it and instead swung from a depression up into full-blown mania that lasted for a loooooooong time and I'm actually quite lucky that with the risk-filled life I began living that I survived it at all!
I whole-heartedly believe that my father and everyone on his side of the family was either bipolar, clinically depressed and/or schizophrenic. Of course, no one on that side of the family bothered to go to a doctor and get dx'ed. They all turned to the bottle instead. Everyone on daddy's side of the family... my granddad, my dad and all three of his brothers are/were alcoholics. Granted, they were up on the wagon of sobrity several times throughout their lives, but they are/were always alcoholics, whether it was a wet one or a dry one. My grandmother on daddy's side was surely bipolar as well. I never met her, she died before I came along, but from family stories she was, without a doubt, bipolar. My dad suffered from Alzehimer's (sp?) before he died as well.
On my mother's side of the family, there is undiagnosed bipolar and clinical depression along with mild schizophnia. My grandmother had Alzehimer's (sp?) pretty bad before she died and before she got so bad and could still live on her own, I discovered that her doctor had her on anti-depressants even. My mother is also bipolar, but she hasn't been dx'ed as such. She flatly refuses to acknowledge there even is a disorder like mine, even though she will acknowledge depression. Go figure. She is another post entirely as well.
Things are different for my 11 year old son (will be 12 in November) who has been dx'ed with bipolar and ADHA (Attention Deficet Hyperactivity Disorder). I've been on the road he is now travelling (even though my family just thought I was an overly-sensitive and tempermental child) and I am better equiped to support and help him. He is also getting help sooner then I was able to. He is on Adderall presently and doing quite well on it, even though we do go through days/weeks/months of rapid cycling in him as well.
There is such a stigmatism placed on those who suffer ANY form of mental disorder that many people do not want to admit it about themselves or their loved ones. They immediately think that any mental abnormality means that the person dx'ed as such is "crazy," and that's not true. Denial is horrid in cases like these, especially for the one who suffers, because they need all the support they can get.
It's very sad for the girl whose father denies it that you mentioned. My heart goes out to her and her family.
Thanks for a great question liloxwaity!
I don't know the exact figure (because I haven't looked it up yet) but there is something like 2.2 MILLION people in this old world of our's that suffer from Bipolar Disorder. That is STAGGERING! They say there is at least another MILLION that suffer without being dx'ed, so they don't know what is going on with themselves.
So much suffering going on and not enough people educating themselves. That is what is sad. The better one educates themselves about such things, the better treatments that are going to come about. Ya know?
More later. Looking forward to any and all questions that you want to ask as well! Thank you to everyone again for reading. I will post a bit of "education" up shortly.
Thank you all.
LL&BB,
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