Shout out to Selena. Welcome to the club all the love.

It’s impossible not to recontextualize your entire life after your diagnosis. The good, the bad, the mania, the sad.

Feeling informative, might delete. It’s thread time. https://twitter.com/billboard/status/1246173072421466113

What is bipolar disorder?

It’s like being on a fair ride (shown in exhibit A) that takes weeks to go from side to side.

One side is mania, where you have tons of energy, a creative mind, high self-esteem, and make impulsive decisions.

The other side, however, is depression. The high you were on days earlier has subsided and feels like it’s been months since a good day. Typical depression episode with hopelessness, suicidal thoughts, little to no energy, and wanting/needing to be isolated.

There is a middle ground that you feel slightly stable on, but it never lasts.

Being in a relationship can feel impossible. Especially the start. And keeping that person from your own madness is also an impossible task. This is my biggest issue by far. It is draining for both.

Anger is often associated with bipolar in the public consciousness, but that is a misconception.

Bipolar disorder is not someone going from happy to angry in a split second.

However, many people with bipolar disorder have addiction issues of varying kinds.

And many people with bipolar disorder have to actively survive every day. Even in mania, our brains can be feeding us intrusive thoughts around worthlessness or suicide. It’s exhausting.

Here are some resources if you feel you may be bipolar, know someone close to you that is (me ), or just want to be a little more prepared.

https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/February-2017/Loving-Someone-with-Bipolar-Disorder

https://psychcentral.com/blog/know-what-to-expect-when-you-love-someone-with-bipolar-disorder/

https://www.helpguide.org/articles/bipolar-disorder/helping-someone-with-bipolar-disorder.htm

Thanks for reading