My 2 Cents

Recently, I took part in a DBSA focus group. They are trying to collaborate about how to improve the future for treatment of mental health and educational materials about mood disorders. Here are 2 of the questions they posed to participants and what my reactions were:


What do you wish your family/support system knew?

Experiencing mania is sometimes terrifying, even though it doesn’t show on my outward appearance. I feel like I’ve lost all control of my mind at times, and I need for people to recognize that the way to get through to me IS NOT by approaching me with a controlling, “do-what-I-tell-you-to-do” attitude. I need someone to tell me that I’m safe and that nothing bad is going to happen to me, or to at least make me feel safe. At that point, I may begin to be able to talk about the storm that’s happening in my brain.


What does your support system need in order to help you when you’re starting to feel either depressed or manic?

They absolutely need to be patient, kind, and non-judgmental. Asking me WHY I feel the way I do is counterproductive. It doesn’t matter WHY I’m feeling depressed or WHAT caused my mania. The fact remains: I’m depressed/manic. The key to moving forward is HOW we’re going to deal with it, NOT what caused it. Experiencing these episodes is expected, predictable even. It is inevitable and usually not avoidable. I think it’s high time that people in my life realize this fact rather than trying to encourage me endlessly to fight against it, as if I can stop it from coming with the mere knowledge of it’s existence. If it were that easy, I would have been bipolar free for years!


What are YOUR thoughts? Leave me a comment if you care to share...