Don't Compare Yourself to Others

I had someone tell me that she was jealous of me because I am so much further along in the management of my bipolar disorder than she is. I tried to comfort her by sharing that everyone moves at their own pace with this disorder. You have to remember that it's been many years since my diagnosis, with working hard every day to learn how to control my bipolar disorder instead of the other way around.

I wasn't always stable. I'm still not always stable - I still struggle with depression here and there. But it isn't fair to look at my life now and compare it to yours if you are still struggling, thinking that you will never reach stability. I would encourage you that if you do the things I did (medication, therapy, self-help, support system, etc.) and do them consistently, then you will eventually become stable too.

We can't compare ourselves to each other. Everyone has their own way of doing things, and everything happens in its own timing. Consistency is the keyword. If you keep doing what you need to do to maintain stability you will, in fact, maintain that stability.

That is still not to ensure that you will never go into another bipolar episode or experience bouts of non-episodic depression here and there. Nobody's perfect, especially not me. So I would say to this woman, please do not compare yourself to me. I am just further along in my journey than you are, but you'll get there.

We may have the same disorder, but there are different types of bipolar disorder. And the symptoms may manifest themselves differently between different people. We each have to develop an individual treatment plan and follow it for ourselves, not expecting that someone else's plan will work for us, or vice versa.

The main thing is to never give up hope. If you do compare yourself to me at all, let it be with the hope that someday you will achieve stability like I have. I'm nobody special. I haven't done anything that you can't do. I just "walk the bipolar walk," one day at a time.

So be encouraged. Stability IS attainable! Just don't compare yourself to others. You will go through your own journey as you need to go through it. And remember, everyone is different.

Even the Bible says that "God's timing is not our timing." Be patient. And be consistent, doing what is right.

Wishing you peace and stability,

Remember God loves you and so do I,
Michele