Don't Be Too Sensitive About Your Bipolar

Have you ever heard the expression, "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you?" Well, just because you think people are staring at you doesn't mean they're not, but it doesn't necessarily mean that they are, either, and certainly not that they have some kind of psychic knowledge that you have bipolar disorder.

We have to learn not to be so sensitive about having bipolar disorder. Stigma is still there, but it is certainly not as bad as it used to be.

Before there was as much knowledge about bipolar as there is now, and as widespread, people actually used to believe you could catch bipolar disorder from someone who had it like you can catch the flu. Really! Believe it or not, but they did. That's how ignorant people were about the disorder.

But with knowledge comes decrease of fear. People today are not as afraid of us. In fact, they are more apt to ask you questions about your bipolar once they find out you've got it, rather than sit in judgment of you for having it.

That's because so many people have it now. Over 13 million people! So we are definitely not alone any longer, and we need not hang our heads in shame nor be embarrassed.

I am pretty vocal about the fact that I have bipolar disorder. Because I have written a book about it, I talk about it all the time. Besides, by being open about it, I find I have been able to help so many other people who are struggling with it. Once I open up about it, so do they.

I find that other people either have it or have a loved one with it, or at least know someone with it. With it being as widespread as bipolar disorder now is, chances are if you talk to someone, you'll find the same thing. 13 million people is a lot of people!

Still, some people with the disorder choose not to tell people that they have it, and that is their personal choice, and I respect that. Not everyone is as accepting of it as the people that I've run into. In fact, at one time I was looking for a place to rent (this was only a year ago), and the landlord came right out and asked me if I have bipolar disorder, and I said yes, but it is being managed with medication, but her whole attitude toward me changed, and she was downright cold and nasty from then on.

The only thing I could think was that maybe she had someone in her family with the disorder who wasn't doing well, or she knew someone who had it who wasn't doing well, but either way, bipolar disorder had left a bad taste in her mouth.

All we can do is take care of ourselves and manage our disorder the best we can. The longer we are symptom-free and stable, the better the image we will present to others of what a person with bipolar disorder looks and acts like.

Some people will always be judgmental. We have no control over them. But other people will exclaim, like what happens to me more often than not, "I wouldn't have known that you had bipolar disorder if you hadn't told me!"

Don't forget to check out my new bipolar book at: www.brokenroseministries.com

Wishing you peace and stability,

Remember God loves you and so do I,
Michele