Hi,

I was at the gym the other day. And my friend came up to me. And he started talking about his girlfriend. He was talking about something that had happened with her. Well…At first I listened to him. I was being a good friend and a good listener. But he just kept going on and on and on…

And I’m sorry, but I started losing patience. I mean, about halfway through, I realized that he was repeating the whole thing all over again! Yep! The same story he had just told me! There went my patience. But he just kept going. On and on and on. He wouldn’t shut up! And to look at him, you would think he was sharing the most important thing in the world! So I didn’t want to hurt his feelings. And I didn’t see how I could just tell him to shut up or anything, so I just listened till he was done.

What, might you ask, kept me going through all this? Well…I just kept telling myself, “There is an end to this.” I knew that somewhere…sometime…There had to be an end to it. And that kept me going without yelling at him to shut up or punching him out like I wanted to do inside! lol

Ok, so what does this funny story have to do with bipolar disorder? Because you know I always relate everything to bipolar, right? Ok…Have you ever been in a situation that just went on

and on and on and you just thought it was never going to end? You might feel that way right now in trying to cope with your loved one and their bipolar disorder. Feeling overwhelmed is a common feeling for a bipolar supporter. That’s how you can feel when you feel like your

situation is never going to end…That it’s always going to be the way it is now. But I want to encourage you – The only thing constant is CHANGE. Things WILL change for you. Your situation WILL change. It may not happen overnight. And it may not happen as fast as you’d like

it to. But it WILL happen! Don’t stop hoping for it. And don’t stop trying for it. Keep doing things that help your situation.

For example: If you’re doing something to try to help your loved one with their bipolar disorder and it isn’t working…Stop doing it. Try something different. Who knows what might work.

Different things work for different people. Just try doing something you’ve never tried before.

It just might be the new thing that works – The very thing that changes your situation!

Well, I have to go!

Your Friend,

Dave