Hi,

How’s it going?

I hope you’re having a good day today.

Today I want to talk to you about a simple 5-letter word that you should have in your loved one:

FAITH

Now before you go running away thinking I’m going to preach at you, please hear me out.

Faith is simply believing in something you can’t see right now.

That’s all.

But it is a belief.

It’s choosing to believe.

It comes down to a choice.

You can choose to have faith or not to have faith.

Too many people assume faith has to do with religion.

And for some people that’s true.

Faith is a part of their religion, or their religious practices.

Something that comes from their heart.

In their case, their belief is in a Higher Power, something (someone) greater than themselves.

But even if you’re not religious, you can still have faith.

You can still believe in something that comes from your heart.

You can have faith in your loved one.

If you care about someone, you can have faith in them.

You can believe in them.

You can have hope that your loved one will get better.

Remember what I said about faith being believing in something you can’t see right now?

Well, you can believe in your loved one’s stability even though they may not be stable right now.

Here’s a few examples to show you what I mean:

You can’t see electricity, can you?

Yet when you turn the switch, you believe the light will turn on.

That’s having faith.

You believe in something that you can’t see.

You can’t see wind, either.

It’s not something you can exactly touch.

Yet you have faith that it’s there.

You can see the results of it.

It’s the same with your loved one’s stability with their bipolar disorder.

As you see them progress…

As you see them change…

As you see them grow…

As you see them get better…

As their episodes become farther apart…

You can believe in faith that they are becoming more stable.

You can’t see stability any more than you can see electricity or the wind.

But you CAN see the results of it.

One of the things I talk about in my courses/systems is watching for signs/symptoms of a bipolar

episode.  But you can also watch for signs of improvement as well.

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?

Visit:

http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?

Visit:

http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?

Visit:

http://www.survivebipolar.net

You can have faith that if your loved one takes their medication as prescribed, that medication will work.

You can have faith that if your loved one goes to their therapy sessions, those therapy sessions  will help your loved

one get more stable.

And you can have faith that, with your love and support, and hard work on your loved one’s part, that success and a “normal” life is possible for both of you!

Do you have faith in your loved one?

Do you have faith in your future?

Hi,

Hope your day is going ok.

You know those quizzes, maybe in a magazine, or on the Internet, where they’re always asking you things like, “If your life were a car, what kind of car would it be?” and things like that?

Well, I saw one that said, “If your life were a movie, what kind of movie would it be?”

Well, at first I thought it was stupid, like I think all these quizzes are sort of stupid.

But then it made me think about my life.

Is it a thriller?

Is it a horror story?

Is it a love story? (I don’t think so LOL)

Is it a comedy?

Is it a drama?

Then I got serious.

My life isn’t a movie at all.

My life is my life – it’s real, and I need to take it seriously.

Hopefully there’s some good times in it, and some hope in it, but there isn’t going to be someone
who comes along and rescues me or does all the hard work for me…

Or who makes my life all easy and ties it up with a bow with a happy ending like in the movies.

This is my real life.

So this quiz made me think of you, and bipolar disorder.

Being a supporter of a loved one with bipolar disorder is very real.

Your life is NOT a movie.

It is VERY real.

Every day is not a happy one.

Of course, we hope that every day is not a bad one, either.

But sometimes the reality is that your loved one may be depressed.

And sometimes they may be manic.

That’s why, in my courses/systems, I go over the signs and symptoms of both mood swings, so that you
will know them:

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net
But living with a loved one with bipolar disorder cannot be put into one category of a type of movie.

There are too many ups and downs to your life, aren’t there?

Sometimes things are good, and sometimes they aren’t.

When your loved one is in an episode, things can be very, very difficult.

If they are in a depressive episode, for example, you may have to watch their sadness, helplessness and hopelessness, tearfulness, and the other ways they act… and not be able to do anything about it.

And at worse… you may even have to put them in a hospital, because they may even be suicidal.

This is no movie… this is real life.

If your loved one is in a manic episode, there may be terrible consequences.

Talk about a movie drama!

You never know what they’re going to do, because they can be so impulsive.

Their risk-taking behavior can cause financial and even legal consequences for you.

The consequences of their actions can definitely affect your relationship.

And the worst part of it is that they may not even remember what they do during their episodes!

But again, this is no movie – this is real life for you.

You have to deal with the reality of your loved one’s episodes…

And enjoy the “normal” times between episodes.

The closest you’ll get to a movie happy ending is when your loved one becomes stable, and you have to hold onto that hope.

Do you sometimes feel as if you’re living in a movie?

Do you believe that someday there will be a happy ending?

Hi,

I hope you’re doing well today.

I have to tell you about the funniest thing I saw (heard) the other day.

I was in a restaurant, and there were four older women sitting in a booth near me.

They were sort of arguing.

Now, I’m not an eavesdropper or anything, so this argument was loud enough for me to hear from where I was sitting (and I’m sure, from where everyone else was sitting, too).

Here’s the conversation:

Lady 1: “I can’t believe you just did that.”

Lady 2: “Did what?”

Lady 1: “Put the pink stuff in your coffee.”

Lady 2: “I always use the pink stuff.”

Lady 1: “Well, I always use the yellow stuff.”

Lady 3: “Well, I don’t see why the two of you are even arguing about it.”

Uh oh, I thought, here comes trouble.

And I was right.

Lady 1 and 2 turned on Lady 3.

“Ok, if you’re so smart, which one do you use,” said Lady 2.

Lady 3: I use the blue stuff.

Well, all this time Lady 4 had been real quiet.

Then the other three women turned on Lady 4.

“Okay,” said Lady 2, “You break the tie. Which do you use?”

And here comes the funniest part of all –

Lady 4 said, “I just use plain old sugar. I don’t go for that fake stuff at all.”

And then they all started the whole argument all over again! It was hilarious!

You should have been there.

Ok, so what does this have to do with bipolar disorder? (you know I always bring everything back to bipolar disorder LOL)

Here’s the question for you:

Are YOU using the real stuff?

Or are you using one of the fakes (substitutes) out there?

Here’s a real good example, and a VERY DANGEROUS one:

MEDICATION

Are you taking the right medication?

The bipolar medication prescribed by your doctor?

Or are you taking one of those supposed “natural cures” you hear about on the Internet?

Now, I’m not against herbal or natural supplements, don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that at all.

But I’m saying to use them with your doctor’s permission, most important of all, and I’m saying to use them WITH your medication, and not INSTEAD of your medication.

Too many people with bipolar disorder believe the ads saying these herbal remedies are a cure for bipolar disorder, when they’re not.

Then you might find out later that they’re actually dangerous for you, anyway (besides the fact that you can go into an episode for going off your REAL medication).

I even talk about this very thing in my
courses/systems below:

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net
Another example is information on bipolar disorder, which I also talk about in my courses/systems.

About how important it is to be knowledgeable about the disorder.

But you have to have REAL information! NOT misleading or false information.

Can you imagine how dangerous it is to have the wrong information about bipolar disorder?

For example, the truth is that there is NO cure for the disorder at this time.

But some people believe that there is.

They have FALSE information.

So they are chasing after something that is not real. And they are wasting their time, unfortunately.

Instead, they should be going after the REAL thing – REAL information that will help them get better.

Here’s some other things to think about:

Would you rather have a REAL doctor, or a FAKE doctor?

A REAL therapist or a FAKE therapist?

A REAL pharmacist or a FAKE pharmacist?

Or even a REAL friend or a FAKE friend?

See what I’m getting at?

This is more than just an argument over real sugar vs. fake sugar.

This could mean the difference between continuing to struggle with your bipolar disorder or actually becoming stable with your bipolar disorder.

Do you agree or disagree with me?

Do you think it’s important to have the right medication?

Do you think it’s important to have the right information?

Hi,

How’s it going?

I have had a bunch of problems recently. It’s hard saying on top of this organization that is growing really fast.

Everybody has problems however.

Some people see their problems as big ones, and some see them as small ones.

Some people see problems as an everyday thing we just need to deal with.

I heard a negative person say that problems are “a reality that ruins my day.”

Yet a positive person said, “Problems are opportunities in disguise.”

Some people just complain about their problems, while other people do something about their problems.

The point is, we all have problems.

We just differ in the way we approach them and in the way we solve them.

Like take bipolar disorder, for example.

People with the disorder tell me their biggest problem is not with taking their medications.

It’s not with going to all their appointments.

It’s not with sleeping right, exercising, or eating a healthy diet.

It’s not even with dealing with the stigma associated with bipolar disorder.

The biggest problem that people with bipolar disorder tell me that they have is coping with having the disorder itself.

Sometimes it feels like the disorder has taken over their whole lives.

Even when they’re not in an episode they live in fear of when the next episode is going to come.

In my courses/systems, I talk about this, but I also say that if you’re prepared for it in advance, you don’t have to live with this fear.

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net

But I asked some people to give me suggestions on creative ways to cope with bipolar disorder, and here are a few suggestions:

1. Have a pet
A dog or cat gives you unconditional
love. even just petting them can
soothe your nerves when you feel
stressed out. And they’re always
so happy to see you when you get
home (whether you’ve been gone
5 days or only 5 minutes!). How
can you be depressed when you’ve
got a pet?

2. Crossword Puzzles
Doing Crossword Puzzles or
Word Find Puzzles help you to
focus and keep those distracting
thoughts to a minimum. You also
feel a sense of accomplishment
when you’ve finished one. It’s
best to do the easy ones (at least
at first) so you don’t feel
overwhelmed or get too
frustrated, which would be
defeating the purpose. Be
careful, though, because these
can be addicting!

3. Coloring
I know this sounds like “baby
stuff” and yes, this is the same
coloring we did as kids, but many
people with bipolar disorder
have found coloring to be very
therapeutic. It keeps stress
levels to a minimum, helps you
focus and concentrate, and brings
out your creativity at the same
time.

4. Doing Puzzles
This is very good for focus and
concentration for people with
racing thoughts. You may want
to start with a fewer piece puzzle
at first, however, so that you don’t
get frustrated or overwhelmed.
Remember to work the outside
pieces first (and the corners)!

5. Music or Art
If you have talent in either of
these two areas (or even if
you don’t!), many people have
found it to be helpful to them
to do this – if for nothing else
than just to keep their fingers
busy. Some people find that
just listening to some quiet
music to be soothing and
calm their stress as well.
These are just some suggestions to help with coping with bipolar disorder.

Can you think of some more?

What are some creative things that you do to cope?

I’d love to hear them.

Hi,

How’s it going?

I am going hiking today so I have to run.

I am really tired because I got back super late last night. 2am. I know from some of you that’s nothing. LOL.

For me that’s late.

Anyway, today I want to talk about the truth about delayed gratification.

I think a lot of what people’s problems in society today is their inability to have delayed gratification.

What’s delayed gratification?

Well, it’s when you have to wait for something.

Like saving up for a car, instead of just going out and buying one and putting your finances in jeopardy.

Or putting more money aside for a down payment for a house and waiting before you buy it, so that your payments will be lower, rather than buying it sooner with higher monthly mortgage payments.

With bipolar disorder, you may have done some things in the past but now have to wait for them.

What do I mean?

Well let’s say your loved one was in a big time job and did super well.

Your loved one who had bipolar disorder was super smart and made a ton of money in sales.

You had a big house.

Lots of stuff.

Then an episode came.

You found out that your loved one has bipolar disorder.

Now you can’t afford all this stuff and have to get rid of it.

Maybe you can get it back in the future.

But you have to wait.

That’s delayed gratification.

It’s a matter of priorities, which is something I teach in my courses/systems below:

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net
Remember when you were little and you wanted everything RIGHT NOW?

But your parents made you wait for things – they didn’t let you have things right now, did they?

Sometimes they made you save up your allowance for it.

That’s delayed gratification.

You had to wait for what you wanted.

Like with bipolar disorder, some people want stability RIGHT NOW!

They want it without waiting for it.

They want it without having to work for it.

They want it without doing anything to have it.

They don’t want to sleep right, exercise, or eat a healthy diet.

They don’t want to take their medication.

They don’t want to see their doctor, psychiatrist, or therapist.

They don’t think it’s important to have a strong support network.

They think they can just make it on their own.

They want their stability RIGHT NOW!

They can’t handle delayed gratification.

But when it comes to bipolar disorder, there is no other way.

You can’t just get stable overnight, unfortunately.

You only get better over time.

And that’s if you do those things I mentioned.

You have to work for it.

And you have to be willing to accept that you will have delayed gratification.

Agree or disagree?

Hi,

I hope you’re doing well today.

You know I have a lot of people that work for me, right?

Well, I have some that have worked for me for a long time…

And some that don’t work for me any more.

Do you want to know the difference?

The people who don’t work for me any more stopped learning.

They just kept working off the knowledge they had learned before, and it was outdated.

I run a company that is always changing, always growing.

And you just have to keep up with it. If you don’t keep up with the growth, and learn new things, you just can’t improve in your job.

But the people who have stayed, have done just the opposite.

They don’t keep going on old knowledge.

They keep up with current trends.

They keep learning new skills.

They keep improving, so they keep getting better at their job.

That’s why they are so valuable to me.

You have to learn and progress.

It’s one of the things that I teach in my courses/systems. That you have to keep learning more and more about bipolar disorder. You can’t just keep going on the knowledge you learned when your loved one was first diagnosed.

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net
Here’s an example:

We all have old photographs, right?

If you are a parent, every year they get pictures from school.

Well, you don’t keep every picture every year and display them (or else you’d run out of room, wouldn’t you?).

Each year, you probably replace the old one with the new one.

It’s like replacing old knowledge with new knowledge.

It’s not like you throw the old photographs away, you still keep them.

You never forget them.

You just may put them away in favor of the new ones.

Because there’s always growth, you see?

Here’s another example:

Say you have a garden.

You can’t keep growing new flowers or vegetables off old soil.

You have to keep tilling that soil each year.

You don’t get rid of the old ground, you just till the old ground, making room for new ground.

Again, like new knowledge on top of old knowledge.

So here’s how it relates to bipolar disorder.

(You knew I’d get there eventually, right?)

The point of all this is that you need to keep learning and progressing.

If you have a doctor who doesn’t do this, then they may not be the best doctor for your loved one.

If they are like the employees I talked about in the beginning, are they really doing a good job?

The best doctors I know continue learning.

They keep researching.

They read journals all the time.

They check the Internet for new information all the time.

They attend seminars.

They go to lectures.

They go to symposiums.

Sometimes they’re even the guest speakers!

They attend bipolar support groups and even learn from supporters what their problems are with their loved ones and learn that way.

They sometimes discuss difficult cases or problems with other doctors or specialists so that they can learn.

If your doctor isn’t doing these things, and just keeps doing what they learned years ago, then you might have a problem.

Because new things are being learned about bipolar disorder every day.

Check up on them.

Ask them questions. If they hesitate, or if you think you know more than them, then there might be a problem, just like there was with my employees.

You have a right to the best treatment for your loved one.

And you need a doctor who is always learning new things about bipolar disorder.

What about your loved one’s doctor?

Is he/she the type that still works off old knowledge?

Or the type that keeps on learning new things?

Hi,

How do you feel today?

I hope you’re feeling ok.

I have a friend who was driving a motorcycle (dumb) and he crashed.

Driving a motorcycle in New Jersey is seriously crazy.

People drive crazy in New Jersey LOL.

Anyway, it was really bad.

As a result his arm was paralyzed.

The first doctor said that it would start working again.

Time went by.

It did not.

My friend couldn’t work in his job.

He became depressed. Sad. He lost tons of weight.

I spoke to him and you want to know what I told him?

Guess….
Scroll down for the answer
I told him that it’s going to be okay and it going to take time for his body to heal.

NOTE I am not a doctor, therapist or offering medical advice.

BUT I knew it was way too early. It was like a month and he expected to be perfect.

I asked him if he made ANY progress and he said, “None.”

I said, “None, zero, none at all?”

He said, “Well…a tiny bit.”

I said, “Well, you are going to build on that.”

He was kind of annoyed at me.

Every time I saw him, I told him to have patience.

Guess what happen after 4 months?
Scroll down…

His arm started working again.

Now he is upbeat!

It’s not perfect, but it’s almost there.

Know what the bipolar lesson is?

Before I tell you, I want you to guess then scroll down….

You have to have patience when trying to recover or if your loved one is trying to recover….

Because otherwise you will get frustrated…

Get depressed…

And give up too early.

It’s like the “staying in there” quality I talk about in my courses/systems that you have to have if you’re going to reach stability. That you have to set it as a long term goal, and not expect it to happen too soon.

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net

It’s just like in Nascar racing.

I know a girl who hates it so much!

But her husband is really into it, so I’ll use it as an example. : )

Besides, maybe you’re a Nascar fan, too, and can relate to this.

Ok, so they don’t just go around the track once, do they?

In fact, if one of the drivers wasn’t picked to start in first place and thought that was it and got frustrated and went home, they would have absolutely no chance of winning, right?

Well, let’s say they stuck in there, and started in the back, and eventually made it through the pack, went around a few times, but only made it into the middle of the pack.

What if they quit then? They still wouldn’t win.

It’s only the ones who maybe start at the end, make it through all the frustration and adversity…

Everything they have going against them…

Like people with bipolar disorder…

Who make it to the finish line.

Which, for people with bipolar disorder would mean stability.
What about you and your loved one?

Can you relate to my story about my friend and his recovery?

And about how you and your loved one are going to have to be patient too?

Hi,

How are you?

Hey, I am actually off to New York City going to a convention to help with growing this organization.

I have to get going again.

So let’s get going.

On my blog, Rev. Parsons posted:

“What do you do when you are
all that and because of their condition
they decide they don’t need you
anymore?

My wife is Bipolar ( we think) she
went to a psydoc this week and the
doctor said there was nothing wrong
with her.

She could not describe her symptoms
very well(at times she is delusional
and has no idea what she has said
or done)

My wife is 8 weeks pregnant and
has been gone for a week now and of
course blames me for everything
and now can’t decide whether she
wants to be with me or not (says she
loves me and does not want to be
with anyone else but has cheated on
me in the past) what do you do????

I am there for my wife whom I love
dearly but how do you help someone
that does not have an official diagnosis
and does not want your help because
they are manic???? what do you do???”

———————————————

Wow.

I truly sympathize with this man, don’t you? What an awful place to be in if you’re a supporter.

Well, first of all, like I always have to say, I’m not a medical or mental health professional, so I can’t give any kind of professional advice in that way.

I can only speak from experience and from all the thousands of emails and posts on my blog and forum and all the other supporters who have contacted me and who I’ve talked to.

When someone has bipolar disorder and they are in an episode, they are not in their right mind.

Even in my courses/systems, when I talk about the signs and symptoms of a bipolar episode, I talk about irrational thinking as being one of them.

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net
So this man’s wife just up and deciding she doesn’t need him any more is a sign of that.

But many people with bipolar disorder are also good at manipulating other people, like doctors, psychiatrists, and therapists.

They can also be in denial.

Especially in a manic episode, when they are so “high,” and feeling so good, that they really do not believe that anything is wrong with them.

They can even act as if there is nothing wrong with them, and that’s how they can “fool” the doctors into not diagnosing their bipolar disorder, like this man’s wife did.

Unfortunately, many doctors will miss the diagnosis for this very reason.

It’s easy to see depressive behavior, because it’s pretty much hard to hide, so a diagnosis is pretty easy to make.

But a manic episode is different, and that’s what Rev. Parsons is describing.

Many times someone in a manic episode cannot describe their symptoms because they just don’t
know them very well, so the fact that she couldn’t describe them to the doctor very well either may not be just because she was delusional, but because she was just not aware of the systems of mania.

He also could be right about her not having any idea about what she says or does. This is a big part of a manic episode.

There are several problems he describes in his post on my blog, some of which I can address, and some of which I can’t.

Like the fact that she is 8 weeks pregnant. That really concerns me, but I am not a doctor. I would urge him to get her to a doctor, though, because this could be very dangerous both to his wife and to the baby.

As far as her blaming him for everything, that is also typical manic behavior, and part of the irrational and delusional thinking I talked about earlier.

He says, “She has cheated on me in the past…” and that is also part of manic behavior.

One of the signs of a manic episode is risky sexual behavior. This can include affairs, no matter how loyal the spouse has been in the past.

Now, comes the hard part.

Two questions:

1. How do you get someone diagnosed?
2. How do you help someone who doesn’t want
to be helped because they are manic?

As far as getting someone diagnosed while they are in an episode, you have to find a good doctor, or get them to a hospital, while they are acting out and the symptoms are obvious, so they can’t manipulate or “fool” the doctor.

As far as the other question, it’s a little more complicated. You can’t help someone who doesn’t want to be helped.

The best you can do is try to get them to see that they do need help.

If you can’t do that, you are going to have to consider involuntary hospitalization, where you will have to hospitalize them against their will.

Have any of you had this experience?

What advice would you give this man?

Hey,

How’s it going?

I have something crazy to tell you.

Well, I upgraded to Microsoft Outlook 2007 from 2000. Actually I half did this before. I mentioned before that I did this but then I was using the old Outlook half the time.

Anyway, I HATE upgrading stuff. (something always goes wrong. ALWAYS!)

NOTE:

Why am I going to tell you about this? Because I’m bored. No, just kidding!

Because there’s going to be a lesson for bipolar disorder from it, so bear with me!

Ok, so my new Outlook has all these features. Many I don’t use and many settings are defaulted.

That means that they are pre-set and I hate some of the pre-settings.

For like a month I have been getting mad every day.

I sit and talk to my Outlook and call it names (which is really dumb, I know).

But I do, I sit and say it’s stupid and why don’t you do what I want, and stuff like that.

So, I was thinking today. You know what?

I need to practice what I preach about bipolar disorder.

What’s that?

Well, to take the time to report problems and work toward fixing them instead of just complaining about them.

I mean, I go into all this detail in my courses/systems about problem solving and everything, and then I wasn’t doing it myself!

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net
Many people on bipolar medications are just like me.

They complain about their medications.

They complain that they don’t work.

They complain that they don’t like the side effects.

They complain that they don’t like taking them.

They complain about the way that their medication makes them feel (or not feel).

They complain that they forget to take them.

They complain that they wish they didn’t have to take them.

They complain that they have to take them for the rest of their lives.

They complain that other people don’t have to take them.

And on and on and on…

But you know what?

Who do they complain to? To YOU!!!

NOT to their doctor, who they should be complaining to, right?

Because you can’t do anything to help them with their medications, but only the doctor can.

That’s like the way I WAS, and I repeat, WAS, with my Outlook.

I complained and complained, and talked to my computer, but didn’t do anything else about it.

I complained, but didn’t talk to the right person.

I complained, but kept making the same mistakes.

I complained, but just to myself.

I complained, but just kept complaining on and on and on… Not doing the right thing.Or talking to the right person.

And, guess what?

I didn’t get my problem solved, did I, do you think?

Anyway, I finally got so frustrated…

That I finally did something about it.

The right thing.

I took a whole hour and I made a list.A list of all the problems I could think of.

(Just like your loved one could make a list of all their complaints about their
medications).

And then I researched what I could do to change the settings.

(Just like your loved one could research their options – should they talk to their doctor, psychiatrist, or therapist?).

I also called a friend.

(Just like your loved one could talk to you, their supporter).

Guess how my Outlook works now?

ALMOST perfect! (nothing is perfect).

(Just like your loved one could solve their medication problem).

Do you see the connection?

You just can’t get to the point of so much complaining.

You just can’t wait till you get to the point that you start talking to your computer!

You need to do the right thing from the beginning.

Instead of just complaining, you need to sit down and think about what the problem is.

Then you need to explore options about how to fix the problem.

Then you need to talk to the right person about how to fix the problem.

If you don’t do that, you’re stuck with the problem.

Don’t you agree?

Hi,

How are you today?

I want to tell you something really funny.

Yesterday I went hiking and got totally lost.

I mean totally lost. Like the kind of lost that I was thinking I was going to be sleeping over and not be able to find my way home.

Luckily I bumped into someone that explained to me how to get home.

Otherwise it would have taken me like 5 more hours and it was raining and getting dark.

The guy that told me how to get home said to me, “I’ve been hiking for many years and sometimes the trail maps are liars.”

I thought that was funny. He then explained how many maps are so old and are passed down even though the trail is completely different today.

If you look at some trail maps, they say go this way and you do and it’s completely wrong and then you are WAY OFF TRACK.

When you are 10 to 20 miles in the woods with nobody around that can be a big problem : )

When I was walking back to my car yesterday, soaking wet, I was thinking about what I was going to write for today’s daily email.

Bipolar disorder is a LIAR!!!

I know that may sound funny to you, as if I’m talking about the disorder like it’s something you
can touch or feel…

As if it’s something outside yourself…

As if it were a person or something  that was capable of lying…

But that’s kind of how I look at it.

Because let me tell you…

Bipolar disorder is a LIAR!!!

It is a disorder that tells you that you don’t have it, for one thing.

Think about it –

When you’re loved one is feeling fine…

Like when they were first diagnosed, they may have gone through something called DENIAL.

That’s when the disorder lies and tells them that they don’t have it.

Or when your loved one goes through a manic episode, and they think they’re fine…

Same thing.

DENIAL.

Is it?

Or is it the bipolar disorder lying to them, telling them they’re fine, when they’re really not?

You know they’re sick, in a manic episode, but they don’t know it, because they’re having irrational thoughts because of the disorder.

And what about medication?

You know your loved one needs their medication in order to get better.

Usually, they know it, too.

But sometimes bipolar disorder can LIE to people who have the disorder.

It can tell them that they’re better, and they don’t need their medication!

When, in fact, it’s the medication itself that is making them feel better.

Then they might listen to the lie and go off their medication, and you know how dangerous that can be.

Then they can go into a bipolar episode (or worse) and you’re right back into that cycle of denial again!

Do you see what I’m saying?

How bipolar disorder is a LIAR?

In my courses/systems, I talk about how important it is to know everything there is to know about bipolar disorder so you can be educated, informed, and have knowledge. Now you can see one of the reasons why.

SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarsupporter.com/report11

SUPPORTING A CHILD/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.bipolarparenting.com

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
Visit:
http://www.survivebipolar.net
Bipolar disorder will lie to your loved one and tell them that they can handle it all by themselves.

That they don’t need anyone else to help them manage their disorder.

But you know that they not only need you, but that they should have a strong support system, including their doctors, family, and friends.

Worst of all, bipolar disorder will lie to your loved one and tell them that they will never get better.

It will tell them that they will always be this way, that there is no hope for them.

And without hope, your loved one can get depressed. Very depressed.

They may even go into a bipolar depressive episode (or worse, even get suicidal), because they feel so helpless and hopeless.

But that is a LIE!!!

There is ALWAYS hope for recovery for someone who has bipolar disorder!

Never give up hope!!!

Can you think of ways that bipolar disorder has lied to you?

What have you done to combat it?