Hi,

Have you ever heard the expression: Today is the tomorrow that you worried about yesterday.
I think it’s a kind of funny way to look at life. Especially if you’re a kind of negative person. Because I’m just the opposite – I’m a pretty positive person. I’m always looking at the best case scenario in every situation.

I kind of think you have to, although you still have to be realistic at the same time, especially
when you’re dealing with bipolar disorder. But you just can’t be one of those people who are always worrying from day to day. You know, like projecting from one day to the next what might happen, before you even know.

And especially if you tend to think on the negative side of things – that throws a bad slant to everything. You need to be a positive thinker if you’re dealing with bipolar disorder.

It just helps to look at things in a positive way when you’re dealing with bipolar disorder, because so much of it can be negative to begin with. But you don’t have to worry all the time, either. If you do, you’re just going to set yourself up for negative things to happen. Because you’re going to be looking for them.

Enough bad things are going to happen in life all by themselves, but you don’t have to help
them along. To fight them, you have to think and act positively.

For example, when your loved one picks a fight with you, which can be a normal occurrence when you’re dealing with the rage of a bipolar manic episode, you can either react in a negative or a positive manner, it’s your choice.

If you react in a negative manner, though, it’s just going to prolong the fight. But if you react in a positive manner, it might just de-escalate your loved one’s behavior.

So what I’m talking about are things that may be inevitable, but that you can do something about just by changing your attitude about them. In other words, if you go around expecting bad things
to happen, they will.

You’d be a sort of magnet that bad things will be attracted to. But it can work the opposite way, too.

Like with people. Have you ever noticed that negative people seem to attract other negative people? But that positive people tend to attract other positive people? It is like a magnet sort of thing.

Think of it this way: Your positive attitude can help change a negative situation. Like the example I used of fighting with your loved one.

When your loved one is negative, your being positive can have that positive kind of influence on them. After all, who wants to fight with someone who won’t fight back?

Now, I never said that having a positive attitude in the face of a negative situation would be easy.
It isn’t always that easy. But it sure gets you further, and with a whole lot less stress on you.

And, hopefully, eventually, it will turn things around for you as well. Hopefully, given time, your loved one will change, too. Hopefully, they will begin to be more like you. And hopefully, you will begin to experience more positive situations than negative ones.

And, like I said, a lot less stress as a by-product as well. Positive people just seem to be healthier, too. Probably because they have less stress, they are physically healthier.

Well, I have to go!

Your Friend,

Dave