Hi,

How’s it going? I hope you’re doing well today.

I read a lot, mostly business magazines. And I read an article in one of them the other day about an entrepreneur who is very wealthy, a self-made millionaire.

Granted, self-made implies that he did it himself, but even self-made people have to have had some help along the way, wouldn’t you think? Nobody does it all by themselves.

But this guy was going on and on about how he did everything all by himself, that no one ever showed him even one little thing, nobody ever taught him anything, nobody ever helped him in any way, he did it ALL himself, etc., etc. And I was actually offended at all the pride that was just oozing out of this guy. He just took all the credit!

Didn’t even give his parents any credit for raising him or anything! I mean, usually even self-made millionaires give credit to their parents at least, you know? But he was just so full of himself!

I mean, I’ve worked all of my life, always had my own businesses, and I would say that I’m a self-made man too (but FAR from being a millionaire LOL). But I don’t go around bragging about how I’ve never gotten any help from a single sole, nobody’s ever done anything for me, etc., everything I’ve gotten I’ve gotten all by myself, etc.

I’m pretty honest about giving credit where credit is due and about how I’ve gotten good advice from other people, etc. I’ve had some pretty good role models, and that has helped as well.

I don’t think anyone can make it in this world all by themselves. Especially people who have bipolar disorder. In fact, some of the worst cases of bipolar disorder I’ve ever seen were people who tried to make it by themselves, without any kind of a support system.

I’ve had bipolar supporters talk to me about their loved ones and how they kind of shut them out of helping them and it’s not so much that it hurts them personally (the supporter) as much as it hurts them to see their loved one struggle when they don’t have to, because they have a supporter right there who is willing and wanting to help them.

It’s hard to watch your loved one wanting so much to make it on their own, knowing that it doesn’t have to be that way. And that they’re probably going to fail, because, like I said, some of the worst cases of bipolar disorder I’ve seen were people with the disorder who tried to make it on their own.

On the other hand, one of the most successful cases I know of is a couple where both of them

have bipolar disorder, and they are each other’s supporter. They are married, so they are around each other pretty much 24/7. They know each other so well, and each other’s signs and symptoms, so they can tell when the other one is “off” in any way, so there’s no telling how many episodes they’ve been able to avoid just by being vigilant.

They help each other. They talk to each other. But most importantly, they listen to each other.

If one tells the other that they’ve noticed a few signs or symptoms that might indicate that they

could be going into an episode and that they should go to the doctor, they listen, and they go.

They’ve learned from experience that a supporter can be invaluable in preventing bipolar episodes. They both remember how, before they got married, they didn’t have supporters, or a good support system, and went into many episodes, having to be hospitalized several times trying to make it on their own.

A good, strong support system is just invaluable when you’re trying to manage bipolar disorder.

If your loved one is giving you a hard time about helping them to manage their bipolar,

show them this blog. Show them the difference that having a good support system vs. trying to do it alone can make. They need to know that they cannot make it on their own.

Well, I have to go!

Your Friend,

Dave