Hi,
I have something really sad to tell you.
Well I was talking to someone who works for me and a relative was killed because of their anger and bipolar disorder.
Basically this person went off his bipolar medications and then was driving around really fast.
He was really manic, angry and acting completely irrational. Well the police pulled him over.
He was super mad and reach in his pocket (everyone knows not to do this..everyone who is in their right mind that is).
Well guess what the police did?
They shot him dead.
I have heard this happen so many times it’s so sad.
This reminded me about how people forget how serious bipolar disorder is. How bipolar disorder can make a person not in their right mind. I mean who would get pulled over and reach in their pocket? By the way, he had no gun or weapon. He was just angry and acting completely irrational from what I was told.
Beware!
When you are dealing with someone who has bipolar disorder and is angry, manic, irrational, yelling, etc., they are not themselves and you have to be careful. They can do and say the most terrible things.
I want to warn you about something I have said many times…
IF you have to call the police, make sure you tell the police the person has a mental illness. Tell them not to shoot the person. I am serious. Greet the police. Try to manage it all.
I go over this stuff and way more in my report titled:
“How to Instantly Deal With Anger, Irrationality, And Mania In Your Loved One with Bipolar Disorder”
Located at:
https://www.bipolarsupporter.com/specialoffer/dealwithanger/
Okay, the other thing I wanted to tell you before I go to bed is this following…
Remember that when a person is in a bipolar episode (ie. when they are angry, yelling, screaming, etc), they COULD, and I repeat, COULD, NOT will do something to you bad.
Read the above line carefully.
For example, when my mom was really sick, she not only screamed and yelled at me but she threw a phone at me. She also spit on me. She also punched me. Seriously, there were times, if there was a knife around, I am sure she could have stabbed me out of anger. The odd thing is, she doesn’t even remember any of this. She wasn’t herself at all.
I really didn’t know any of what I teach in my report when I first started with my mom so I didn’t know how to handle and deal with these situations. But, I wanted to pass this critical information over to you today.
Why? Well I have known many people on my list that have been hit, attacked, stabbed, etc, from someone who has bipolar disorder who is in a bipolar episode.
Now I know I am going to get a ton of hate mail and angry people saying that I am over generalizing all people with bipolar.
I am not doing this, I am saying some who are in bipolar episodes, not all.
If you have bipolar and you are mad at me writing this, it’s the same thinking as telling someone who is in a bad area to be careful because bad things COULD happen. You aren’t telling them they will just that it could.
It’s my job to inform. So I hope you understand. But I know some won’t and I will get super hateful emails later on tonight.
Hey, I am heading to bed. If you want more information on:
“How to Instantly Deal With Anger, Irrationality, And Mania In Your Loved One with Bipolar Disorder”
please visit:
https://www.bipolarsupporter.com/specialoffer/dealwithanger/
David Oliver is the author of the shocking guide “Bipolar Disorder—The REAL Silent Killer.” Click Here to get FREE Information sent via email on how and why bipolar disorder kills.
I hope you don’t receive hate mail due to this e-mail you wrote. I happen to think it is very good of you to try to help people with or supporting someone with bi-polar understand all the angles that go with it.
If you had told me this before I had personally dealt with it first hand I would have said BS everyone is responsible for their own actions and is very aware of what they are doing when they are doing it…BUT because I have dealt with this first hand due to being a supporter of a loved one with bi-polar I now KNOW that it is very possible for them to go off and do/say things that they wouldnt normally do/say… and YES, 9 out of 10 times they don’t remember it and if they do they only partially remember what happen.
My only advice to anyone dealing with this kind of behavior is don’t get the police involved unless you absolutely have to…. unless you truly feel your life or the life of someone you love is in serious danger. The police don’t understand what they are going through and that the “episode” will soon be over … it could cause more trouble than what it all started out to be. Remember to try and walk away and let them cool down….keep in mind that nothing you say will help ease the situation because they are not thinking rationally so in all reality you could be just adding fuel to the fire…. walk away…. always keep those words in mind when dealing with one of their angry moments….walk away.
Dave, please don’t ever think that giving your personal experiences and advice is wrong and shouldn’t be shared….. everything you write is helpful in one way or another…even if it just informs us of what “MAY” come our way.
THANK YOU for all you do!
Mary
Dave : I interviewed you once before for http://www.ednews.org
I would like to ask you about another possible interview and a piece on stress…
I can be reached at Michael.Shaughnessy@enmu.edu
thanks
Mike
My Son is 24 and was diagnosed with underlying bi-polar disorder. He doesn’t believe he has it, but over the course of this year, having two hospitalizations, police being called 3x and being called every 4 letter name in the book, having two car accidents, taking my knives and cutting himself, punching holes in my walls and being totally non communicative most of the time for a year- not answering the phone or allowing us access to Dr. or communication and out of control anger when he finds out we faxed the Dr. our concerns, I’m at my wits end! How do you support someone who doesn’t want your emotional help, only financial? I have purchased all of Dave’s books and read them, I’ve tried to send letters to therapists, Psychiatrists and received only one response which my son would have nothing to do with. When he does communicate with us, its off the wall stuff about aliens, theories about 911, the Kennedy assassination ect. He’s brilliant but has a hard time getting to classes and gets fired at jobs for mouthing off. He’s in his 6th year of college and finishing 2 classes this semester to get a business degree. We’ve paid for all of this because he can’t pay with no steady income, unable to get health insurance and I think he’s afraid to face the real world after he gets out of college. Any ideas to help me?
I missed the special offer for this one, and was wondering if there is any way possible to order this? Please let me know. This one would be a life saver for me. I am dealing with stuff I don’t know how to handle most of the time. I have been married to my wife for almost 2 months now, and it has been a roller coaster. I would really, really benefit from this one. Can you help me?
– Nick
I think this death is absolutely senseless! Tragic, and possibly criminal!
Help me understand if I missed something.
This person who died had bipolar disorder. He had stopped taking his medications.
This person who died was observed to be manic, angry, and irrational.
I assume some other person (perhaps his relative) must have seen him in this condition, before he got into his car. The police could not have known his mood or mental state while they were following his car.
There is no indication in this report that he posed clear and imminent danger before he got into the car. He made no threatening act, gesture or statement that might have warranted the police automatically using force, especially not lethal force, immediately.
It appears that this person who died made a fatal mistake by reaching in his pocket. It seems that this action is being characterized as “crazy,” that it was interpreted as evidence that he was “not in his right mind.” Or that he did it because he was very symptomatic of bipolar disorder.
I think there is a big hole in this story somewhere. Where is the logic?
First of all, I’ve just never been there–pulled over by the police, having a split second decision as to the first thing I do when I see that cop looking in my window.
And right now, I can understand that putting a hand in my pocket probably would not be my best choice. But I’m just sitting here reading, and it’s already been made clear exactly how bad an idea it is.
But, especially at the time, I’m not sure I would be thinking, “Oh, that’s CRAZY to do that. I KNOW not to do that, and it’s in the forefront of my mind, so that I DEFINITELY would NOT do that.”
What if I was nervous, which would be normal? What if I was reaching for a tissue, because my hands were sweating?
Is that CRAZY? Do I deserve to be shot to death? Or would I have to do something overtly threatening before any police officer even considered doing something that would take my life?
Before the bullets flew, I would hope the officer would SAY something…like, “I need to see your hands. Remove your hands from your pockets!”
And if I resisted doing that, I would hope the officer would give me a warning: “Show me your hands or I have to shoot you!”
I think there is a reasonable procedure they have to follow before they KILL somebody. Why was such a DRASTIC measure taken, right off the bat?
Sounds like the opinion here is that this guy deserved DEATH for reaching in his pocket!
I disagree! And what is obvious to me is that the man with bipolar disorder was NOT violent. The cop was! And if the shooting happened as quickly as it seems, that cop was also very IMPULSIVE.
And this time, I do not at all feel that the story pigeonholes every person with bipolar disorder as violent.
Also, I, as well as many other people here, are very capable and willing to disagree respectfully with what is posted here.
To disagree in a respectful, logical manner has NOTHING to do with “hate mail,” and even less to do with “hate.”
You’re bracing for a lot of “hate mail?”
I bet you get a lot more thoughtful responses from people like me, who can disagree without making it at all personal.
Just because I disagree, I hope you won’t consider this a personal criticism. Or having even one thing at all to do with hate.
There is much, much middle ground.
J
I was so distrubed by this case reported. Basically, someone in the throes of intense bipolar symptom gets shot – and I for days I have been asking myself why.
He was speeding. Then, when the police pulled him over, he stuck his hand in his pocket. And it appears that many people believe those two things he did got him killed.
Actually, I would never have come back to make one more comment, except that I just read an article about another man with bipolar disorder who was killed by police in Utah.
He was clearly symptomatic – naked in the road, disoriented. The police, according to this article, commanded him to “Come here,” and then tazed him.
The justification? He “stepped towards them.”Naked, and so obviously unarmed. It is a shame that, since he did need to be subdued, the police did not subdue him by physical restraint, use of handcuffs, or anything besides tazing.
In fact, he was tazed a second time, and subsequently died.
Just curious if anyone here has also read the account of the Utah lethal tazing. Because I have to agree with the outraged comments posted after this story! Almost every response indicated what a travesty the tazing death was!
They didn’t blame the man for being confused and lying in the street with no clothes! As I ALWAYS say, all people, with or without bipolar disorder are responsible for the consequences of their behavior, even if they truly could not control themselves at the time.
IF this guy had not died in this horrible manner, I would have expected him to step up and take responsibility for any damages he caused.
However, THAT is a personal belief I have, one to which I hold myself also.
But the BIG issue here is, did he really deserve to DIE for acting that way? Does anyone? Bipolar disorder or not? Am I the only person who feels there are more grounds to fear the POLICE than I would these two men, who did absolutely NOTHING violent?
These killings were based upon unfounded fear, and distorted, irrational perceptions about how they MIGHT act. NOT upon anything threatening which they actually DID.
I’m wondering if anyone else picked up the disparity between reactions to one story, and then this second one in Utah.
If you’re interested, I suggest looking this second incident up. In BIPOLAR NEWS – 6/27/09. This gives me chills.
Maybe I’M the crazy one, but I think in both cases, this was nothing less than murder.
I just can’t, no matter which way I look at it, find these two men responsible for their own demise.
The point made here that some people with bipolar disorder do become violent – I’m not arguing that. Some do.
But neither that fact, nor one thing these dead men did, has one thing to do with their killings.
I hold people responsible for their OWN actions. NOT the actions of any other person.
This is terribly sad, and even sadder that this discussion became about violent people who have bipolar disorder, who do crazy things, and are not in their right minds.
I’m concerned about cops that would take a life within seconds, for no justifiable reason! I’d be worried for a loved one, with cops out there killing without being provoked.
True, and scary that the next person who dies could be a loved one with bipolar disorder. But had anyone else thought that it could happen to ANY of us?
It’s not necessarily only an issue of mentally ill people getting pulled over. At least in this case, the first story, did those police officers even KNOW for sure that the man had bipolar disorder? Did they give themselves even enough time to consider whether or not he had the condition? Could they diagnose him by the quick glance they got before shooting him?
So this could happen to ANY ONE OF US.
If anyone believes I am “not in my right mind,” or “off my medications,” that’s a risk I will take.
I just can’t NOT see these things…and I would say a thousand times – this is NOT the fault of these 2 men who were killed by police!!
My fear is, and will continue to be that there are cops out there who are so reckless with civilian lives.
I hope you read that second article from Utah. If you compare it to this one, I hope the horror of both stories comes across to you.