Hi,<\/p>\n
I’m real busy in meetings today, but I wanted to make sure I got out this email to you, because I felt the subject was so important. I got an email about something I really want to discuss with you today.<\/p>\n
It said:<\/p>\n
“Before I was on meds, I scared my family half to death. They never knew which direction<\/p>\n
I was coming from. You web site is informative. I like actually getting information from someone who knows the disorder. People don’t understand it until they have to deal with it, and it takes a while for them to “get” it. You are helping more people than you know.”<\/p>\n
———————————————————————————————————————<\/p>\n
No, it’s not the compliment part, although it is nice to get positive feedback, because it helps me to remember why I am doing this. It helps me to keep going, to know that I am helping people like you. But what concerns me is the part where this person says, “Before I was on meds, I scared my family half to death.” The emphasis should be on, “Before I was on meds\u2026” Because this is when you should be the most afraid of your loved one. That’s why I stress the importance of taking bipolar medication so much. Without your loved one being on medication (and the right medication at the right dosage), there is no telling what they’ll do.<\/p>\n
You might be afraid of what they’ll do to themselves. You might be afraid of what they’ll do to others. You might be afraid of what they’ll do to you. You might be afraid of what they’ll do to the children. You might be afraid of their behavior in general. You might be afraid they will just get so out of control that you won’t know what to do. You might be afraid of what will happen if they get out of control. You might be afraid of what will happen if you have to put them in the hospital. You might be afraid of what will happen if you lose all your money because of one of their manic episodes. You might be afraid of what will happen if they even try to kill themselves.<\/p>\n
These are a lot of things to be afraid of, aren’t they? And there are even more! It’s no wonder this person says, “Before I was on meds, I scared my family half to death.”<\/p>\n
The problem is the unpredictability of it all. Without your loved one being on medication, there is NO telling what they will do\u2026No telling what they are capable of doing during a bipolar episode (which is what will happen without medication). That’s why it’s so important to get your loved one on the medication they need.<\/p>\n
This person also goes on to say: “They never knew which direction I was coming from.” That’s because without proper treatment, even the person with bipolar disorder does not know which<\/p>\n
direction they are coming from. And even they can be afraid too. They may get paranoid, have delusions (false beliefs), have hallucinations (seeing or hearing things that aren’t there), or even get violent or abusive. The only way to really help your loved one is to make sure that they are on medication and that they get the proper treatment that they need.<\/p>\n
Well, I have to go!<\/p>\n
Your Friend,<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dave<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hi,<\/p>\n
I’m real busy in meetings today, but I wanted to make sure I got out this email to you, because I felt the subject was so important. I got an email about something I really want to discuss with you today.<\/p>\n
It said:<\/p>\n
“Before I was on meds, I scared my family half to death. They never knew which direction<\/p>\n
I was coming from. You web site is informative.<\/p>\n