{"id":57,"date":"2008-07-03T07:00:40","date_gmt":"2008-07-03T11:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bipolarcentral.com\/bipolarsupporterblog\/?p=57"},"modified":"2009-03-19T14:57:16","modified_gmt":"2009-03-19T18:57:16","slug":"are-you-a-bipolar-caregiver-or-a-bipolar-supporter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.bipolarsupporter.com\/bipolarsupporterblog\/are-you-a-bipolar-caregiver-or-a-bipolar-supporter\/","title":{"rendered":"Are you a Bipolar Caregiver or a Bipolar Supporter?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hi,<\/p>\n

How’s it going? I hope you are doing well.<\/p>\n

I have one million things to do today so I have to go pretty quick.<\/p>\n

Michele, who works for me, was asked to speak at a bipolar disorder support group about bipolar recovery, and was told that the group was mainly made up of “caregivers.”\u00a0 She told them about our website and explained that we use the term “supporters” rather than “caregivers.”<\/p>\n

Now, it may just seem like semantics, but there really is a difference in the two terms.<\/p>\n

She explained the difference this way:<\/p>\n

The most glaring thing was this \u2013 the woman told her that the typical meeting was 10-15 “caregivers” getting together and talking about medications and complaining about bipolar disorder and their loved ones , and that was pretty much it \u2013 that was all they did, month after month, the same thing.\u00a0 Nothing positive, everything negative.<\/p>\n

So this was her idea of a caregiver \u2013 someone who wasn’t very knowledgeable about bipolar disorder, who only “took\u00a0 care of” the other person, and who complained about it all the time, the only information exchanged being about medications.<\/p>\n

Whereas, we view a supporter as so much more than that.\u00a0 For one thing, we view a supporter in a much more positive way.\u00a0 In fact, I’ve written an entire course specifically for supporters of a loved one with bipolar disorder: SUPPORTING AN ADULT WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
\nVisit:
\nhttp:\/\/www.bipolarsupporter.com\/report11<\/a><\/p>\n

SUPPORTING A CHILD\/TEEN WITH BIPOLAR DISORDER?
\nVisit:
\nhttp:\/\/www.bipolarparenting.com<\/a><\/p>\n

HAVE BIPOLAR DISORDER?
\nVisit:
\nhttp:\/\/www.survivebipolar.net<\/a><\/p>\n

When Michele told me what happened about the bipolar support group and we talked about it, she explained the difference to me in her view:<\/p>\n

She said that she had had a very good friend who had end-stage breast cancer, and in the very end, her and a couple other girlfriends took shifts so that her friend would have found-the-clock care to make her last days the most comfort- able they could be.\u00a0 They read to her, prayed with her, gave her ice chips, put cold cloths on her forehead, and\u00a0 other acts like that.<\/p>\n

These were the types of things she associated with being a “caregiver” \u2013 simple gestures of meeting another person’s basic needs, such as during an end-stage illness such as cancer. Basically, doing things for them that\u00a0 they can no longer do for themselves.<\/p>\n

This picture is so much different than what we consider a supporter.\u00a0 For example, if a supporter did things for a loved one with bipolar disorder which that loved one was capable of doing for themselves, we would consider that “enabling,” rather than “supporting,” and enabling is something that supporters should not do, because it does not help your loved one.<\/p>\n

Being a supporter means exactly that \u2013 that you support your loved one and help\u00a0 them to manage their bipolar disorder. You don’t do it for them.\u00a0 You encourage independence (where possible and realistic), while still being there for them when they do need you.\u00a0 You remain understanding, loving, and compassionate; however, you do not allow yourself to be a doormat during their episodes.<\/p>\n

Being a good supporter means setting boundaries for acceptable and unacceptable behavior and then enforcing those boundaries.<\/p>\n

Being a supporter is being a partner in your loved one’s recovery.\u00a0 It is definitely NOT being a “caregiver.”<\/p>\n

Do you see the difference now between being a “caregiver” and being a “supporter”?<\/p>\n

So which are you?<\/p>\n

David Oliver is the author of the shocking guide \u201cBipolar Disorder\u2014The REAL Silent Killer.\u201d Click Here<\/span><\/a><\/strong> to get FREE Information<\/strong> sent via email on how and why bipolar disorder kills.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi,<\/p>\n

How’s it going? I hope you are doing well.<\/p>\n

I have one million things to do today so I have to go pretty quick.<\/p>\n

Michele, who works for me, was asked to speak at a bipolar disorder support group about bipolar recovery, and was told that the group was mainly made up of “caregivers.”\u00a0 She told them about our website and explained that we use the term “supporters”<\/p>\n

Continue Reading<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nAre you a Bipolar Caregiver or a Bipolar Supporter? - Bipolar Supporter Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/www.bipolarsupporter.com\/bipolarsupporterblog\/are-you-a-bipolar-caregiver-or-a-bipolar-supporter\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Are you a Bipolar Caregiver or a Bipolar Supporter? - Bipolar Supporter Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Hi, How’s it going? I hope you are doing well. I have one million things to do today so I have to go pretty quick. 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