Why Do You Stay in Your Bipolar Relationship?
Husbands, wives, girlfriends, boyfriends of partners with bipolar disorder are the overlooked and underserved mental illness support network of the Bipolar treatment world. Why do you stay in your bipolar relationship?
First, we are never secure about our own emotional needs. Are they more or less important the needs of our mentally ill spouse? If we choose to take care of our own needs first, we often suffer, then punish ourselves with guilt, then get angry toward our sick partner that he or she has caused us such misery.
But if we choose to put our partner s emotional, physical and mental health needs ahead of ours after all, he s the sick one our quality of life diminishes.
...misunderstanding and lack of knowledge surrounding the condition. It affects both men and women equally and usually begins in early adulthood but the way it manifests itself is anything but consistent. Episodes can be triggered by stressful events and physical ...
Second, husbands and wives are alone in coping with our spouses Bipolar Disorder (also known as Manic Depression). Besides managing doctor visits, medications, decisions on whether to hospitalize or not, well partners must fight for our relationships. The line between partner and caregiver is thin and often non-existent. It can make for a lonely and often devastating life.
You cannot share your feelings with your partner; he s the sick one and the cause of your distress! Your parents are empty nesters; you can t burden them with your problems. Your siblings have their own families to worry about. Unless mental illness runs in your friends families, they
...vicious cycle? Here is what I did 20 years ago and I have never since suffered from any serious mood disorder. I started to cultivate my awareness of my mood swings--from elation to black despair. I did this by basically ...
The pressure on us from friends, family and professionals is unrelenting. Those who ask, Why do you stay in your relationship? are not supportive. And neither are the ones that imply that it s your duty to stay married to your bipolar husband or wife. Bipolar disorder runs roughshod over relationships. The divorce rate is three times higher in these marriages than in the general population.
In my personal story, when I did find a spousal support group, there was one man (divorced) and 16 women. A third of the women s
...a person's intellectual functioning that can also give way to depression. 4. A personal loss that recently battered an individual can cause depression. It could be a death of a loved one, job loss or moving away to a new ...
The last third were widows their bipolar husbands had committed suicide. (The suicide rate for bipolar disorder is 12 times higher than the normal population.) Everyone in the support group thought I was in denial for having a goal to stay married.
Why do you stay in your bipolar relationship?
Elizabeth Atlas is the author of Married To Mania, a book that helps spouses and
...type 1 is also called the "raging" bipolar. Bipolar Type 2 The bipolar type 2 disorder is characterized by the occurrence of at least one hypomania episode and one major depressive state. Sometimes, this type may even have occurrences of ...
July 31st, 2009 at 9:57 pm
My husband was diagnosed with bipolar disorder only a few months after we got married. It’s been a year now and I can’t deal with this anymore. We have a 6 month old son and I don’t want him to be around his father when he acts out. He has become this stranger that I just don’t like. I’m always frustrated and angry and confused. I just miss my husband but is he gone forever??