ANON ASKS:
How do I explain bipolar to my little brother and other family members ?
This conversation depends on your family, and the usual caveats apply:
- not a therapist
- own experiences only
- your quality of life is my number 1 concern
I’d start by explaining the heights and depths you experience.
Ask them the best they’ve felt, and the saddest. Or angriest. Or most enthusiastic. However it is that your condition affects you.
Make it relatable.
Point out how most neuro-typical people feel things as a response. A response to something happening out in the world, or a thought pattern in their head.
Then ask them to imagine feeling these things for no obvious reason.
It’s a cyclical thing, strange brain circuitry activating the feels without needing any input.
Then talk about the length and variability of these feels.
Normal brains stop pushing buttons when the input goes away. Bipolar brains can lean on the buttons till there are no chemicals left. So you feel the feel for waaay longer than normal.
And then perhaps if they can absorb all that, move on to how it might affect them.
Talk about the impact it has on your day.
And how you make changes to get by.
Talk about the fact that it’s a chronic condition.
That it will be with you always. And maybe the need for and types of management available.
Regardless of how you do it, make sure that you have an eye on the outcome that you want to achieve.
Sympathy, or maybe offers of help as a support network. Be honest about how they can help – if they can help – and make it clear that the conversation is about helping them understand.
Let’s be real here – it takes years to feel you understand it.
And even then, there’s no way of knowing if you’ve run the gamut of BP experience.
Just the other week I hit a paranoid high and that was uncomfortable. Because I’ve never had that before. And I had to figure out if it was a valid reaction to circumstances or a new symptom.
So don’t worry about getting it across to everyone 100%.
Instead, focus on making sure they’re in a position where you feel comfortable interacting with them.
That’s way more important.