I'm Bipolar, She's Not

One of the things I don't think is funny is when people call someone Bipolar simply because he or she is having a moody day, or is indecisive. While Bipolar people can or do have these symptoms, there is so much more to it, so many SERIOUS problems. That's why it's a mental illness. DUH.

It's become the mainstream, en vogue term to use, it seems. I hear it so often though, much like ADD or ADHD was used ad nauseum to describe someone who is scattered. There is a popular song right now that refers to a relationship as being "a love bipolar". My 7 year old son, who is learning that his mom is Bipolar (in very basic terms), asked what that meant. Now, as we know, TheBabe is FAR from being politically correct. Having to explain to him what she meant and how it's different than what mom has was a little tricky. He doesn't yet understand comparison, subtle parodies, or sarcasm completely. (He's learning faster than others thanks to dear old mom).

Fact of the matter is...Bipolar typically goes untreated for a very long time, and is usually misdiagnosed for a looooooong time as unipolar depression. What will happen when everyone is referred to as Bipolar simply because they are having a bad day or can't make up their mind? They will just laugh it off. If there truly is a problem, they may not be aware of it as being anything out of the ordinary. I know just from when I took the checklists, I didn't think I was Bipolar. I didn't know I had racing thoughts. My brain never shut off, but I didn't think of that as racing. I just thought I was introspective, a great thinker and liked puzzles.

I'm real big on the 'looking into it' part because there is so much pain involved with this illness. And with a 10% suicide statistic (from what my tdoc has told me) for diagnosed Bipolar people, ummmm...can we say unfuckingacceptable? To desensitize the illness is to increase those odds in my opinion and that is too serious to joke about. I'll joke about those of us who actually have it, but I have compassion for our suffering. I want to bring light to that suffering by bringing absurdity and laughter with the things that make me laugh. I can't take anything too seriously or I will drown in a sea of dispair. It's all that I have to bring to someone in pain. But I'll tell you, if you call someone Bipolar, you better know what the fuck you're talking about. I'll get medieval on you. Of course, I'll be outing myself to some extent, but I won't care at that point. I suppose I probably shouldn't be medieval, if I want to be taken seriously though, huh? They'll call me Bipolar.

PolarBabe