It's very sad to see: the niece I watched grow up, I just found out has been diagnosed as bipolar.

[C Moon]

Since her birth, we have seen her several times a year for family gatherings. We've given her lots of birthday and Christmas gifts; gone on trips; walks; hikes; hanging out.

It's so sad to see this. We didn't know about it until last year. Her parents didn't tell anyone, and they are also having marriage problems as a result. They are pretty much divorced now.

Our niece has been arrested a few of times in the past few years because of her condition (she's been acting out violently in public), and then she ends up in a psychiatric hospital...completely drugged so she can't even speak.

She doesn't want to take the meds, so the doctor finally cut the prescription in half. I guess some of the patients get depressed on the meds. I was just reading her FaceBook posts, and she's talking about things like running for US President, etc. I can tell she's not well.

The whole thing is shocking and depressing. She's such an innocent person, it's so sad to see this happening.

[alwaysinasnit]

1. ...

[Demovictory9]

2. very sad. Hopefully there will be some help for her

[LoisB]

3. That is sad. I hope she is able to get the help she needs.

[Scruffy1]

4. I had a wife who suffered from bipolar disorder.

I still love her. We talk once in a while on the phone. She is a great and loving person with a problem she can't control.

[Sucha NastyWoman]

5. I went through this with my daughter.

The mental health care system is of little help. The only way it can work is if the person really wants to help themselves. And most do not even accept the diagnosis.

[C Moon]

6. Yes. Similar here: she seems to accept the diagnosis, but doesn't accept the medication treatment.

[RobinA]

18. Unfortunately

popular culture with no small amount of help from the alternative medicine industry has demonized pharma and medication to the point where people who would be very much better on medication won't take it. There's little help for bipolar without medication. Hopefully she will come around.

[abqtommy]

7. I agree with you for the most part. I'm a survivor of diagnosis and treatment for

Manic Depression/Bipolar 1. The mental health care system is what it is and it can be
helpful. I have survived and thrived because I wanted to be well and used the system to
achieve that. I got a lot of support from both my (divorced) parents so I know that
loving support can be of great help too.

[ProfessorGAC]

15. Agreed!

My wife suffers from BPD.
She does quite well on the right cocktail of meds.
But, she's 100% onboard with taking them at the right times, every single day.
She WANTED to feel better.

[Thunderbeast]

8. If you want to better understand how to support her

get in touch with your local NAMI chapter.

They offer a free course called "FAMILY TO FAMILY" that will help you understand the ways you can maintain your relationship, build and enforce boundaries, and understand the disease better.

Hate the disease, not the person.

[Tickle]

9. 💜💜💜 nt

[pazzyanne]

10. + 1,000 nt

[Demsrule86]

11. My daughter has bipolar depression. It is an insidious disease...we have had three suicide

attempts. My marriage is strong...but many crumble. I would like to say that there is help available but honestly, I can't. Mental health in this country is abysmal. Try to find a great psychologist for counseling and watch her meds carefully.

[marie999]

12. The problem is mental disorders are not like a broken leg.

Everyone is different. I'm not a doctor, but I have spent many 8-day vacations in the psych ward at the VA hospital in Fayetteville, NC. The last go-round was after I attempted suicide on December 26, 2014. I woke up on December 31, 2014, not remembering the attempt or being in the hospital. I still don't remember the attempt. They finally found just the right combination of meds that helped a lot without messing with me. I have been good since. We talk about our meds at peer group meetings and those of us that are bipolar are all on a different combination of meds or strengths. I will say that at the VA hospital I was never drugged.

[Wicked Blue]

13. Sometimes these conditions don't manifest until the late teens - early 20s

I have a family member with mental health issues, and my heart goes out to your niece, you and your family.

NAMI (the National Alliance on Mental Illness) is an excellent resource. https://www.nami.org/Home

[hunter]

14. Yep, that's when my mind went sideways.

I quit high school for college. It took me nine years to graduate and I was "asked" to take time outs twice. My parents were so worn out with me they didn't even ask.

What's weird is that I didn't know myself how messed up I was. I figured that everyone else was just better at dealing with the noise in their head.

[shrike3]

17. I've had lifelong depression.

I was the same way. I thought everyone was the way I was, they just handled it better. Unfortunately, back then nobody believed a child could be depressed. I was often told to "dry up, don't be such a baby." I was even called "bad" when I dealt with symptoms. The good old days weren't always good. I have friends who are special needs educators, and they say depression occurs more often in kids than anybody realizes.

[RobinA]

19. In Retrospect

I was very depressed as a child. In their defense, my parents did try to help and I was diagnosed with separation anxiety, which was also true. I was not sad depressed, I was more irritable depressed. This led not to crying, but whiny discontent. That led to me being called "difficult" and "a brat." I'm sure I was a bit of a pain, I still am. I was punished for my irritability. I learned to suck it up and put a lid on my irritability, which I got pretty good at as I got older. Thankfully, I have been on an antidepressant now for quite awhile and it takes the edge off. Less so these days, but I have hope that when things get back to normal I will too.

[shrike3]

20. Yes, that sounds familiar.

Sorry that happened. Unfortunately, my parents were mystified and irritated. At one point, my mother said, "We have given up on you. We have other children to raise."

[shrike3]

16. I know several folks who are bipolar.

I hang out with artistic folks; maybe that's why. Like you said, sad. No fault of their own. And they struggle.

[C Moon]

21. She tried to jump off a building a few days ago.

People stopped her, and called the police. She was put in an institution until her meds are adjusted.