Bipolar Support Group

I have a dear friend that I have known for years. We recently started dating and he told me that he has been diagnosed as being Bipolar. He even gave me a book to read days before he had a manic phase, like he could sense it was coming. I had never seen him in such a bad place, but I was glad I was there for him.

I am a very positive happy person and I think he really needs that right now as he has been very stressed with work and although he owns his own business has an employee that does a great job but loves to stress him out - she doesn't know about the BP.

He has heard only bad side effects about taking the meds and has not tried them. He is in his mid 40's. I want to help with whatever I can. But I don't know how to help other than try to support him and try to eliminate as much stress as possible. Any ideas or suggestions?

I care greatly about this person and will do whatever I can to help him.

Thank you

Post edited by: Monique, at: 02/18/2009 03:19

Welcome to MDJ Monique. I think it is wonderful that your friend has someone to support him. The best thing you can do is read, read, read. Not all of the meds will give side effects to all people. He may be pleasantly surprised to find that once the medication is in his system it will make his life so much easier to cope with. Does he have a Psychiatrist and a Therapist? To me a Therapist is essential to dealing and learning about bipolar. If you are so close maybe he will allow you to come to his sessions and you can also find out how to help him. A psychiatrist is for prescribing meds and will listen to side effects and how well the meds are working. Also if your friend is interested in joining the website here he would be more than welcome.

So glad to see you here Monique!

Thank you -I was feeling lost and not sure where to turn for help or advice. I am very grateful for your help and advice. You have given me hope that I can help him with this.

He does not have a Psychiatrist or Therapist that he currently sees. He has friends that are Therapist and Psychiatrists and he will call them at times - but not during a manic phase, I am one of the few people he trust or talks to about this. I think this place would be great for him, but he won't come here (nothing personal - he thinks he just has to deal with it). I am hoping that I can learn from everyone here and be able to help and guide him in the right direction.

He does take concerta(I think that is it)for ADD but it seems to make the BP worse.

I read that the omega 3 in fish oil helps. If this is true it might be a good place to start with him, as he is not willing to try the meds yet as he is too afraid of the side effects.

I know that there are some here that do take Concerta but I don't take it myself so I will reserve comment. I've heard about the Omega 3 Fish oil and I am on it for Cholesterol problems, but I am also on medications as you can see from my signature tag. I was diagnosed when I was 25, I am 50 now. I have had several years in between where I was unmedicated but I found that I do much better while I am medicated. My belief is that I have been bipolar since birth or at least early childhood from my memories. Mark Harmon does a commercial that says that most people with bipolar are not diagnosed for 10 years, well that would fit in with myself, because I really started acting out in my teenage years.

As for not asking for help during a manic phase, well we love those times because we are on top of the world, or so we think, sometimes our judgements are a bit skewed.

If someone isn't ready for treatment then there isn't much anyone can do, unless they become a danger to themself or others.

Hang in there and keep being the good friend that you are.

Monique,

Welcome! I applaud you for being there for your friend. I would suggest that you recommend that he see a psychiatrist and/or therapist. It has been said that the best treatment combination for bipolar are medications and therapy. I believe this to be the case. I've been diagnosed with bipolar for the past 3 years. I've been in therapy for the past 1.5 years and it has really helped keep me grounded and to better understand what it means to have bipolar. As far as not telling anyone about being manic, I can identify with that as I think most people on the board with bipolar can. Mania feels so good (for me it feels great at the beginning of an episode) that the last thing I want to do is take meds that will being me down from my manic high. When I'm manic, I feel creative, productive, intelligent, witty and funny. I'm the life of the party and nothing or no one can stop me. It's a wonderful feeling. Before I close, I wanted to make a final point by addressing your comment about your friend being able to tell when he's about to have a manic episode. Some people are able to determine this. I can sometimes. Before a manic episode hits I feel content, better than usual, clever and overconfident. It usually isn't until these symptoms seem to skyrocket that I know I've hit full blown mania. Having said that, I can't always tell when I'm manic. Sometimes my tdoc has to bring this to my attention. He can usually tell I'm manic in one of several ways: 1. Rapid speech. When I'm manic, I speak very, very fast. 2. Flight of ideas. This means that when I talk, I string nonsensical sentences together that have no relationship to one another. The things I say don't make any sense whatsoever. 3. I have tons of energy and can't sit still. I feel like doing 10 things at once even though I don't complete any of them. 4. I have little need for sleep. When I'm manic, I don't feel like I need sleep. I can get away with staying up for 5 nights in a row. With that, I will say "welcome" once again and encourage you to post questions anytime you feel like it. It's good to have you here!

Thank you all for your responses. I have a silly question for you, I am not as educated about BP as I would like to be and I am trying to finish a book about it and then I have another one picked out, but I have a question that I don't know the answer to yet.

It seems that after a manic phase that lasts for days, he goes the complete oppisite and is almost parilized from getting out of bed. Is this common, normal, or expected? I understand it is different for everyone, but just wanted to know if I should expect that every time the manic phase is so intense.

Thank you again..

Monique,

I can only speak for myself, but that's exactly what happens to me after a severe manic episode. My body is exhausted and can't move. My mind is numb and I can't think clearly. I'm not a pdoc, but I think this is a normal experience given what the body goes through during a severe manic episode. It's basically put through the ringer and needs time to recover.

Post edited by: neondreams, at: 02/20/2009 02:15