Lived Experience Forum

[Pitz]

Hi everyone

Just trying to get a better understanding of bipolar 1 disorder. I have just been diagnosed and am trying to piece my life back together.

I'm out of work due to injury that happened in my hypo manic risk taking state.

Just looking for advice with moving forward with life, what works best for work, and how is it raising a family.

Kind regards

[Pepperpot]

Hi @Pitz,

You must be going through a lot. I can’t even imagine the pressure you must be under with your recent diagnosis, injury and other pressures. Great work reaching out here.

Seeing as you were just diagnosed, I’m assuming you have ongoing professional support (?) I feel this is important to manage the symptoms and other life stressors as you clearly have a lot going on.

I wonder if maybe gathering information on bipolar might be helpful too; the saying about how “knowledge is power” in the sense than you would better understand your struggles, available options, etc. I think there is a wealth of online resources on Sane and other mental health organisations (e.g. BeyondBlue, Black Dog Institute, etc) that might help you.

As for your family, I don’t know your circumstances or family dynamics, but maybe open communication is something to consider. That way, everyone understands what you’re going through, and you will be a healthy role model for your kid(s) because they will know that it’s okay to come to you if they later struggle with mental health issues. And if you have another hypo manic state, your family will be able to better support you and themselves.

Kindness only,
Pepperpot

[Pitz]

Hi Pepperpot

Thanks for the response. Yeah my wife and I have gone through hell and back in the past 2 years.

We would of loved to start a family but with everything that has happened has left us with allot of questions and not many answers.

I just don't understand how this illness can hit you out of nowhere, psychosis was the scariest experience of my life. One year on I have a manic episode that I didn't recognize I was in, back in ER for surgery on my wrist.

I work in construction so this has got me very worried. The more I read about bipolar the more scared and annoyed I become.

How will I hold a steady job and support my family if this is what can happen out of the blue?

What if I have an episode and I have my child with me?

If lack of sleep and stress are triggers how will I get through life

I have unintentionally put my wife through hell and back, how much more can she take.

Is this going to be my life from now on, constantly questioning everything.

[Amour_Et_Psyché]

Hi @Pitz

Thank you for reaching out on the SANE Forums upon being diagnosed with Bipolar 1 Disorder. As @Pepperpot said, I am sure you must be going through so much right now with your recent diagnosis, injury, etc. In this light, is understandable that you are looking for advice and information about what is the best way forward, given your diagnosis.

As @Pepperpot said, seeking on-going professional support can be extremely helpful for someone struggling with Biplor Disorder, or mental illness more generally. Additionally, there are a wealth of online resources. This includes our SANE Biploar Guide and Factsheet, if you have not yet seen these resources yet.

In terms of working on how to support a family, it might be a good idea to seek family therapy - potentially, with someone who spealises with Bipolar Disorder? As @Pepperpot said, as we are unaware of your family's dynamics, it is difficult to say what supports would specifically target your family's needs. However, family therapy can help with a range of issues and, thus, could prove helpful. You can search for both individual therapists or family therapists using the "Find a Psychologist" function of the Australian Psychological Society website. You may also find a family therapist by contacting organisations such as Relationships Australia. I have listed both these organisations, a brief description of their work, and their contact details, below:

Australian Psychological Society (APS): The APS is the leading organisation for psychologists in Australia. The APS ‘Find a psychologist’ is an online, telephone and email referral service for the general public and health professional who are seeking the advice and assistance of a qualified APS psychologist.

Tel: 1800 333 497
www.psychology.org.au 

Relationship Australia: Relationships Australia is a leading provider of relationship support services for individuals, families and communities.

Tel: 1300 364 277

https://www.relationships.org.au/

Thank you again for reaching out! Please continue to do so, if you need any further support or advice!

Kindest,

Amour_Et_Psyché

[Pepperpot]

Hi @Pitz,

It does sound pretty rough. I’m not surprised you have so many questions as this recent diagnosis must be very overwhelming. I feel that I would have a lot of questions too if I were in your shoes.

It’s great that @Amour_Et_Psyche has given some wonderful advice and resources for you to use 😊 Maybe you might want to consider what s(he) has said.

Kindness only

*Sorry, I’m still figuring out how the forums work. Are we allowed to reply to these posts or are these meant to only be for moderators to answer? Thank you for your help.

[Pitz]

Thank you Amour

I have read so much information and stories of people with type one bipolar. My psychologist has a PHD in bipolar and I bring my wife to the sessions

I catch up regularly with my case manager who chats to my wife and I.

My family dynamics is just my wife and the fur babies. Im in my late 20s and my wife early 30s. I want to move forward but I am struggling to accept the disorder.

[Amour_Et_Psyché]

Hi @Pepperpot

A very warm welcome to you, since you are still new to the SANE Forums! Yes - you are definitely allowed to respond to members new posts and threads - in fact, we encourage that you do! The SANE Forums is a peer support space - so jumping in the thread and responding to @Pitz is 100% on the right track in terms of Forums use! The moderators will only typically jump in a thread to facilitate further discussion between Forum members.

I hope this clarifies things for you?

Kindest,

Amour_Et_Psyché

[Amour_Et_Psyché]

My pleasure @Pitz!

It can be so empowering to learn more about your diagnosis and other people's experiences of it. Your motivation to learn and get help with your Bipolar 1 Disorder is truly inspiring! It is great that your psychologist has such expertise with Bipolar Disorder and that he/she allows you wife to participate in your sessions. Your case manager also sounds helpful too. It seems like you are in great hands!

Thank you for clarifying your family dynamics. Perhaps, it may be worth exploring with your psychologist what the barriers for you accepting your disorder are and what you need to move forward are (maybe you are already doing this)? But by having an awareness of what the barriers are around your acceptance of your diagnosis, perhaps you can better identify what is needed to break down such barriers and move forward with life (it sounds like moving forward may be having children, based on your previous post to @Pepperpot)?

Kindest,

Amour_Et_Psyché

[Pepperpot]

Hi @Amour_Et_Psyche,

Sorry, I’m not trying to misspell your name but I can’t figure out how to do the superscript (above the “e”) in your name and it won’t let me copy and paste.

Thank you so much for clarifying and helping me out. That makes sense and I’m relieved as I was momentarily worried that I was posting in the wrong section.

Thanks again. Much appreciated and keep up the great work 😊

[Pitz]

Hi Amour

I do feel that I'm in great hands and I have a wonderful amount of support.

The problem is my personality has always been a forward thinker and planner. Now I feel I can't think or plan because my condition has been so unpredictable.

I feel ill need to start again from scratch learning who I am in order to move forward.

I have a mortgage to pay, and want to get back to work, with a broken wrist and broken mind I'm finding it very difficult to move forward.

I now listen to podcasts about bipolar and some things I can relate to but majority I feel it's not me.

I'm really screaming out for help here and I appreciate all your advise so far.

I told my boss today and he can't believe it. His work has dried up so he doesn't have anything for me at this stage, another blow.

Clearance for work is still 1.5 weeks away, do I mention I have bipolar in a future interview as I'm clearly not myself at the moment.

Kind regards