I am sorry to hear about your mom. I know it must be heartbreaking for you. Others usually feel helpless to do anything for the person with bipolar disorder. My best suggestion for you would be to learn all that you can about the disorder and how it affects your mom. Finding the right treatment for her will take time and work. Now that she knows what her diagnosis is, she can begin the work she needs to that will help her live with it. But it is also important that you know all that you can. Research it through books, and internet, and by talking to others with it. Bipolar disorder has many faces so not all of us will experience what you mom does, nor will she experience all that we do. Be patient and supportive. I am sure in some ways you have been affected by her bipolar disorder through her behavior and it couldnt hurt for you to seek therapy also. I will keep you and your mom in my prayers for your journey. Luv and hugs

There is also a "friends and family of bipolar" board here, my husband has found the support there very helpful. There are a lot of great sites out there: http://www.psycom.net/depression.central.bipolar.html is a good one.
Good luck and take care of yourself!
Sue

love to you and your mum x

welcome, i have confidence you will find some needed support here. glad to hear about your mom's progress. take care

xx

I agree with Shelly. Learn all that you can about the disease. You'll have a better Idea of what to expect for your mother and for you. Family and other types of support systoms I believe can really make a wonderful difference in the life of the person who has bipolar. Just remeber that you also have to think of yourself, take care of yourself. It can be so hard on the loved ones of the person who has the bipolar. Friends and family of Bipolar might be a good community to look into if you haven't already. Bipolar affects so many more that just the person who has it.

Welcome! I am so sorry to hear about your mom! You are a very good daughter for coming here to learn more about your mother's illness!

You are in my thoughts and payers, as is your mother... PM me if you need to talk!

Reading as much as you can will help a lot in dealing with your mom's BP. Getting the meds right is a really slow, hit and miss process, so be patient and don't give up if the drugs don't work at first. There are lots of Rx they can use to treat her. Talking about it is crucial. The effect on you is enormous (according to my daughter :-)) Hang in there, and keep sharing. You'll find lots of hugs and support here.

I am sorry to hear about your mom!!!!

any question, any time

I will have some book suggestions but My schools library catalog seems to be down ATM and that is where I keep my book lists :)

here is the title of the book

The Depression Sourcebook

it was written by:

Brian P. Quinn

This goes for anybody in all honesty

you can get it for a penny on amazon,

it has all sorts of advice on vitamins, foods, dealing with things

it is a bit old but it has become one of my favorite books about mood disorders, i think everybody should have a copy of it :)

I am so sorry about your mom.. Thank goodness she is at least trying to get help....it is also very hard for those around her too, and God bless you for informing yourself...it shows you really care about her.


The "For Dummies" Books are well written, and there's one for depression and bipolar...and you should be able to find that one at the library, too.

I know you already have a library reccomended, but for you and anyone else out there The Bipolar Survival Guide, is a great resource.

My favorite book to give people who want to understand what the experience of depression feels like is William Styron's "Visible Darkness". My entire family passed a copy around the first time I went into the hospital for ECT.