Same here. Bipolar two and I can't work full time. I am a mess. But I work part time and am appealing a disability claim. There is hope. If you aren't diagnosed then find a psychiatrist and look into finding a therapist. Meds and therapy are how you treat bipolar

Sleep is critical for me. I've been diagnosed bipolar 1 - whenever sleep goes I start to become unraveled. Usually the beginning of a break for me. So I start discussing meds with my doctor and we change things around before it gets bad. I think meds could help you balance your mood and get sleep - if you're open to taking more.

I was told by a doctor a few years ago that I was bipolar 2 but I blew him off. After what happened at my last job I am starting to think he was right. I have a terrible time regulating my daily routine, sleep and meals. I need a lot of sleep and have a very low stress tolerance. People generally perceive me as very competent as long as I am able to self-regulate, but I have always felt like I hid a dark secret from almost everyone I know. I have always been ashamed of how little I get done in a day compared to many people. And yet when I push too hard then I start to unravel.

I'm bipolar 2 but with the same company for over 30 years so BP2 doen't naturally equate to poor functionality but it's true if you aren't on meds life is made a lot more difficult.

You say you think you are bipolar2 - there are a bunch of things that look like bipolar so my advice is to get a diagnosis - then whatever it is can be treated.

To the best of my just-a-patient awareness, trying too hard and keeping secrets will knock anybody out of balance, whatever is in their personal baggage cars. Either one is a psycho flag for me. When I catch myself keeping secrets or trying too hard, I take a break and get out my psycho-therapy toolbox. I shoot for gently -emphasis on gently- doing the best I can with whatever is in my honest inventory of the moment. I treat it like a question of balance which changes continually as I move through life. Kinda like riding a bicycle. The balance needs change with every slope and stick in the road. I balance as I roll.

But that is me and way over-simplified. . .

Gentle support while you find what works for you, Justlen.

This sounds very familiar, esp the trying too hard part. I would like to hear more about that.

Hi and Welcome Just.... There is good help to be had for BP..... Getting a referral to a psychiatrist can be the beginning of working on finding stability .... We have a treatable disorder and although it's a chronic illness most of us find stability with a little hiccough now and then....
I'm not working now but I worked for over 30 years as well.... Big hug....xo

When I start trying too hard, I stress myself out to self-destruct levels and start forcing solutions until I am trying to force proverbial square pegs into proverbial round holes or shooting mosquitoes with cannons. I have obsessed my way to literal psychotic breaks. T'weren't purty.

After much therapy work, I have developed the awareness catch the fact that I am trying too hard and back off to ply therapy tools until I am once more calm and balanced. When I can relax with the ^it^ of the episode, it is amazing how often the problem of my obsession resolves with graceful ease.

"Ya got to sing like you don't need the money.
"You got to love like you'll never get hurt.
"You got to dance, dance, dance like there's nobody watching.
"Ya gotta come from the heart if you want it to work." ~Susanna Clark
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yv1d160YJUI

Oh my, that sounds just like me, makes perfect sense. I over focus on something and obsess about it until the walls close in and I have a meltdown. That's just what happened with my last job. Very close to a psychotic break. How enlightening, thank you.