Dx didn't really affect my mum at all, she takes her meds better these days, but once her brain chemicals start to change she 'won't have bipolar' in her mind. So she is still in denial.

The way it affected me is I learnt about the illness once she got a dx, and the sad fact is I know more about bp than she does, she's not prepared to learn.

My bf was diagnosed 12 years ago but it's only been his last episode this year where he's finally accepted it & stayed on his meds. It was good to know what we were dealing with but still the hardest time of my life.

Because it was the first episode since we got together I was right at the front line this time, in the past we were just friends so when things got too hard I could step back.
These last few months I've become a lot stronger & more assertive, I've learnt all I can & I've considered working with supporters like us in the mental health industry.
My bf has become a better person with acceptance, he's starting a job as a consumer advocate, he'll be helping mentally ill people access services & get back on their feet.

It's been hard but we're slowly turning a negative into a positive.

Honestly I have not seen ANY CHANGE in him at all.

The only things my X knows about Bp is what the doc's gave him. A few vague pages of jargen. And what he has pulled off line.

I have sugg books and etc to him. That go deeper into the disorder. He keeps saying that the books are all BS on BP!

I had to step back and look at how he treated people in the past that up set him. And I seen he's doing the same thing to me.

I often feel like he hid a lot of his "mind" from me.

He is now in the phase of "I should have listened to you years ago when you said I should seek more help"

Those I have witnessed pre- to pst diagnosis generally come out the other side a better person, especially if they conform well to treatment and apply the appropriate changes to their lifestyle.

my mother rebelled against the whole idea of psychology a long time ago. forget about her DX. . . that means nothing to her.

when i found out about her DX it made me angry. b/c she knows she goes way too far...over and over. she forgets how much that really happens i guess... and it's effects on me.

i am also pretty prejudice towards beepers now. i watch ppl for signs. closely.

I guess at first after i researched the disease. i felt guilt. for being so angry with her. for blaming her all these years. but that wore off 10 episodes later.

what did you notice?

Understandable.

Being diagnosed has definitely made my bf grow up quicker than most guys his age, his life experience has been vast, to say the least!

He's got such a big heart & is so understanding when he's well, I think his bp has made him a lot more understanding than anyone else I know.

My son's dx made certain behaviors in his past more understandable, but broke my heart at the same time and I had worked with beeper chiildren and knew of the challenges they face daily. I went through the usual guilt about it being my fault, even though I have never done drugs or drank excessively. Acceptance was was harder for me than him. He didn't really say much about it and hasn't bothered to research his dx. A lot of it he thinks he know, due to the children we kept in our home, but adult bp is different to children bp. People are more forgiving with a child than they are a adult.

It really hurt me to see him take the meds, but I keep my mouth shut and encourage him to follow his doctor's advice. Other than looking stoned from the meds they haven't helped him much.

The DX answeres lots of questions about why he feels the way he does about anything from religion to politics. It also answeres a lot of my questions about his hypersexuality.

So I can't see any improvement to speak of though he's only been dx about 6 months.

Down to each individual I guess.