by Leah Curtis

Created on: December 22, 2009

If you have Bipolar Disorder, you are simply moody, not mentally ill. This is according to my parents. I do have Bipolar Disorder and I know it is a mental illness. I live with it daily and if I do not comply with my medication schedule, I suffer the devastating consequences that follow. Sometimes even the medication does not stop the symptoms from appearing. My parents, however, cannot tolerate the thought that their daughter is mentally ill. The rest of my family just thinks that I am weird. The point is, there is such a stigma attached to  Bipolar Disorder, that families often find it easier to think of their relative as moody or unpredictable. It is a mood disorder, after all. It is much easier for people to deal with someone who is moody or eccentric, than it is to have to admit that the person they are dealing with or talking to, is bipolar.

People still think it is okay to make fun of the mentally ill. Since I have been diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder I have been called a lunatic, crazy, a mental case, and some other choice words. This is just by my own family. Goodness knows what other people think about me. People fear what they do not understand and many people do not understand what Bipolar Disorder is, and what it is not. It is easier to "proceed with caution" around the person, so you do not set them off, as if we all are prone to violent rages. This is the problem with a little bit of information, mixed in with the wrong information. Television depicts people with Bipolar Disorder going on murderous rampages quite often, which only adds to the stigma because people are seeing an extreme example of mental illness, not the millions of people who quietly suffer without ever harming anyone.

Having Bipolar Disorder does not set you apart from the masses but it does alter a person's perception of you. If you happen to be a happy, energetic person, that is great. If you have Bipolar Disorder and are a happy, energetic person, people automatically start to wonder if you are becoming manic.

As with any other illness, one does not choose to be mentally ill and there should be no stigma attached to Bipolar Disorder or any other mental illness, but there is. Admitting you are bipolar is still taboo in our society, which is unfortunate because people who need help often do not seek it. Bipolar Disorder is often associated with “madness” because people with this disorder do not display symptoms constantly. For many people, there is

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