>>does not wish to seek professional help as it could impact his job and he feels he can handle things on his own

You can let him know that any treatment will be private and must be kept private by law. Even if someone were to call his doctor or hospital they are legally not even allowed to confirm or deny he is a patient.

And why should anyone have to "handle things on their own" when treatment is available?

Of course I'm sure those are not his real reasons, just part of denial, and as others have said there is not much you can do until he is willing to get help. If he becomes receptive to treatment, though, let him know that privacy (with regard to his job or anyone else) should not be an issue.

I am assuming you are in the US, not sure how the laws are applied in other countries, but you can check.

Good luck. And yes, those are defininate symptoms of a potential problem (only a professional can make a true diagnosis, but that's enough info to warrant checking).

There are many good websites with bipolar and depression information, starting with the information available on this site, plus if you do a search you should get a lot of hits. There is lots of information on symptoms and recognizing depression, treatments available, and information for families of those who are or may be suffering.

-- The world is what we make of it --
-- Dave
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