I'm sorry you are having such a rough time. I was diagnosed in 2005 but became med resistant and had a bad manic attack in 2007. It reeked complete and utter havoc in my life and I lost everything for a time. It does seem like you've kept your marriage intact and I'm not sure if you have kids but that in and of its self is something to be proud of. Because of the stigma of this illness many of us have problems with marriage, family, friends, etc. I too went through various med changes and was overmedicated for a little over a year until we did a med change. I've been feeling good since June 2010 and still feeling well today. I don't recall where I read it, but I recall it said that on average it takes 3 years to recover from a major episode. It has been that way in my case so don't know if other people have had similar experiences.

Do you go to a support group? I went to DSBA meetings and didn't feel comfortable in that group as for some reason the meetings I went to had pretty low functioning people. Finally researched NAMI and found a local Bipolar support group that I've been going to for about two months. There are different levels of functioning in the group but much better than my previous experience. This group is also open to family members to attend. A couple whose daughter was recently diagnosed started attending our meetings but the daughter won't come. I don't know if this is something that your husband might be interested in attending with you,

If I can help in any other way or you have more questions for me, I'm here to help in any way I can.