I told 2 or 3 close friends when I first found out because I was seriously struggling. One of them I already knew had BP, so we were able to help eachother a lot & still do. One of the others exploited by illness so she could deem herself as superior over me, so I ended that as soon as I moved away, & the other was relatively supportive though he recently broke my trust.
When I met my boyfriend, when we started to get serious but before we officially got together, I broke down & told him all of the dirty ****ed up details about my past & about my mental eccentricities. I figured "If I can't be totally honest with him, then it's not worth becoming invested in a relationship. If he doesn't want to accept it, then I can go find someone else who is willing to".
And 8 months later, we still have the strongest relationship ever. It also turns out that he might have the same exact afflictions as I do. Uncanny, aye?