You can say THAT again!!

When my brain's firing on all 8 cylinders, I can easily moderate my expressions and adjust my vocal volume, based on both verbal and visual cues from the person I'm talking with. But when I'm going through an episode, there is no insight whatsoever and I find myself astonished that people seem intimidated by me, or irritated at me. I don't feel like I'm out of line, but those filters I use during stable times don't work really well when my moods are out of control.

So, I have to rely on others to tell me when I'm alienating people. Thankfully, this situation rarely arises at work, and when it does, my boss knows how to handle it without pissing me off or making me feel defensive. (I'm very fortunate in that I was able to share this with him and request a few accommodations for those times when I'm not in full control of my moods.) My sister and a couple of my closer friends also know how to gently redirect me without angering me to the point that I go into denial. So I'm pretty lucky to have this support system to help me when the chips are down.