From your post, it sounds like you don't want to share with them. If so, that's totally your right. You know your family best and ultimately, you should trust your gut.

That said, I'll share my own experience with the issue. I was fairly depressed during grade school and high school. My parents never totally picked up on it. Went to college 5 hrs away, got worse, went to grad school 4 hrs away and crashed so hard I had a hard time being functional. I didn't tell them how bad things got. I started taking a number of meds. One day they were visiting and offered to help clean my apt while I went to class. Well (being a little nosy) they discovered my (hidden) meds.

I had hidden it from them because I thought they wouldn't understand, would judge me, etc. My parents aren't usually good with that sort of thing. But actually they stepped up. One specific way that they stepped up was to be financially supportive of my therapy in grad school. And even more recently, since I still have money problems, they paid for an expensive psychiatric treatment that my insurance wouldn't cover. In a family that expresses love through money, I feel pretty loved and supported!

That said, my depression diagnosis was recently updated to BP II. I have not bothered to tell them that. While I am not opposed to telling them eventually, at this point idk what it could add to their understanding. The depression is way more problematic for me than the hypomania.

Best,
EJ