It seems like the public has two views of bipolar. One side thinks we're just moody and need to get over it (I used to be that way). The other side thinks we're batshit crazy and need drugs and a babysitter. Like any other generalization, there are elements of the truth in both of them, but they are, on the whole, false.

I guess I don't worry about the stigma, mostly because it is the problem of the stigmatizer and not mine. If someone wants to hold me at arm's length because they think I am batshit crazy, then I understand. In fact there are times when I am batshit crazy. I'm not likely to shoot up a school or step in front of a train, but if someone thinks I will, then I just acknowledge and move on.