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Thank you for this post. I agree that how any (and I mean any) MI manifests itself in a given person will likely have to do with their 'psychology' (basically everything outside of whatever chemicals are or are not roiling in our brains, in other words, who we are, our histories, etc.).
Is all our good behaviour or behaviour we are proud of because of bipolar too... because people love to own up to that bit.
It bothers me a great deal seeing the attribution of what one doesn't like about oneself to bipolar. It can help with the shame/guilt, but certainly not get to the core of the (non-bipolar) psychological issues. People with bipolar disorder are perfectly capable of flying into rages outside of episodes, for example. It can -potentially- be a completely separate issue. I think if there were a magic wand to whisk away the shame that can ensue from bouts of rage (or x inappropriate behavior) then it would be easier, and more common, to recognize them as potentially not part of an episode (if this is the case).
I'd love to attribute my faults and any poor behavior on bipolar disorder, but alas, life happens, *I* happen...
I think, to some extent or another, we can all agree on this. And it's part of the whole struggle with determining what 'mood' or 'behavior' is and is not bipolar. Recognizing/acknowledging/facing all that goes on outside of our illness, which, unless you're literally constantly cycling, is going to be mostly 'ourselves' I think is a lifelong project. This is one of the reasons why I'm such a big believer in therapy in the context of bipolar disorder -that's where you can face and deal with the psychological and behavior issues that medication may help with to some extent, but not eradicate, and not help to understand.
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