@r010159: Sorry to hear about your friends' misunderstandings. For "outsiders" it can be really hard to get a sense of what BP can do to a person, as well as understand the role of meds. I try to be as tolerant as possible when listening to uninformed opinions, and then explain my standpoint the best I can.

Mum wants me to wean myself off medication this summer (not going to happen). She thinks that my mood stabilizers are turning me into a dull zombie, and also dislikes my reliance on benzos for sleep.

I know that she's uninformed but ultimately means well. So I listen to her with as much patience as I can muster. Sometimes I snap and tell her that she doesn't understand that with BP, I need to be taking at least my mood stabilizers for the rest of my life. Yes, I don't like the cognitive dulling, disorientation, dizziness, drowsiness, etc. either. These are compromises that I accept living with, because the alternatives (psychosis, suicidal ideation, irresponsible financial decisions, inexplicable crying spells, etc.) are so much worse.