People seem to want it both ways, and either way the bipolar person gets screwed. My older sister is the worst; according to her, I can't have a legitimate emotion---it all has to be about the BP. But when I react to her reaction to my emotion(s), she'll accuse me of blaming everything on the BP. I can't win. And she wonders why I choose not to spend time with her without my husband or other family members present.