Anyone who can weigh in with advice would be greatly appreciated. November 3rd is my five year anniversary with my husband and while it’s a happy time, it’s also a very devastating time for me. When I met my current husband, I had just ended a long term relationship and moved into my own place. I was working 50 hour weeks at a new job and had just started attending classes for my bachelor’s degree. I was happy, I had no clue at this time that I’m BP, hypersexual and have adjustment disorder. I was making it on my own and was doing what I had set out to do. I’m very goal oriented.

Anyway, we weren’t being smart and by Thanksgiving I was pregnant. Literally on Thanksgiving day, as I was introducing my parents to my new boyfriend, I was telling them I was pregnant with his child. I was embarrassed of myself, and since then life has gone downhill. I was 29 when this happened and getting "knocked up" wasn't in the plans.

As a repercussion of our ignorance our relationship has always been on and off, with more arguing and drama than any relationship I’ve ever had. I resisted this relationship for four years without ending. I felt responsible to it due to our daughter and I felt trapped.

It’s always been hard and it seems like the further into the relationship we go the more we hurt each other. I put myself in the hospital in January due to the terrible, depressive, dark and hopeless hole that I felt stuck in. I was discharged BP but my therapist isn’t sure if I’m type 1 or 2. My husband has been at my side as my main support since then. He’s more patient with me and he understands my anger and how to help me keep my moods steady. He recognizes before I do when I’m not eating right or sleeping right.

Now that all of this has happened, my parents refuse to accept the DX of BP and refuse to accept that my husband is any good for me. My Mother doesn’t even feel that I should be on any medication. We don’t spend time with them as a family because they don’t want to be around him, instead I take my kids there to see them once in a while and on special occasions. My parents get upset that I don’t visit often, but I feel that they need to set aside their differences with my husband and show some support for my decision in making my marriage work out. My husband feels that any time I visit them they bad talk him (which they don’t) but because of it he won’t make any effort to make it better either because he's continuously excluded. I hate it.

I was raised to respect my elders, and I tolerate their decision on a temporary basis to give them time to come around, but I can’t seem to get across to any of them how badly it upsets me that they won’t speak to each other.
I’m slowly reaching the point that I don’t care if I’m offending any of them. I’m upset with my husband for not attempting to make it better and I’m upset with my parents for refusing to accept my marriage. I’m upset that they refuse to believe the BP diagnosis. (There’ve been instances since I was 14 that screamed BP but it went unnoticed and I don’t know how). How could they not have known that something was wrong?? I thought teenage depression was normal and I brushed off suicidal thoughts as me being a selfish person over reacting.

How do I get them to listen to me in regards to my diagnosis and to accept my marriage? I’m happy and he’s been my rock regardless of the bad times.
Torn