I shouldn't be posting here but that message made me really happy; I freaking knew it.

My mom has a form of bipolar, as confirmed by her psychiatrist the other day then relayed to me.

I guess it's just nice to have an explanation, labeling the behavior that scared me so much growing up. I know that my mom has very low lows, but I've never seen her manic. I have seen mood shifts before, and was usually on the receiving end since there's no one else around. Even now, she'll blame me for ruining her life one day and call to chat a few days later. That said, it struck me when so much of her treatment, from diagnosis to medication, was related to bipolar, yet she denied it and called me an idiot if I ever brought it up.

The way my mom puts it, her highs are "being a normal person", with appropriate emotional responses. I don't know about that, but it's definitely a wider range compared to depression.

Guess I'm fascinated to know that there's an explanation for it, even if we're increasingly estranged.