Dear msinfiniti:
Let me start out by saying how "sorry" I am to hear about your dilemma with your husband. I can tell you first hand what it's like to live in that situation, as I, myself, and stricken with Bi-polar 1 Disorder. I know only too well what your husband's going through, and the many episodic fits he is having in regards to making decisions. Any of those is certainly going to "trigger" him in ways you can't believe exist. My husband has been living with it for over 30 some odd years, and he's still here!! I don't know why he has bothered with me this long, but I guess he really does love me and doesn't feel sorry for me????
I've been through nearly every raw emotion there is and I have never been able to cope with much of anything in life.
It started to roar it's ugly head in the mid 70's, although some of my doctors feel I have always had manic/depression. There was no proof of it back then. I too
suffered a "nervous" breakdown in '78 and willing went to a hospitals' locked ward for nearly 2 and a 1/2 months. I have
spent time in therapy over the past 17 years BEFORE someone finally gave me the right DIAGNOSIS. That's been
30 years in the making, though. Not very good for such an up and coming medical break through, is it???? However
they tell me that it takes approx. 10 years to pinpoint the disorder. Hah! poppy-%#@&#!. They just like to use humans as guieny pigs, I think!!! Anyway, I was officially diagnosed last Dec. with Bi-polar 1, and been on a regimen of Luvox, for depression, and Lamictal for mania. I'm telling you, the quality of my life hasn't been the same since. It's like night
and day now. I can see the dominoes falling into place now for me, and I can see why I drove everyone else around me nuts all the time. It isn't SIMPLE anything.....this
is a DEVASTATING illness that can wrap the whole family up in knots trying to deal with it. The meds. will not CURE
the disorder, but rather help the individual MANAGE it. YOu still go thru those "dark" days, but the manic med. makes it
a hell of alot easier to do. It's better than the alternative.
One just has to be willing to stick their toes back into uncharted waters. There are lots of new combo drugs out there that won't have those nasty side affects like you have with psychiatopic drug therapies. If you do, then the drug has to be changed.
Your husband will ultimately have to decide what the QUALITY of his life is going to be.............but I can honestly
tell you he's losing out on a good thing if he doesn't.
Like the old saying goes......." you can lead a horse to the troth, but you can't make him drink the water"!!!!!

Good luck.