Reveii,

I am so sorry to hear about your situation. When I was diagnosed with Bipolar I, I couldn't work for three months as it took me a while to get acclimated to the medicine I was prescribed. The first two months I was back at work, I was on auto-pilot and my productivity stats weren't the greatest. Fortunately, my performance wasn't bad enough to get written up and I was able to make a lot of improvements over the next year. I ended up switching to a more analytical based job, which has reduced my stress and has been rewarding on a personal level.

At this point, I think you are jumping ahead of yourself by worrying about how you will make it going back to work. From reading your post, it sounds like you've done an incredible job of establishing a career in a demanding industry.

A few options:
- Is there a nearby outpatient treatment program that you can utilize in the next three weeks? Outpatient really helped me bridge the gap between hospitalization and getting back to a normal life.
- From reading your post, it sounds like you do have the option of transferring to another school if your current principal is a pain.
- What is your relationship with the teacher's union?
- What is the age of your daughter? When I had to take work home when my daughter was 3-4, I simply plopped open a coloring book or gave my kid some additional TV time. Obviously, time with your child is important but there are ways that you can sneak in some administrative work with your child. Another option may be to wake up a hour earlier or work on it after putting your daughter to bed.
- Remember that your teacher skill set is still there, regardless if you have any type of illness. While I personally do not have the skill set to be a teacher, you probably do if you've gotton this far in your career.
- You may want to check if your p-doc can refer you to a counselor who has experience working with bipolar patients. If you do cognitive based therapy or DBT, that may help you uncover some coping skills to handle stressors at work.
- Have faith that the more proactive you are in identifying treatment and managing your health, the better it will be.

Keep us posted! The first year post diagnosis is a huge adjustment. My daughter was three when I was diagnosed, and she is now six.