I lost all of my friends because of bipolar disorder. I haven't yet gotten to the point where I am out in the world enough again to make new ones. My relationship with my husband is very strong. I do feel bad that my illness has made our life more difficult (stress, eventual decrease in earnings, my lack of motivation to contribute as much as I'd like in other ways). My mother died when my illness was just starting to get very bad. That exacerbated the whole situation, and left me without a key supporter. My dad has gone his own way for the most part. My siblings have, too, and my sister and her family have struggled with their own psychiatric issues.