WindsThatBlow, there is a very large amount of good stuff in your original post and the responses thus far. Like others, I thank you a lot for this thread!

Yes, I also agree that medication treatment is crucial for most with bipolar disorder (and unipolar depression). However, I also strongly agree that for most these "supplements" are the icing on the cake in recovery. There is no way on earth that I would be as stable as I am now by just taking medications. No way! It is the many things I've learned to do beyond meds that got me to this point. However, I also see clearly that we aren't all the same here. Not all of the same practices are helpful for all.

I admire that psychiatrist's words you quoted. It seems he has an insight that many don't. He clearly sees patients as humans and not just part of his business.

Something that went through my mind when reading this thread was the lack of support many with mental illness suffer. There are definitely aspects of being on disability that help, but also a certain isolation. And of course those with mental illness that trudge and struggle along at jobs and with huge family responsibilities also have a certain isolation, in my view. Support groups are limited in many ways, and sometimes hard to get to. How they're limited I could discuss quite a bit. Or at least limited for me.

Though not the majority, far too many with mental illness are shoved away in jails and prisons. Literally. And these places do the opposite in terms of support and recovery. Yet most of us don't find ourselves in literal jails, there's a certain form we do find ourselves in. Neither form is the right place for us.