[ivylove]

everyone uses the term" normal" but can anyone define the word???Just wondering. bc if anyone tells me Im not normal again Im going to start asking them to define the word. Who's to say that all bipolar people are not normal maybe we are normal and the rest of the world is off their rocker.Just needed to rant a while....

[SunAngel]

I think we use the word "normal" for anyone who doesn't have BP.

No, I don't think anyone is "normal". It's just a term we use for people who are not suffering with BP Disorder.

[ivylove]

I don't think anyone is what they call normal. everyone I know has some sort of up and down and mood swing from one to another.If Im Bp,and they say I am,then so are half of the people that I know.I guess Im just second guessing my diagnosis,maybe one day I will accept it but that does not mean that I have to give in to it,fighting this. How do you accept something that you don't understand?something that is ruining your life!!!I can't stand this anymore!!!Iam only 39 why do I have this dibilitating thing.I have raised 3 happy successful kids and have a great relationship with my husband but I can't hold a job for more than a year before this thing gets in the way.we are supposed to be better for the things that we go thru in life....just wondering were my better is.Do I have to accept a life of meds that make me crazy and a life of dissability?I guess that Im just having a hard time even though I was diagnosed more than ten years ago..HELP how do I accept this as my life ....its not what I pictured.

[SunAngel]

You know, my sister always says that everybody has a little of BP in them and it really gets to me because their ups and downs are usually situational and part of life.

We experience things a whole lot more. We have a chemical thing going on in our brains that makes us experience mood swings that are not connected to something situational.

It just hits us whenever it feels like it.

I hope you are able to accept your diagnosis and not fight it so you can learn coping skills to help deal with it. ((((HUGS))))

[venusss]

Do I have to accept a life of meds that make me crazy and a life of dissability?

Um, no. You certainly should not take meds that make you even worse off... if anything, the **** should help (even if there is trade offs.... but your mind should not be one of them).

And I believe most people can find themselves a place in life. In Icarus Projec publication authors questioned the the whole normalness based on how we view impact of the mental illness - by ability or inability to do your job... they ask "what if you never wanted to do this?". Does not mean you should not work at all... but there are many many ways to get by.

Of course, many questions any lifestyle that can be viewed as alternative. But it is not their life. They may be happy in their 9-5 jobs and mundane lifes... if you are not, you should seek another path for yourself.

I don't call it "illness". I call it "intense". It can be lived with. I don't know what you need... but I am pretty sure you can figure it out, if you sit with yourself for a while... life is hard, but in the end it is worth it.

[Aslan]

normal people are usually the best actors.

[Feiticeira]

Haha @ Aslan

Normality is defined by your experiences, you are the basis in which you begin to analyze the weirdness or eccentricities of others.

Someone may tell you, your not normal, but what they are really saying is that your not like them.